2008 AOSFYC Theme: HAND IN HAND

"HAND IN HAND" - theme for 46th AOSFYC

The theme for this summer's show began to take root in the spring of 2007.

Mrs. Leppla and I were exploring some musical dramas with members of our Crusaders Choir (grades 4-8) at the church - "field testing" some songs to help us eventually choose a musical for this spring. When we began rehearsing "Hand in Hand" from Life of the Party, we struck a chord. The singers asked if they could learn the song and sing it the end of May as a tribute to the church's high school graduates - many of whom had been Crusaders in years past. It was an emotional moment the Sunday they stood together and began to sing "though we come from diff'rent places..."

In the weeks following I could not get the tune out of my head! Two months later at the Fair, even when I was inundated with the strains of five dozen other songs - whenever there was a break, the "Hand in Hand" tune and message began to play in my head. By the end of the Fair I announced "Hand in Hand" as the theme for this summer's Choir.

In the months since I've mused about what an appropriate theme it is for the Youth Choir, where songs of friendship have caused singers to spontaneously reach for the hands of their neighbors. It speaks of the teamwork we've experienced, of the times of joy and grief when we've leaned on the support of our Youth Choir friends, of friendship circles, and of the ways community is built and nurtured whenever we gather.

It's that amazing creation of community that will happen again in two months as the 46th edition of the All-Ohio Youth Choir gathers in Columbus and prepares to take the stage.

"Though we may not be the same, we are one in God's name in a life that lasts forever, hand in hand."

CRS