Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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Snyder Youth Choir to Perform in National Cathedral by KAREN POPPELE What’s actually more diffi cult to receive than an invitation to sing at Carnegie Hall? An invitation to sing at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. But on Monday, June 20, 112 members of the Snyder Youth Choir, a ministry of Snyder Memorial Baptist Church in Fayetteville, will travel to the nation’s capital for their performance at the Washington National Cathedral on Friday, June 24 at 6:45 p.m. in a very special capacity. “It’s a pretty big opportunity,” said Larry Dickens, director of the youth choir. And it’s a pretty big deal. Their performance is part of the 14th Annual Nation’s Capitol Festival of Youth Choirs sponsored by YouthCUE, “a national organization that promotes youth choirs across the country,” Dickens said. “YouthCUE encourages youth choir ministry in the church and community through festivals, seminars, newsletters and networking. This is the second year that this festival has invited an honor choir, so we are participating as the ‘Spirit of Cue’ honor choir, which means we will open the festival as the honor choir for a 25-minute concert, and that will be followed by a full grand concert by the festival choir of about 250 singers,” he explained. The Snyder Youth Choir will be under the direction of Dickens, with Joy Cogswell, assistant director, as accompanist. Associate Director Dr. Robert Williams will also conduct. Members of the National Symphony will accompany the festival choir, an interdenominational group made up of choirs from across the country. The six-day festival takes place June 20-25, 2011, at Western Presbyterian Church, Washington, D.C., and the Washington National Cathedral. “The National Cathedral is where funerals for heads of state are held. Ronald Reagan’s funeral was held there,” Dickson said. “It’s an Episcopal church, but it was designed to have a place where national events could be held.” Part of this very special national musical event is the world premiere of a piece commissioned by Snyder Memorial Church in memory of Billy, Kathy, Connor and Cameron Maxwell. “It is a commissioned anthem to honor all four of the family members who passed away in November 2009,” said Dickson. “This will be the premiere performance of this anthem. It’s never been performed before, and the full festival choir will be premiering it.” Written by Dan Goeller, the anthem is titled, “I Have Overcome the World” and is based on John 16:33, the fi rst scripture read at the Maxwells’ memorial service. In addition to performing, the choir members will also have plenty of time to play tourists during their stay. “We’re going on Monday, June 20, and will be there for the entire week, rehearsing Monday through Friday mornings,” Dickson said. “Afternoons will be free, and they’ll be doing some touring in the D.C. area — the monuments, the Smithsonian museums. They’ll be giving a concert on Wednesday night in Baltimore, Md., at the Helping Up Mission, a shelter for homeless folks who are dealing with addiction. We went there about eight years ago, so they’ll be making a return visit. They’ll be leading a chapel service for the overnight guests. On Thursday, they are going to Ford’s Theatre for a production.” Dickson noted that support for the choir’s performance has been very generous. “The church is paying about 50 percent of everyone’s expenses, and some students are receiving scholarships from our church and community so that many would be able to attend,” said Dickson. “The participation costs for each student are more than $900 for the week. We’ve had tremendous support from the church, church members, and the Connor and Cameron Maxwell Scholarship Fund. At this point, we think between 200 and 300 people from the Fayetteville community will be attending the concert — in addition to the ones who are singing.” The Snyder Youth Choir is one of the largest church youth choirs in North Carolina. The members have appeared as guests with the Fayetteville Symphony and state and international festivals, denominational conventions and are featured each year in six performances of Fayetteville’s Singing Christmas Tree. Ensembles from the choir have performed in England, Switzerland and Trinidad and Tobago. This June, the Snyder Youth Choir can add one of the more elusive performance venues and a world premiere to its impressive list of musical accomplishments. For more information about Snyder Youth Choir or the Nation’s Capitol Festival of Youth Choirs, contact Larry Dickens at (910) 484-3191 or larryd@ snydermbc.com, or visit www.snydermbc.com. KAREN POPPELE, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? editor@upandcomingweekly.com. The Dog Days of Summer: SwampDogs Days That Is by MICHAEL IVCIC The dog days of summer are upon us. Sure, that’s usually more of a reference to August, but we’re not talking about the heat. We’re talking about the best baseball around — the Fayetteville SwampDogs. Back in action for their 11th season, the SwampDogs are once again poised for a run at the Petitt Cup Championship in the Coastal Plain League. It’s the All-Star Summer of Fun as the SwampDogs will host the CPL All-Star Game on July 17-18, and there’s no better way to spend a summer evening than taking in the best baseball the Cape Fear region has to offer. Infi elder Eric Grabe is back for his third season with the club, and has brought with him teammates from the University of Tampa. Junior, Cody Davis, has already made his impact felt both at the plate and on the mound, serving as the team’s centerfi elder and closer. Shawn Pleffner has provided a power bat in the middle of the SwampDogs order, while other upperclassmen like Danny Gesick of Shawnee State, Dillon Checkal of San Diego, and Joe Vaskas of Emporia State have all delivered on different nights to keep the dynamic offense balanced. Perhaps the biggest reason for the SwampDogs early success has been the quality and depth of the pitching staff. Starters Dom Macaluso and Brandon Browne lead a rotation that has limited opposing offenses, ensuring the offense plenty of opportunities to score, while the bullpen has been arguably the best in the CPL. Headlined by Cory Kent, Michael Anarumo, Derek Brooks and Davis, the relief corps earned six wins and WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM fi ve saves in the opening week, pacing Fayetteville to the early division lead. The SwampDogs will host three home games this week, starting Thursday night against the Peninsula Pilots. The fi rst 500 fans into the ballpark will receive a stein courtesy of Miller Lite and Healy WholeSale. We’ll also salute HGTV, as fans can fi nd people to answer all of their home improvement needs. On Friday, the SwampDogs continue their rivalry with the Florence Redwolves on Military Appreciation Night. The SwampDogs honor the military every night, but this night will be extra special! The fi rst 500 fans will also receive a visor courtesy of Rick Hendrick Toyota. The 24th is also Dog Day at “The Swamp,” where fans can bring their dog to the ballpark and enjoy the game. The week’s fi nal home game will be Monday, June 27, as the SwampDogs play host to the Columbia Blowfi sh on Trunk-or-Treat Night! Come celebrate the biggest, safest, and best community event in October even earlier by dressing in costume and participating in a costume contest. Despite twice having the league’s best record, head coach Darrel Handelsman says this might be the best team he’s had in seven seasons at “The Swamp.” So don’t miss your chance to catch the SwampDogs in action at J.P. Riddle Stadium — the best kind of “dog days” this All Star Summer of Fun has to offer. MICHAEL IVCIC, Contributing Writer. COMMENTS? editor@upandcomingweekly.com. JUNE 22-28, 2011 UCW 13