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May 2006 Below is a small portion of the full May 2006 AOSFYC
Alumni Newsletter. Paid members receive the full version of the Alumni Association Newsletter by
mail.
In this issue ...
WHO WILL WIN???
WHO WILL WIN???
A new tradition was started on Alumni Day last year. Who will take the trophy
this year for having the most alumni at our annual meeting and Glenville
Memorial concert? Last year’s winners were 1964 and 2000 tying. We are
anxiously awaiting this year to see who the winner will be. We will also have
awards in a few other categories. Come alumni day and see if you will be a
winner!
We would also like to thank again the 1964 choir for their generous donation
last year in Dean’s name to go toward the Glenville Memorial Scholarship. This
will surely help 3 or 4 new students attend the choir this year. We also
appreciate the 2005 choir’s donation at the final concert. It is wonderful to
see so many young choir members give back so others may have the same
opportunity.
From the President's Desk ...
Dear Fellow Alumni:
As we are half way through another choir year, it leaves me with just one
thought….WOW! With plans of going to Kings Island, Cleaning Day, and yes,
Alumni Day, your Choir Board has been very busy. I am very proud of your
Alumni Board and all that they are doing to help further promote this great
choir of ours. All we need now is YOU! We have several Alums planning and
trying to get their year’s choir at the State Fair Alumni Day scheduled for
August 12th.
With all the special anniversaries being celebrated….who will win
the trophy this year? Will it be 1981? 1986? Who? Call everyone…write
everyone…..and let’s have the best Alumni Day ever! I’ll be there with a lot
of your choir family – will you?
Come Out – Be A Part and as always…
“Keep on Singing”
Mark ‘81
Alumni Board President
Remember, If you can’t make it Alumni Day, you can always stop in the Choir
office to pay your dues or get on line (www.aosfyc.com) and join anytime.
Do You Hear What I Hear?
By Dean Newsom, OYC ‘64, Europe ‘65
Do you hear what I hear? Have any of you really been paying attention?
There is something going on around here. And I'm lovin’ it. Have any of you
noticed how many people from different alumni years have started to look for
their friends from the Choir? We are witnessing a resurgence of memories. For
those that shared those wonderful days at the Fair together. Something is
catching on. As people start to get a few years away from their years in the
choir they realize what a really wonderful experience that the All Ohio Youth
Choir really was.So many have started looking back and thinking it's time to
get back together. There are people from several alumni years actively
searching and finding their friends.
Several are working very hard to find their friends from their year. What a
wonderful thing we are witnessing.
This is the work ethic that makes the Choir so great. I was talking to a
person from a major medical college the other day about "the choir". He told
me something that made me think about those that I know from the choir. He
said that his college and most any other college will always choose a person
to be accepted from a choir or band background before anyone else. When I
asked him why, he said because of there work ethic. "They work long and hard
to make beautiful
music that is done right. They have heart, real heart."This 'heart' is what
bonds us all together. This is people reaching out to people and saying "you
are very important to me." The memories that we share are worth something, and
we need each other still to make our hearts sing. It seems that so many of us
have realized that we have something in common that few have the fortune to
know. A common bond, a kinship, a thing called Love. I have said before that
my dream is to see a thousand of our friend attend alumni day. This is how it
is done. One person searching for another and finding them and saying, "I miss
you." So, my beloved friends, won't you come and join us in a celebration of
the last 43 years on Alumni day (August 12th ) at the fair. It will do your
heart good and remind you of the fact that music never dies, and that a
lifetime is not too long to live as friends. Keep finding your friends and
bring them along and Keep the Dream Alive.
Auction Items
Just a heads up on a few of the items up for bid at the auction we will be
holding on Alumni Day.
• Lunch with Mr. Snyder
• School clinic with Mr. Snyder
• Commencement Speech at your school with Mr. Snyder (pending approval of your
school)
• A quilt made with past Youth Choir T-Shirts
• A basket filled with Ohio State University Merchandise (valued at over $100)
These are just a few of the items that we presently have with more to come. If
you have an item for our Auction, please contact Mark Ferrell at moferrell@yahoo.com.
Last years auction helped to
purchase new choir brochures and a new copier for the choir office. We have
many ideas for future projects—
help them become realities!
From the Director's Desk ...
Easter Evening, 2006
A quick look at my studio tells the story!
Plans are in full swing for the newest edition of the AOSFYC! Applications are
being shuffled from pile to pile as we check a few references, scrounge up a
few more (tenor, bass and low alto) applicants and prepare for the final
selection process.
A short summer tour for the Cardinal Chorale is in the planning stage, and
staff and CIT application forms are being updated for mailing. Yesterday, a
tentative schedule arrived from the Expo Center outlining probable Choir
concert dates and times for the State Fair.
