EL CAJON, Calif. — East County San Diego students are strumming their new guitar thanks to overwhelming donations by the community.
Grossmont High School’s guitar teacher, Jeremy Cooke, asked for 80 guitars to help his students learn from home and ended up with 250 guitars.
“It was an amazing outpouring of support from the community in need in this time of weirdness and negativity,” said Cooke.
He has been teaching guitar on Zoom without any instruments until Thursday when the students picked up their guitar.
“You get to learn a new instrument, it's like a whole other culture,” said student, Victoria Hester.
Junior Brandon Lopez said he didn’t want to fret over buying a guitar.
“I really don't have the money to spend on a guitar and I feel like it's really helpful,” said Lopez. “I'm actually really excited about this because I've always wanted to play guitar."
With 135 students enrolled, Lopez's teacher took notice. Cooke who is also an alum at Grossmont High School saw the music on the wall.
“Half the students are in lower socioeconomic households. They don't have access to a guitar, a lot of them,” said Cooke. “We need to get guitars for these kids or at least try.”
He went to social media and asked for donated guitars. The goal was 80 guitars, but donations amplified. Cooke traveled 3,000 miles across the county from Fallbrook to San Ysidro. The pricey ones will stay locked and in the classroom.
“To me, the real heroes are the donors, without them none of this would be possible,” said Cooke.
There were donations from people who grew up in poverty and wanted to give back and others whose loved ones were gone and wanted to pass it on.
“One woman shared she had later stages of breast cancer and she really wanted to see her guitar live on,” said Cooke.
At the end of the year, the students will return the guitar so a new student can strum a new note.
“For years and years these guitars will live on and be played,” said Cooke.
When safely allowed, a concert for the donors will be performed with the students playing the donated guitars.
Other instruments have been donated such as a saxophone, zither, mandolin, basses, and soon a trumpet. Cooke said the Grossmont Foundation also donated money for guitar strings.
The school added a third section, so more students are in need of a guitar and a GoFundMe has been set up to help the students with a system that will them to record their music and write songs.
You can also contact Jeremy Cooke through e-mail jcooke@guhsd.net and Instagram at @covidguitars.