Community Events
Join us at upcoming events that support our mission to combat housing insecurity and homelessness in Cheshire. From fundraisers to community gatherings, your participation helps bring hope and resources to those in need.
Celebrate the holiday season with Carols & Classics by Candlelight, a magical evening of music and community in support of Hope For Our Neighbors. Tickets are available for $50 per person, with all proceeds helping neighbors in need through Hope for Our Neighbors. In addition to attending, guests may also purchase “Honor” candles for $3 each, a heartfelt way to remember or honor a loved one during this special night of light and reflection.
Meet The Musicians
Wendy Kerner, Harpist
The artistry of harpist Wendy Kerner has been described by The New York Times as “first rate,” while other critics have hailed her performances as “exquisitely expressive” and praised her “talented artistry.”
A native of Westport, Connecticut, Wendy began studying the harp at the age of seven. She earned both her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees from The Juilliard School, where she studied with renowned master teacher Susann McDonald. A winner of the American Harp Society’s Concert Artist Program, Wendy made her New York debut at Carnegie Recital Hall as a winner of the Artists International Chamber Music Competition. She currently serves as principal harpist with both the Norwalk and Ridgefield Symphonies.
Dedicated to education as well as performance, Wendy is on the faculty of Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, CT, and maintains an active private teaching studio in Wilton. She is also the founder and director of the Elyrica Summer Harp Ensemble Program in Ridgefield, which brings together harpists of all ages. A respected leader in her field, Wendy serves as President of the Connecticut Chapter of the American Harp Society.
Wendy has appeared in concert across the United States, performing at venues including Lincoln Center, the Ravinia Festival, Bennington College, the JFK Memorial Library in Boston, Trinity College, and Yale University, as well as internationally with the Chamber Orchestra of Moscow. She has also performed at the World Harp Congress in Paris, France and Seattle, Washington, and as soloist with The Orchestra of New England, the Reading Symphony Orchestra, and the Ridgefield Symphony.
An advocate for new music, Wendy has premiered numerous works written for her by composers such as David Diamond, William Bolcom, Brandee Younger, and Edward Thompson. Her distinguished career has also included performances for two Cardinals, the Queen of Thailand, and the Prime Minister of Ireland. Recent highlights include concerts with the Three Irish Tenors and a special performance with Judy Collins.
Wendy can be heard on her acclaimed recording “Sounds of the Seine” with flutist Donna Milanovich, comprising The Glorian Duo, on the Delos International label.
Andrew Smith, Violin
Andrew Smith’s multi-faceted career seamlessly blends performance with a distinguished record of artistic leadership as a performer, teacher, and academic. At the age of twenty, he became Artistic Director of the Rubicon Ensemble, a collective of musicians from the London Symphony, Royal Opera House, BBC Symphony, and English National Opera. He was subsequently invited to serve as a director of the European Chamber Opera and later as
artistic advisor to London Musici. His arrangements of opera and choral works have been featured by the BBC, Heart of England Opera, and European Chamber Opera.
In 1996, Andrew became assistant to the Grammy Award–winning Emerson String Quartet, overseeing and participating in the international string quartet program at the Hartt School, University of Hartford. In 2000, he was invited by the University of Hartford and the Bushnell Theater to lead The Copland Festival, a major regional collaboration involving the Connecticut Opera, Connecticut Ballet, Hartford Symphony, Bushnell Theater, Hartford Stage Company, Wadsworth Atheneum, and Boosey & Hawkes.
From 2004 to 2010, Andrew served as Executive and Artistic Director of the Stamford International Music Festival in the United Kingdom, programming over forty chamber works each season. Under his leadership, the festival became one of the UK’s leading chamber music institutions, attracting an international body of young artists from the United States, Europe, and Asia.
Andrew currently serves as Executive Director of the Suzuki Music School of Westport and Orange. He is Vice President and founder of the Suzuki Association of New England, President of the Fairfield County String Teachers Association, and Founder and Director of the Connecticut Guitar Festival. As an active session musician, he continues to record for film, television, and gaming platforms around the world.
Andrea E. Mills, Cello
Cellist Andrea E. Mills is celebrated for her “rich and eloquent” playing (The Evening Telegraph, UK) and her versatile career as performer, teacher, and artistic leader. She holds a Bachelor of Music degree from the Hartt School and a Master of Music degree from the Cleveland Institute of Music. Her training includes masterclasses with Orlando Cole, Irene Sharp, and Yehudi Hanani, as well as studies at the Aspen Music School, Yellow Barn Music Festival, and Spoleto Festival (SC). Each summer, she serves as artist faculty at the Stamford International Music Festival in England.
Andrea has held principal cello positions with the Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, Waterbury Symphony, Wallingford Symphony, and the Cleveland Women’s Orchestra, with whom she also appeared as soloist. She has performed with numerous orchestras, including the Hartford, Kalamazoo, South Bend, and New Haven Symphonies; the Illinois Philharmonic; the Greater Bridgeport, Ridgefield, Youngstown, and Erie Philharmonics; and the Cleveland Chamber
Symphony. In 2003, she joined the orchestra of the Sarasota Opera Company.
Equally at home across musical genres, Andrea’s interests span classical, contemporary, and jazz. A 1998 fellow at the Henry Mancini Institute in California, she performed at the Hollywood Bowl and has appeared with artists including Andrea Bocelli, Luciano Pavarotti, Johnny Mathis, Yes, Diana Krall, Dave Grusin, the Turtle Island String Quartet, and the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
A dedicated educator in both traditional and Suzuki methods, Andrea has taught at the Ethel Walker School, Choate-Rosemary Hall, the Hartt Community Division, Western Springs Suzuki School, and Valparaiso University. She currently serves on the faculties of Sacred Heart University and the Suzuki Music School of Westport.
Andrea is the founding Director of Musici Entertainment and Pizzazz Strings, performs with the acclaimed Castillon Trio, and records as a session cellist for String Sessions, collaborating with composers such as Hans Zimmer, Lorne Balfe, and Tom Howe.