A theme for the new summer show has been chosen: FOREVER FRIENDS. So the
search has begun for songs that will explore and illuminate that idea. (I
spent half a day at Stanton’s on Good Friday!)
Those of you who have been part of recent Choirs will know that the theme is
also developed through quotes, thoughts for the daily “big ideas,” evening
stories for the PA, and ideas for evening devotions. While the yearly theme
helps keep us fresh, the challenge to find good material is daunting! If you
have ideas for any of these (and especially music!), please let me know! (You
may send them to me: 550 Cambridge Road, Coshocton, OH 43812-2272; or email
them to me at JPS564@yahoo.com)
Once the music list for this summer is finalized, we’ll be choosing a couple
of those songs to add to our morning rehearsal on Alumni Day. Those of you who
were with us on Alumni Day last year will remember that we introduced three
songs to alumni who may not have known them. The goal: to expand the
repertoire that we can sing together. Stay tuned for more details.
Thank you for your help in recruiting applicants, telling the Youth Choir
story, and keeping the dream alive. We are so blessed to be a part of this
amazing organization!
Keep a song in your heart –
Charles R. Snyder
Reunions
Here are a few of the known reunions being planned this year:
1971 European Tour Choir is planning to get together Saturday, September 9,
2006 in Zanesville, OH at the Zanesville Yacht Club from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00
p.m. At present, dinner options for those staying overnight are in the
planning stages. Becky (Kieffer) Mitzel and committee have found 80 members so
far and still have 30 or so to find. She also says that there are about 20
members that she has no trace of. If you haven’t been contacted by Becky and
were a member of this European group or you know someone that was, won’t you
contact her at bkmitz@yahoo.com. Help make this a great reunion for all.
Malcolm Spence ’76 has been working since August and has set up a committee of
friends. They have found 124 1976 alum via the internet and have 52 more that
they are waiting to hear from. He also has 64 regular mailing addresses for
those who don’t have internet access. He has discovered that 13 out of 290 ’76
alumni have passed away and 44 still haven’t been found. (AMAZING!)
Malcolm has been sending out weekly updates on his findings and all are
sharing emails. In December, he started adding pictures (from the fair, his
rehearsal week at Muskingum, Europe, 1977 alumni day and 1978 Rose Bowl
Parade). In March he started adding little trivia questions, like who was in
your quartet, who was your bunkmate, etc…. This is helping in generating more
interest in their reunion. He has had two committee meetings so far and three
more scheduled. He has a core group of 8-10 folks helping and they are
planning on utilizing a hotel in the Dublin area for their reunion base. They
plan on a “meet and greet” get together at the hotel on Friday, participate in
alumni day activities (I wonder if they will get the trophy this year for most
attending from their year???), and for Saturday evening they have reserved a
banquet room at a local restaurant. Malcolm is putting together a slide show
from the pictures others have sent him and he has selected songs from their
Fair and European albums as a soundtrack. This will all be part of their
Saturday night reunion. This group is also working on something for all who
gather (Bio/memory book). If you happen to be one of the people Malcolm has
not contacted yet, why not help him out and contact him at jspence@columbus.rr.com.
Robb and Julie Burris have been working hard to contact as many 1986 alumni as
they can. If you haven’t heard from them, why don’t you make the effort and
email them at rburris1@earthlink.net.
Ring, Ring, Ring!
Calling all alumni...
Make plans to attend the
2006 Ohio State Fair!
If you are from another choir year and are planning a reunion or need some
help to start planning, please contact the alumni association and we will help
you get started. If you are willing to be a liaison for your year, let us know
or if you have already started and want us to advertise, we would be glad to
help.
Russ Mayer is spearheading the 1981 Reunion. Plans are in full swing for this
group, as they already have a hotel held for the reunion weekend, as well as a
‘meet & greet’ Friday, August 11th at 6:00 pm. If you were a 1981 member, and
haven’t heard from anyone, contact Russ Mayer at:
northmor81@hotmail.com.
Cd’s are available for ‘81 members. If interested, contact Ed Hegedus at
ed_brings_it@hotmail.com. The cost is $5 and can be picked up on Alumni Day,
or contact Ed for shipping information.
Everyone’s plans sound wonderful and the alumni association wishes you all
much success at rekindling old friendships and maybe even new ones. Good Luck
to all and see you at the fair.
In Memoriam
Diane Inbody Pepple died of Inflammatory Breast Cancer on April 9, 2006. She
was a choir member in 1971 from Cory-Rawson High School in Hancock County. She
graduated from BGSU in music education, taught for 30 years at Upper Scioto
Valley Schools in Hardin County.
Memorials to the USV scholarship fund. She is survived by three children and
her husband, Fred Pepple, a former AOSFB member.
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