The great 19th Century Russian author Leo Tolstoy once said "Music is the shorthand of emotion." Tolstoy himself may be long gone, and the music that stirred his emotions was likely much different that most of what we listen to today, but his words still ring true.

Imagine, then, the emotion in a piece of music created especially for an event like a graduation. It's a happy day, to be sure, but goodbyes are hard and it's a big transition.

"To Belong," was originally written by Mt. Hope High School music educator and Vocal Ensemble director David Lauria around the time of his own graduation from Barrington High School. As timeless as Tolstoy, Lauria's composition is one he's come back to many times, but this year, he decided to have Mt. Hope's 23-member Vocal Ensemble record the piece, and they performed it for the audience at graduation on Saturday, June 9.

It's a sweetly sentimental tune, with lyrics that evoke a sense of place, and what it's like to be a graduating senior saying goodbye to the people that have been such a central part of your life up until now. The music offers several opportunities for the Vocal Ensemble's talented soloists to show off what they've got.

Three of those soloists also happen to be graduates: Nicole Contente, daughter of Susan and Alfred Contente; Meaghan Leary, daughter of Ann and William Leary, and Alexa Canario, daughter of Michaela and Jason Sousa, and Mario Canario. Alexa also served as president of the Vocal Ensemble. Their performance was a fitting end to their Mt. Hope careers, and though none of the three plan to study music in college (Alexa is going into medical imaging, Meaghan hopes to study speech pathology, and Nicole is interested in fashion design) all enjoyed honing their vocal skills through the Bristol-Warren schools.

The project, however, "took on a far different meaning," according to Mr. Lauria, following the shootings at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. He decided to use the performance of the piece as a fundraiser to benefit the Stoneman Douglas Victims' Fund, and the Ensemble dedicated their performance to those who lost their lives in the February 14 tragedy, as well as survivors, family and friends.

The Vocal Ensemble also produced a music video which included clips of events and highlights of the year at Mt. Hope High School. "The students really took the lead on this," said Mr. Lauria.

To donate to the GoFundMe, visit tinyurl.com/ToBelong. Donations to this fundraiser are not processed by anyone affiliated with Bristol-Warren Regional Schools; they are transferred directly to the Stoneman Douglas Victims' Fund, administrated by the Broward Education Foundation.