lay the tracks
2026 Annual
Fundraising Banquet
- The Daily Ration
1220 Dartmouth St,
Chattanooga, TN 37405 - Thursday, October 8, 2026
- 7 p.m.
Our Impact
“It’s happening within our programs. Our kids are becoming the leaders. Our kids are becoming the teachers. The kids are going to run these programs, and it’s happening at Expression Engine.”
— Eric Booth, El Sistema USA.“They are bridging a gap in after school programs for East Lake Elementary kids. They are really IN the community they serve and take care of the needs there. I’m excited to be able to partner with them in their work in the community.”
— Expression Engine Donor“Kids never really age out of Expression Engine whereas a lot of other programs might not work with them after they age out of the program. They allow kids to have their first job and it’s in a really healthy safe place”
— Local Community Member“I love watching the kids learn and make musical breakthroughs and build relationships with each other and the staff. Their joy in music making and the joy they share when they perform for an audience is inspiring. It’s a privilege watching these students grow into leaders and develop a heart for mentoring and teaching the younger students.”
— Expression Engine Volunteer“Expression Engine is beautiful, empowering, and respectful- a vision of what can be. When I watch kids rise to the challenge of creating and performing their own music together, when I see them grow as leaders and teachers, I am moved and reminded of how incredible children are, each human is, what we can do when given space, when we work together. It feels like a breath of God’s Spirit at work, and every time I get to witness, I leave inspired, awed and grateful.”
— Expression Engine Volunteer“Expression Engine resonates with joy, from the directors and management all the way down to the kids, it’s contagious. Through their intentionality with the kids, community and their engagement with the arts they make a space for these kids to be seen and to develop their voice in a safe place. I remember seeing this joy even in the parents at concerts and events.”
— Expression Engine Donor“Creating a context of learning while also establishing an environment of belonging is a special and powerful thing. It’s a wonderful gift for these kids and has had a huge impact in many of their lives.”
— Expression Engine Volunteer“It’s a sweet ministry and community where kids find a safe space to be and to play. Kids learn music, create their own music together, then perform their original music. Then they turn around and help teach the kids around them, growing into leaders and teachers and conductors. The community they create together is beautiful.”
— Local Community Member“Expression Engine is an after school program that seeks to not only develop skills in an academic setting, but also to give kids and teens a language to express themselves with avenues to serve. They help students locate their giftings, to give a language to express those giftings, a safe place to develop and grow them, and also importantly, find ways to use those gifts to bless and serve others.”
— Expression Engine Donor