Heather Deris and Fred Safaei, of AVA Music & Art Centre Music, set up an online learning platform for all their music lessons on Zoom during the early pandemic, and were one of the first schools in the Lower Mainland to develop online recreational services. They offered discounts to their students, retaining clientele and seeking new students, to help provide work to staff. The academy offered scholarships and free lessons to those in more challenging financial situations, while some teachers conducted live Instagram workshops, free to the public. Their team built custom-made protective shields from scratch and reformatted their office space to maintain social distancing.
