Thursday, June 21, 2018

2018 Tour - Day 6

From Calista Kibak...

We traveled to Bethesda by the Sea Episcopal Church, slowing down to see the oceanfront littered with yachts. There were countless palm trees, some that were supported by wooden planks. We were informed that Trump and Melania were married in this church, at which everyone was visibly less excited. The church itself was beautiful, and had a delicate layout complete with a courtyard, koi pond, a separate outside area, and a ceremonial area. The stained glass in the sanctuary was mostly blue, but included every color imaginable. We sang a few songs in the sanctuary before Nick gave a short sermon about unity, the tour theme, relating the culture uniting marines to the culture that connects all Christians. After that, we walked around to appreciate the beauty and many of us saw tiny lizards (which I personally thought was the most exciting part). 


From Polly

After visiting Bethesda by the Sea, we drove a short distance to City Place - an outdoor mall area where youth flocked to H&M and we all had good choices for buying lunch. 

We drove south to Fort Lauderdale and arrived about an hour later at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church. The building is very striking inside and out. Our host John Wilson met us and shared how he knew Polly’s parents early in his career and remembered her as a little girl. It is this connection that brought us to Coral Ridge, but many others had childhood memories of watching telecasts from Coral Ridge with pastor/evangelist D James Kennedy. Steve Kalnoske had playing the organ at Coral Ridge on his lifetime bucket list, so it was a special visit all the way around.

During our dress rehearsal time, we passed out folders and then decided to sing our first song in the narthex of the sanctuary at the recommendation of their music staff. We were all a little tired from the bus ride, but the effect of singing in this beautiful resonance chamber was instant energy and even electricity for the group. Faces lit up with joy. 

For dinner we had Chick-fil-A sandwiches, and the stack of containers with pickles for the sandwiches was huge. After dinner we took turns changing (girls then guys) in the fellowship hall and then gathered for a small chat about knowing and claiming that we are children of God and living into that knowledge by acknowledging that others are God’s children and must be treated as such. We each were asked to think about someone who gives us the most frustration and remember that person is God’s child, too. The song Child of God has gotten to be a favorite since Carol Worrell introduced us to it about 10 days before we left for tour. It gets stronger every night, and the audience sings with us, so it’s especially moving! 

Our concert was in a large space with a smaller audience, but they were most receptive and encouraging. We had a wonderful AV person named Kevin who was so helpful to us and later said how much he enjoyed the concert. We sang Come, Unity from the narthex and then at offering the small men’s group sang How Great Thou Art there also. Each place we sing in is so different, but it is a joy to see and hear everyone adapt to the space. Charlie Bratburd played percussion for God Has Chosen Me, and it was especially effective in that space. The solo ensemble in the Chichester Psalms is sounding really good. People commented about the great variety of music we shared. 

Mary Nieter from Damascus UMC traveled to see us and brought a good friend with her. A few folks from a Baptist conference being held nearby came also. We enjoyed an overnight in host homes greatly. The gardens, landscaping, and vegetation are so different from Maryland, and it was neat to see people’s homes, which have no basements. The people were very hospitable and friendly and made us feel most welcome in their homes. Our group often gets better sleep in host homes, so that was a good thing at this point in the tour.

Click Here for a video clip from Sea Episcopal


2018 Tour - Day 5 - Evening Report

The bus ride after the Florida UM Children’s Home to Palm Beach Gardens was about 2 hours. On the bus, stories of microwave misadventures were shared. Jonathan Works and Jordan Anderson were greeters. 

Sasha Kuznetsov and his crew won the Fork story award for a story about scoping out an attractive woman at Universal. His group of six guys were all in line for a ride (Noah, Scott, Connor D, Cole T, Jonathan W) - staring at this young woman, and the woman turned and looked at them, and then they argued about which one of them she was staring at for the rest of the day and low-key stalked her. It was hysterical the way Sasha told the story. Second place was the group of guys who removed their shirts for all the rollercoaster ride photos.

We arrived at St Marks Episcopal Church around 4:00 pm and enjoyed walking around their lovely campus. They have a new church building and a private school with enrollment of 500, so it’s a big place. Our host Daniel Bayless, the church’s music director, went on choir tours as a young person and anticipated our needs. 

DUMC member Lora Maynard has a sister, Susan Wood, who is a member at St Mark’s and made the connection for our visit. They are two peas in a pod, and it was fun to see them together. 

We had a rehearsal in the sanctuary and ate a lovely meal of sandwich wraps, pasta salad, chips, and fruit platters. By this time in the tour, the simplicity and freshness of fruit platters are a beautiful thing. 

We got dressed for the concert - the gals dressing room had a tv and Family Feud was watched by many. Some folks had a moment to play basketball on the outdoor court and others played frisbee. Downtime is a good thing!

We gathered in the courtyard in a circle before the concert, and the breeze was lovely. We’ve had great weather so far! I (polly) reminded the group that perfection is not our goal but that the imperfections are what create character and ultimately beauty. Jonathan Colborn reminded us all to be caring for each other and to be aware of what others might be experiencing before leading our pre-concert prayer. 

The concert went really well, and a new feature was a setting of How Great Thou Art shared by a men’s chamber ensemble. We sang Omnia Sol, which always speaks volumes to our souls and the audience.

It was a host home night, so most of us got matched up with families. Stephanie Greer got to spend the night with her grandparents and Kelly Bratburd came to the concert - she is officially joining up with the tour in Venice but came early to listen and see a friend. 

A group of us stayed in the church gymnasium. Jim (the pastor) and Karen Cook greeted us and provided pizza and drinks. We (Kae, Derek, Polly and Tom) shared stories of youth ministry while our group of mostly boys with Phil Hulcher played basketball and ultimate frisbee inside, and we got to interact with a mission team from Georgia that is working on houses while staying at the church. They also were staying overnight in the church facility. Making fast friends in Christ is an amazing thing. So is sleep after a long day of living in relationship and mission with the world around us!

~ Polly

Click Here for Photos from Day 5

2018 Tour - Day 5 - Morning Report

I woke up to a light headache and wasn't feeling all that chipper, in fact feeling pretty foggy and subdued after a long day at Universal Amusement Park. Waking up with a headache isn't the best way to start your morning but I knew I needed to get some food so I went downstairs to join the group having their breakfast. I sat down with Taylor Cappeluti and talked about beach memories, and I started to eat a nice big bowl of oatmeal with raisins and good stuff. Out of nowhere our group started singing "Come Unity Come.” It's a great simple song written by Scott Fulton that has five verses. I started to look at the people who were not in our group (yes I'm a people watcher) just to see how they were reacting. By the time we had finished the song, I could see strangers smiling, the kitchen work staff were applauding and excited at what had happened. Here's the thing - we never know exactly when we're going to just start to sing spontaneously, but the end result is always strangers becoming friends, happy reactions and exchanges, meaningful new conversation, and shared testimonies. These are the moments that we live for, these are the moments that we strive for. And they become examples of what it means to live out our faith, Even if it can seem awkward at first. Oh and by the way my headache was nowhere to be found.

~ Jonathan Colburn