Homecoming Concert

June 30, 2016

Our tour is over. The final concert is at DUMC. The youth are looking out over a sea of joyous, expectant faces which include family and friends. Amongst the crowd are the alumni who went with us on tour in years past. They smile with the good memories of their own days traveling on tour. Paul, our faithful bus driver is in the crowd. We were hoping he would be there. It gives us a warm feeling to see him once more. As the concert progresses there is exultant clapping and cheering. There is nothing like singing for the home crowd! We know that they will love us no matter what happens. The entire week has been building up to this moment. All of the rehearsals and long hours have been worth it for these final moments of song in our home church.

Watching these youth singing their hearts out is a bittersweet feeling. Those who have not traveled on tour would have difficulty understanding. We are so proud of what these youth have accomplished and yet a little sad for it to be over. We have watched them grow this week, bond with each other and support one another. We have grown closer to them and appreciated each one of them for their own unique gifts. A tour alumni once told me that the most important friendships of his life were made during his years on tour. That’s why the alumni always come back every year to sing those last few songs. It was a special time in their lives and they want to hold onto that feeling for a little while longer. My wish is that your children will feel the same way. After they have graduated and moved on, we want to see them come back again with sweet memories of these special times together. We will smile together and lift our voices in praise. I’m sure God will be smiling too.

Click here for photos from the Homecoming Concert

Day 7 – A LITTLE PIECE OF HEAVEN (West Virginia has NOTHING on Granville!)

June 28, 2016

After our late, late evening arriving at our host homes last night, Tom encouraged everyone to sleep in today (as long as the hosts did not have to get up early to go to work.) We gathered at 10:00 a.m at the First Presbyterian Church in Granville. This is the home church of Carol and Danny Worrell, former DUMC members. Their sons, Joseph and Robert have been traveling with us on tour.  Within walking distance of the church is Denison University, a private, 4 year college founded in 1831. It is the second oldest liberal arts college in Ohio and it has a beautiful small campus.

 

Our group walked through the campus to a small area where there were shade trees and benches and settled down for some reflective moments of our time on tour. People who have never experienced tour think that all we do is sing and have fun. It is SO much more than that. Spiritual growth happens on tour. New friendships are made on tour. Recognizing God working in our lives happens on tour. Tom and Polly talked to our group about sharing how tour has opened moments for us to find our “tryst” with God – a time when we felt we were meeting with God at an appointed time in our lives to help us grow spiritually; a moment when we felt Gods presence at work. We had some beautiful sharing moments.The adults shared how watching the youth sing fed our souls and brought us closer into Gods presence. Many youth shared how this tour made them feel like part of a larger family, freeing them to be themselves and not having to pretend they are something that others expect them to be. Some talked about how the host families greatly affected their faith  through in-depth conversations and interactions. Others shared that they experienced healing from deep hurts and encouragement from everyone. I think in the end that everyone realized that this special bond must be shared with others. We have to show the world that God’s love exists.

At lunchtime we walked back into town and spread out in groups to experience the various culinary delights of Granville. This town is so quaint and beautiful. One of the adults remarked that this must be the ideal American town to live in. Granville is a rural area, in the geographic center of Ohio, known for its New England character and historic architect. Even though it is small, there was a nice variety of restaurants to choose from, including Mexican, Italian, Vietnamese, Burgers, small cafes and diners. Some of the adults were craving salads. (We haven’t had too many green things to eat on this trip!) There was something for everyone. We all met afterward for ice cream at Whits Ice Cream shop and decided that this should definitely be a day to chill out. Some went shopping to explore the shops, others went back to the church to nap, read or play games and others walked down to Hudson Lake, a few blocks from the downtown area.

Tonight was our last concert on tour. Even though everyone is tired from a busy week, the kids sang their best and had a great time. Some new members were added to the men’s choir; Evan Kamuf, Shane Johnson and Micah Tsoi  joined “Prayer for the Children.” They sounded spectacular. 

Have I mentioned our bus driver Paul? He is our biggest fan. Every night he parks his bus at a hotel and calls Uber to pick him up and drop him at the places where we are singing. He hasn’t missed a concert yet. Be sure to thank him for driving all of these miles safely with such precious cargo!

