Young Tradition Vermont

Boston Tutoring Services is introducing a new series of blogposts about local nonprofit organizations. Our goals are to raise awareness about their work and to share how other people can get involved. If you or someone you know is part of, has worked with, or knows about a local nonprofit, please contact us and share your experiences. All submissions are welcome!

In the eighth part of our nonprofit series, Boston Tutoring Services talks with Mark Sustic, Founder and Director of Young Tradition Vermont. A non-profit organization in Fairfax, Vermont, Young Tradition Vermont supports families whose children have life-threatening illnesses and offers an inspirational and educational gateway to children and young adults interested in traditional music and dance.

Mark Sustic–consultant, educator and musician–works as a consultant with the Vermont Community Foundation, as well as Save the Children and other organizations, and he teaches as adjunct faculty in early education at the University of Vermont. Sustic is involved in working with children and youth on learning and performing traditional music and dance.

It was his son, Tom, who inspired the creation of Young Tradition Vermont. Tom died at age 16 in 2001, after a 2-year battle with leukemia. Throughout Tom’s life, Sustic was involved with a wide variety of performers. In 2002, several musicians offered to do a performance as part of a series of concerts in Burlington designed to create and sustain a fund established in Tom’s memory. The Tom Sustic Fund was born out of those contributions, and has continued to support families who have children at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Vermont and the Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire.

In an interview with Boston Tutoring Services, Sustic says Young Tradition Vermont continues with the Tom Sustic Fund’s legacy “to support families in ways they never could before,” citing this as the most gratifying aspect of his work.

The organization offers a chance for students to inspire, to learn, and to perform and share their sound and dance. One of Sustic’s greatest achievements at Young Tradition Vermont is “making that cycle come to life,” he says.

He is also immensely proud of the opportunity Young Tradition Vermont gave to a group of fifteen kids this past April, who, as part of the Young Tradition Touring Group, travelled to Scotland and England to perform.

“For many, this was their first overseas trip,” Sustic says.

Other performances by the Young Tradition Touring Group include trips to Cape Breton in Nova Scotia and the Catskills in New York State.

Although the organization faces challenges that most nonprofits do–such as inconsistency of volunteers and limited resources–Sustic likes to see these in a positive light.

“They’re disadvantages but also advantages,” he says.

One of these disadvantages is not having a building. As a result, teachers often have to search for places to play, but Sustic finds that the rewards are worth the challenges. He says the board also worries about who to prioritize–intro-level students or advanced students. He says they try to do some of both by splitting their focus evenly, which seems to be the most efficient method.

Since its creation, the organization has garnered a great deal of public attention and accolades. Today, people like to get involved on their Facebook page, but Sustic says exposure tends to spread by “a lot of word of mouth,” usually through performances and other activities. These activities serve as the framework of Young Tradition Vermont’s mission to support families with children with life-threatening illnesses through the world of traditional music and dance.

The organization offers a one-week-long music camp called Trad Camp over the summer, which is a rewarding experience for students of all ages and ability levels, thus attracting many. Beginners can also take advantage of the instrument petting zoo, where kids of all ability levels interact with music hands-on.

Throughout the year, Young Tradition Vermont travels to camp fairs and schools in order to inspire children with traditional music and dance and provide opportunities for them to learn and to perform. Word spreads when students attend and perform at concerts, festivals, dances, and sessions & jams.

Sustic says it’s especially helpful when people book young artists from their ensembles.

Performing opportunities also include presentations at the Vermont Children’s Hospital and the annual Children’s Memorial Service at Ira Allen Chapel at UVM. As part of the Tom Sustic Fund’s legacy, a percentage of every event with revenue goes to a fund that supports families children with life-threatening/life-altering conditions.

All photographs courtesy of Young Tradition Vermont.
All information provided by Young Tradition Vermont and Mark Sustic.