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The silence hit me like a physical blow. Walking through Princeton Blairstown campgrounds this summer, I kept expecting to hear the familiar voices. But I did not. A sister music program had shut down suddenly. In that quiet, it struck me that this is what absence feels like. And if Keys 2 Success ever disappeared from Newark, we'd leave a similar void. This has been a pivotal summer for Keys. One that showed our strength and resolve to stay involved in Newark, no matter what. It’s a summer that made my heart swell with pride for our students and the community we’ve built together. I hope you will feel the same as you read this newsletter.
Jee-Hoon Krska, Executive Director
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This summer brought a harsh financial reality. Like so many nonprofits, we lost more than 50% in foundation funding—money we'd counted on to hire adult teachers for our summer programming. We couldn't bring in the experienced instructors who had anchored our camps in previous years.
This loss created an unexpected void that our young people stepped up to fill—not as a crisis response, but as the natural result of years of leadership development finally revealing its power. When we needed teachers, Urban Fellows took charge because they saw their own futures tied to the program's success. When we needed community outreach, Newark teenagers connected with their peers in ways no adult ever could.
This summer, we watched Onya—who started as a shy first-grader ten years ago—stand in front of groups and teach piano with the confidence of a seasoned educator. Our Urban Fellows ran entire programs with skills that amazed veteran teachers.
What initially felt like loss became a revelation: our students weren't just learning music—they were becoming the teachers, the ambassadors, the very foundation that will carry Keys 2 Success forward regardless of what challenges come next. We will not be silenced.
This summer, our youth didn't just save our program. They proved it was already theirs.
Let's invest in our youth and watch leaders multiply.
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When American Opera singer, Kevin Maynor, visits our students at Pennington Court, the loftiest dreams of our students become possible.
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Brendan Da Silva pauses work for his entire group at the #1 realty group in Newark, to spend an afternoon sharing their journeys with our students.
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Piano is a gateway to many possibilities! Keys 2 Success students participate in a day of marching band workshops at Weequahic High School in Newark.
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Our Board president, Onieka Sutton, spends a weekend with our students at the Princeton-Blairstown camp. Leading by example and mentoring with lived experience.
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Growing Gardens,
Not Arranging Flowers
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Keys 2 Success works like a garden, not a flower shop. Instead of selecting the most ripe blooms for exclusive arrangements that leave the soil depleted, we plant seeds throughout Newark and cultivate entire ecosystems that grow stronger with each investment. We nurture the 99% of students who would never be noticed by elite programs, rather than picking only the 1% already primed to flourish.
Each dollar doesn't just fund programming—it creates Urban Fellows who become leaders and cultivates community ownership that multiplies resources to sustain growth.
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Talent emerges everywhere. Over 10 years, we've navigated countless barriers in order to consistently stay with our children and provide what they needed to grow. This summer, when our students walked onto the NJPAC stage, they proved that "giftedness" is often just access in disguise.
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Each connection creates another. When Onya earns her Urban Fellow paycheck, that money helps her family with household expenses. When she teaches younger children at Hyatt Court, their mothers get crucial support. When those mothers host concerts in their community room, neighbors discover live music for the first time and start asking about lessons for their own kids. Each connection creates another, spreading opportunity organically through existing networks.
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Everything flourishes together. When the Garden of Life started hosting outdoor classes 3 summers ago, we met the South Ward Police Chief and Ms. Wander, a lifelong South Ward resident who later joined our board. This summer, these connections led to Keys 2 Success hosting mini-fairs at police precincts and participating in weekly outreach events throughout Newark.
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This is how healthy neighborhoods work: when you add something that truly serves, everything flourishes together. Our focus on the 99% creates widespread transformation instead of isolated success stories. This is the difference between flower arrangements and gardens.
Our work is still in its infancy, but the strength of its roots is already showing. We're confident this will grow into a towering oak too strong to be uprooted.
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