LAWRENCE — Tapping on the wood of the violin with a bow, Elijiah Colon, 8, creates a serene sound, just as the rest of Community Strings did at its annual concert at Grace Episcopal Church on Sunday.
The concert was dedicated to Veda Eswarappa, 18, of Andover, a volunteer for eight years, who will graduate Phillips Academy in June and head off to college.
Eswarappa is an honor roll student, a member of the softball team and plays oboe and violin for the Phillips Academy orchestra. She also was a semifinalist in the 2008 National Merit Scholarship competition.
Community Strings is a program sponsored by Northshore Youth Symphony Orchestra of Topsfield, offering Lawrence youngsters free violin lessons and a chance to perform.
The orchestra is made up of members from Community Day Charter School on Prospect Street and Esperanza Academy for Girls on Garden Street.
The group was established in 1998 by Marcia Lier, a former art teacher, and Trudy Larson, executive director of the Northshore Youth Symphony Orchestra.
