Hello everyone, wow what an amazing weekend! Fort Wayne really knows how to take care of their own sending us off in style–and I’m not just referring to those incredible travel uniforms that you see pictured here! Saturday evening the VOICES of UNITY had the honor of performing a final concert at the Trinity Music Fest at Parkview Field in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana. The band was tight, the choir sounded powerful as always, and the day was just an incredible event for all involved—but that evening singing to the fireworks, that is an experience we’ll never forget. When Gordon sang “America the Beautiful” it really sounded like the late Ray Charles himself. And when the choir came in, wow what a beautiful way to end the evening and prepare for China! Believe it or not only a few hours after the final song was sung–part of our team packed up and headed down to Cincinnati to start their travels. In fact they have made it safely to China and are on their way to Shaoxing right now! The bulk of us are leaving TONIGHT, well technically Tuesday morning and start our adventure of a lifetime! Check out this video from our friends at INC TV that were taken as our first group left EEEEARLY Sunday morning.
OR, check out some of the photos from the departure:
There are SO MANY individuals and businesses to thank, we couldn’t have done this with out Fort Wayne, Indiana! We also wish to thank all of the parents that have done their job in watching over these kids at home and helping them get to rehearsals, head out to the fund-raising events, and of course all of the performances. But there is ONE person we must all thank and show our love….. Mrs. White—THANK YOU for YOUR support for Mr. White to devote time to these young people, THANK YOU for your understanding of the times he needs to leave his family at home for his musical family, THANK YOU for your patience and love towards these amazing kids. It’s always been said that behind every good man is an even better woman—but in this case Mrs. White, YOU are the incredible woman behind the dreams of so many young people—we love you, thank you so much! And of course Mr. White, we wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for your vision and hard work!
Hello friends! Today is a BIG day for our incredible young people as they will be in a mostly all-day rehearsal, preparing for the World Choir Games. But before we load up the busses and head off to the airport, the Voices of Unity will be taking the stage Saturday evening at Parkview Field in our hometown of Fort Wayne, Indiana for our official send-off concert to China. Performing between the David Crowder Band and Jeremy Camp, we are excited to show the great city of Fort Wayne just how hard we’ve been working. You DO NOT want to miss it. Of course, listening to such great bands as the Casting Crowns, Jeremy Camp, the David Crowder Band….HOW COULD YOU NOT BE THERE? This is also the end to the Three Rivers Festival which can mean only one thing….FIREWORKS! At roughly 10pm, there will be a wonderful fireworks display but with a twist—the VOICES of UNITY will be singing a handful of patriotic songs in a way that only they can, with the fireworks in the background. What a way a send these amazing young people off to China in style, thank you Fort Wayne!
And speaking of the World Choir Games–check this out video showcasing some of the choirs as they arrive for the first half of the games, along with a behind the scenes of getting everything ready for the opening and closing ceremonies.
WELCOME SUPPORTERS of the VOICES of UNITY YOUTH CHOIR. We are just a few days away from starting our journey to China to compete in the 2010 World Choir Games. We are not only beyond excited, but every one of our proud members are honored to have this amazing opportunity to represent not only Fort Wayne, Indiana—but the entire United States of America on such a distinct stage. We have been working so hard not only in our preparations, but also to obtain the funds to make this trip possible. To that end, our travels to China to compete for a gold medal in the World Choir Games absolutely would NOT be possible if it weren’t for YOUR generous financial support. We’re not all the way there yet, we still have other needs and expenses so please—continue to donate to enrich and encourage the lives of these young people.
By the way, my name is Brad Lyons and I am the Production Manager for the DREAMS of GOLD campaign. My team and I will do our best to provide numerous blog updates including photos, video, and audio of our travels along the way. While we will be doing this all remotely, we do not know exactly when, where, and in some cases IF we will have the ability to transfer and upload the information. But please, bookmark us and follow along this incredible adventure. I would also like to request to keep everyone traveling in your thoughts and prayers. Just to give you an idea, here is an quick overview of what we are facing just to get there!
Depart via busses from Fort Wayne to Cincinnati, Ohio @ 1am….about a 4-hour bus ride
Depart Cincinnati by plane to San Francisco, about a 4.5 hour flight.
After a 2-hour layover in San Francisco, fly to Tokyo, Japan for an 11.5 hour flight.
Another layover in Tokyo, then a 3.5 – 4 hour flight to Shanghai, China
Depart Shanghai for Shaoxing—site of the World Choir Games, oh by the way that is a 3-4 hour bus trip!
And that is just to get there! But when we do, it will all be worth it.
Welcome to the brand new Voices of Unity Dream of Gold Blog. We’re excited about the opportunity to keep everyone up to date while we are competing in the 2010 World Choir Games in Shaoxing, China.
Be sure to check back here on a regular basis. We’ll do our best to post updates, photos, videos, and more…
