Benefit concert for food bank raises over $1,500

The sounds of six different choirs soared through the rafters at St. Thomas Anglican Church in Stittsville Oct. 21, as they performed with the purpose of raising money for the Stittsville Food Bank.

Over $1,500 was raised through a freewill offering  plus several hampers of food – all of which were gratefully received by Theresa Qadri who attended the concert on behalf of the Food Bank. The concert was organized by Patricia Brush, Choir Director at St. Thomas. It was the second annual concert, with plans to repeat it next year.

Six different choirs took part, from both Stittsville and Ottawa, showcasing many different kinds of music. Each choir sang two or three songs. Rare Blend for instance, a small ensemble of 6 or 7 musicians, who perform around the Ottawa Valley, sang “The Rose of Tralee” and “The Belle of Belfast City”. The Goulbourn Jubilee Singers with a presence of at least 50 singers,  sang “In Flanders Fields” and “We Shall Overcome”. The St. Thomas Choir sang the lovely Celtic song “I will Kindle My Fire”.  The children’s choir, the Goulbourn Junior Jubilees, sang “Peaceful River” and the Stittsville United Church choir sang a riveting piece called “We Are not Alone”. St. Thomas organist Minako Uchino played a solo organ piece called “Communion sur Lauda Sion.

One of the most amusing moments of the concert came during the Harmony Singers performance, a downtown Ottawa group. They were enthusiastically singing “Seventy-Six Trombones” with one of their singers dressed as a drum major. She strutted back and forth in front of the group and then spontaneously decided to have the members of the children’s choir, who were sitting in the three front rows, follow her. She motioned to them and the first row popped up, eyes shining, followed by the second and third rows and all of them marched down the aisle and up the side aisles following the drum major like a pied piper.

The high point of the concert came at the end when all the choirs joined together to form a massed choir of a hundred or so men and women, all performing together, under the direction of Linda Crawford, leader of the Goulbourn Jubilee Singers and Junior Jubilees.  They sang “This Little Light of Mine” and then finished with the beautiful “Irish Blessing”.  The sound was magnificent and the audience loved it.

A reception for both audience and choirs followed in the church hall.

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