Looking Back on the May 28, 2023 Community Sing and Harmonizer Recognition of Military Appreciation Month
The Alexandria Chapter held a community sing in recognition of Military Appreciation Month on Sunday, May 28, 2023, at The Bike Club in Alexandria from 3-5 pm. Special guests were Mo Field and Amelia Charnock of Beatles-A-Day pandemic fame. When the Pandemic hit, they came up with the idea to record and post a Beatles song every day. It was a success and they continued to post 600 times!
Members, families and music friends filled the space and cheered and sang on Sunday.
Emcee was Joe Cerutti, chapter artistic director. He welcomed the crowd and introduced the guest singers who had driven to Alexandria from Toronto. Amelia and Mo (with her guitar) coaxed everyone to get into singing and playing their “instruments” that were issued to everyone – sticks, kazoos, egg shakers, tambourines.
Singers who needed lyrics looked them up on Google as needed.
There were trivia questions and some of those in the crowd were Beatles fans and knew answers about album covers, songs released on which album, or details about the individual Beatles. Some Harmonizers knew most of the answers!
After the first sing-along set, the chapter did a tribute to veterans during this special month. An ensemble of Harmonizers sang “Armed Forces Medley” – Rick Savage, Kellen Hertz, Gary Cregan, Carl Kauffmann, Frank Fedarko, David Welter, Terry Reynolds, Ken Rub, Frank Shipp, Howard Nestlerode, Dean Rust, and Clyde Crusenberry. All attendees were welcome to stand or wave when “their song” was sung.
Joe shared the moving story of the chapter’s trip to Normandy, France, and to Les Ventes, France, to honor Billie Harris and meet his widow, Peggy.
Dean Rust was the major organizer for the event with help from general manager, Susan Fitzpatrick and Joe. Kaj Vaisanen, the chapter’s summer intern and Susan staffed the complimentary bar. There were cheese and meat platters for refreshments too. The staff at The Bike Club helped with audio visual issues.
The Alexandria chapter gratefully acknowledges the program support it receives from the Commission for the Arts of Alexandria, Virginia. Partial funding for performances is provided by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Until next time – editorjack!
(This message is prepared for your review if you were there, for your information if you had to miss, and as a historical record for the great things going on each week during the 74th year of the Alexandria Chapter. - YeEd)
The Chapter Mission Statement Enriching lives through vocal harmony in the greater DC area.
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