Music Drives Us stopped into Alex’s Place in Martha’s Vineyard to honor a very special person, Tony Lombardi, the Director of the Teen Center at the YMCA.
As a part of the Y’s mission, Alex’s Place is a free program for all Island teens, supported each year entirely through community donations and grants. The mission of Alex’s Place is to provide healthy, safe, and positive activities, and a supporting and welcoming environment for all Island teens to help them achieve their career and personal goals. Continued support from Music Drives Us will help the Y achieve our mission as it relates to teens and continue a program that is of great interest to our Island teens and connects to the musical tradition and roots of Martha’s Vineyard.

Alex’s Place was awarded a grant from Music Drives Us in 2016 for their Adrenaline Music Program (AMP) which mentored teens about the different aspects of music, including how to form bands, collaborate, and perform. It was at this grant site visit in 2016, that we had the pleasure of meeting Tony Lombardi. Tony was a fantastic leader and tireless advocate for the teens of Martha’s Vineyard. He radiated a special passion and love for music and wanted each teen to be afforded the opportunity to learn and grow in a safe space. Tony passed away in December of 2017 and Music Drives Us wanted to honor his memory by providing a donation in Tony’s honor to continue his indelible legacy. We will always remember Tony, and are proud to support our aligned mission of providing musical opportunities for all segments of society. Thank you Tony, and to the wonderful teens at Alex’s Place who performed for us during our visit yesterday!
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Read more about our visit in the Vineyard Gazette and MV Times. Thank you to the wonderful team at Alex’s Place for hosting us!