Mary Hardy Roberts has introduced music to countless individuals from Harlem to Scottsville. The Scottsville Center for the Arts and Nature String Project is a continuation of her philosophy that everyone has a right to play a musical instrument.

It is this inclusive environment that Mary has fostered throughout her 50+ teaching career. A few years ago, she and Debbie Ankney met and the similarities in their teaching philosophies matched.

Debbie is the string teacher and chair of the Fine Arts Department at St. Anne's Belfield. She will be teaching violin to Yancey Elementary School students beginning on April 15. Instruments are provided by the Hardy Instrument Library of the Scottsville Center for Arts and Nature.

The teaching program will be implemented through Club Yancey, an initiative of the St. John Baptist of the Woods Foundation.

The String Project is just one program that is offered through community outreach. First Time Fiddlers is a workshop that has attracted hundreds of individuals to try the violin.