Tuesday is our travel day and we will be heading home. I think I can safely say that your children have grown this week. They have experienced God in a new way. They have found their tryst. Come to our Welcome Home concert this week and experience what we have witnessed all week. You won’t be disappointed. This is Sue, signing out. 

Click here to see photos from Day 7

Day 6- A ROLLER COASTER MIX!

June 27, 2016

You could feel the excitement in the air as the kids got on the bus this morning. We were spending the day at an amusement park! Emma was so excited she could barely sit still as we went through our morning routine. The rest of us were also excited because Micha Tsoi joined us this morning for the rest of our tour! He is joining us late because he was competing in The International Young Artist Piano Competition, held in Washington, D.C. Young artists must audition and then be invited to compete. Other competitors were from China and Korea. Micah won third pace and a cash award. Congratulations Micah! 

The “Bag of Fire” chose Claire Dobrzanski and Tobias Schuett as our official morning Greeters. Great huggers. Then it was time for fork stories. There were quite a few today since everyone stayed in host homes last night. There are always fun stories when we spend the night in host homes. Dee and Emma told a story about some creepy pictures hanging on the wall in their bedroom. Bryce held up a home run baseball that he caught when it came sailing over a fence. Matt was behind a student driver who drove up on the curb. Rose, Marin & Jessie were taken to a college house at the University of Michigan and had to sleep on couches in an old carriage house, decorated hippie style (College Life 101!) But the winner of the fork was Celia Hembrough. She told a story about her bed breaking in the middle of the night while she and Torie Brooks were sleeping in it. It was very funny. 

Next came breakfast reports. Jon Con and Evan Kamuf got to eat breakfast in the college coffee house and were given a short tour of the University of Michigan. Julia Bratburd was introduced to a “fragel,” which is basically a fried bagel. Others had reports on eating granola, fruit, Hot Pockets and breakfast sandwiches. We also decided that our official tour food this year is the lunch meat sandwich. We have been fed sandwiches almost every single day. It is our new “Ham” (those of you who know stories of our previous tours will understand this reference.)

Tom held a moment of silence as we crossed the state line from Michigan into Ohio. Good-bye Michigan. We will miss you.

At last we arrived at Cedar Point. It is a 365 acre amusement park located on Lake Erie in Sandusky, Ohio. It opened in 1870 and is the second oldest amusement park in the U.S. It holds a world record 71 rides, including 17 roller coasters. Several of its buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The kids were broken up into small groups and given meal ticket vouchers and entrance tickets. They quickly dispersed to their favorite ride destination. 

We were scheduled to sing on the performance stage in the park at 1:30. Everyone met back at the appointed time, wearing their matching tour t-shirts, and we had a short half hour performance. They sounded great, in spite of the fact that the temperature was sweltering, rising to a high of 96 degrees! Then everyone dispersed again for the rest of the day. We had periodic check-ins with their adult section check leaders and Wendy Hembrough was nearby with the medical bag in case there was an emergency. All went well. We met back at the bus at 8:00 p.m and headed to our next destination. Our evening Greeters were Madison Bowe and Micah Tsoi. We also had bonus Greeters tonight: Bryce Taylor and Scott Hembrough. Tobias taught us our German word for the day: “Achterbahn,” which means roller coaster.

We decided to give out fork awards for the best story from our day in the park. Dee Robertson proudly told us that she went on her first roller coaster ride ever. We all applauded for her. Kae told a story of how Amanda kept accidentally kicking over a cluster of water bottles with her foot while Kae tried to repeatedly pick them up and a police officer came over and asked Kae if she needed “back-up.” The winners of the fork were Matthew Baldridge, who told a story of a sea gull that swooped over him and dropped a “present”on his head, and Annie Elliott who had her cell phone taken away on top of a roller coaster (because it is apparently illegal to have a cell phone out on top of a roller coaster in Ohio. Who knew?) 

As we headed to our new destination with new host homes tonight, everyone snuggled down in the seats and dozed off. Tom read “Good Night Moon” over the microphone and Polly sang them a lullaby. We are never too old to enjoy those comforting childhood rituals. Good Night everyone.

Click here for photos from Day 6