A local teen-led ensemble aims to help youth find their voices both in music and advocacy by performing annual holiday concerts.
Los Altos Hills native Julia Fung is the founder of Carol for a Cause, which launched in 2020 to raise money for local theaters during the COVID-19 pandemic. An eighth grader at the time, Fung invited her friends to support the cause and perform.
“I got 20 of my theater friends to record them singing, with the track in their ear. Then, we edited the entire thing, made an hour-long program,” said Fung, now a senior at Los Altos High School.
She noted that the first performance fundraised more than $4,000, split between the Peninsula Youth Theater and the Family Giving Tree. Since then, Carol for a Cause has supported several nonprofits, including Upstage Theater, Diabetes Youth Families, Pound Puppy Rescue and the Magical Bridge Foundation.
Fung encourages her performers to choose organizations they feel passionate about.
“I want to make sure that they know how powerful their voice is,” Fung said, “not just in singing, but also in what you can do with it.”
Since its inception, Carol for a Cause has grown not only in impact but in size as well. The organization has expanded to the East Coast, with a second chapter in Hartford, Connecticut. Both the West and East Coast chapters consist of 15-25 members. Additionally, Carol for a Cause recently changed its membership requirements, now accepting students ages 9-18.
Fung said she expects the program to grow even more after she graduates high school, when she plans to surrender her title as president to a younger member. Fung said she my establish a chapter in New York City, where she is headed in the fall to attend New York University as a film student.
“If we want to start a New York branch, we can, and I’m 100% going to be involved in that,” Fung said. “It’s expanding, and it’s the best thing that I could have asked for.”
Fung added that she is working to maintain the longevity of the program and inspire more youth to raise their volume on stage and in day-to-day life.
For more information, visit carolsforacause.com.
