Youth for Youth Holiday Concert Entertains for Good Causes

BY DEBBIE HALL

This year, on Dec. 14, Roxy Jones will continue her Youth for Youth Holiday Concert tradition, which Skai Jones, Roxy’s sister, will co-chair. Proceeds will benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Southern Nevada and the Forgotten Song Foundation. Since 2020, Roxy and her talented friends have shared their talents and raised money for good causes.

“This is a holiday concert put on by Las Vegas youth musicians focused on raising money for underserved youth in our community,” Roxy explained. “Coming out of COVID, I wanted an opportunity to perform again, as well as other youth musicians.

Roxy developed her love for music when the family visited her grandmother’s ranch as a toddler. Jon Schmidt of The Piano Guys, a family friend, was also staying overnight and started playing and performing crazy tricks on the piano, playing with his nose and elbow. Roxy thought it was the coolest thing ever, crouching underneath the piano and watching him while he played upside-down. Roxy asked her parents for lessons and learned to play the piano at age three. Skai followed in her musical footsteps but chose the violin instead.

“Performing is so important to playing an instrument,” Roxy said. “I started this concert, and when we had so many people coming to the concert, my dad suggested that next year, we could sell tickets and donate the money to a charity.”

“I was selected as a Bank of America Student Leader this year, and I based a lot of my application around the work we did with the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth,” Roxy said. “Bank of America hires student interns at the end of their junior or senior year of high school, and for eight weeks, we partnered up with local nonprofits, working with them side by side. We worked with the Boys & Girls Club of Southern Nevada, so I spent much time with the kids and was fully trained as a staff member, working in clubhouses four days a week. I made many personal connections and believed in their work and everything they do for our community’s youth.”

Over eight weeks, Roxy worked one day a week in their Las Vegas headquarters and shadowed staff members in different departments. She also attended a Washington, D.C. trip for the Bank of America Student Leader Conference, where she met with congressional leaders and fellowshipped with other student leaders from around the country.

“I was working at the Andre Agassi Club, and something that stuck out in my mind that made me want to donate to that clubhouse was that there were over 100 kids a day throughout the summer. There was never any air conditioning in the gym, and a couple of times, the swamp cooler went out in the building. I could tell the kids weren’t having the best time because it was always hot. I thought it would be impactful if we donated to them so they could put money towards getting an air conditioning unit in their gym.”

As for the other charity selected, Roxy explained, “I’ve wanted to donate to the Forgotten Song Foundation since the first year of our concert. I’m glad we could partner with them for this year’s concert. They’ve been a huge supporter of my sister and me in our musical journeys. We’ve received scholarships from them in the past and know what a difference they make in the lives of youth musicians. We wanted to use the opportunity to share our talents and hard work through music to help them give to other youth musicians in Las Vegas,” Roxy said.

“I think it’s cool how we can use our musical abilities to give back to others to achieve their musical careers and pursue more wonderful things in that category,” Skai added.

In previous years, proceeds from the Youth for Youth Holiday Concert benefitted the Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth. “We went to one of their facilities to meet with their CEO, Arash Ghafoori, who showed us all the amenities and services they provided,” Roxy said.

“The money we raised went straight to the youth for fun Christmas Day activities like brunch and watching movies with popcorn and other treats. The following year, the money raised went toward the NPHY Dream Gift Program, which allows youth in the program to request an item for Christmas that would help them in their life.”

Roxy and Skai were recently honored at the 2024 Vegas Icon Visionary Awards (VIVA), a star-studded, dazzling evening hosted by the Forgotten Song Foundation at Notoriety in downtown Las Vegas on Sept. 19. The event, which celebrates and supports the vibrant arts community in Las Vegas, awarded Roxy with the Carolyn Freeman Grant Scholarship and Skai with the Sarah St. Claire Grant. The 10th annual event marked the foundation’s final VIVA Awards. The Youth for Youth Holiday Concert will also be the foundation’s last event this year.

The list for the Youth for Youth Holiday Concert has yet to be finalized, but returning performers include Roxy (piano), Skai (violin), Jun and Charles Hong (piano), Savannah Downey (violin) and Hope Olsen (flute). This brings the concert full circle since the first concert performed in Savannah’s home in 2020. The concert will include a mix of classical and holiday music and showcase the various instruments these talented youth will play.

“As a parent, I’m so proud of these girls. You know, I threw out an idea for them to do something for charity, and they’ve taken it and made it something much bigger than I ever hoped or thought it could be. I think it’s a real testament to how much people love these girls and appreciate their talent and what they’re doing in our community,” said their father, Nate Jones.

“Before the 2023 concert, I told the youth that the kindest thing you can do in life is to give of yourself for someone who may never be able to repay you. After many hours of practice, years of study and maybe a few nerves on edge, these nine young women and young men took the stage and gave of themselves in a big way. From newcomers performing vocals and oboe to our returning youth on piano, violin and flute, they gave the audience a memory they will carry with them through the holiday season and beyond. And even more, they raised over $30,000 for homeless youth in our community.”

The Youth for Youth Holiday Concert has raised over $50,000 to date.

“I’m proud of my daughters, Roxy and Skai, who spent countless hours preparing and promoting the annual event. I also have to show tremendous gratitude to the music teachers, the parents, Stacey Gualandi, the volunteers and those who supported this event for the youth in our community.”

Visit www.youthforyouth.vegas for more information or to purchase tickets for the Youth for Youth Holiday Concert.