For the past four summers, Westminster Church on Moss Avenue has sponsored a Music Camp for children in grades 2 through 6, this year adding grades 7 and 8. We had more than 50 campers each day representing every corner of the city. It was a great week culminating in a dinner and concert on Friday evening.
With this in mind, it only seems logical that there might be children from our camp, and from here in the neighborhood who might enjoy an ongoing choir experience. Thus, we are seeking children in grades 2 through 6 who might be interested in a weekly choir experience here at Westminster. The proposed group would meet on Wednesdays after school … beginning at 4:30 p.m. with choir practice for about an hour, and followed by a simple pizza supper provided by the church. Children need only be interested in singing and come ready to work and have a fun time.
This choir would then prepare music to be sung at a Westminster Sunday morning worship at ten o’clock. The choir would be scheduled to sing once every five or six weeks. Being willing to sing in church from time to time is the child’s way to remunerate the church for the music education and supper.
As the new school year is about to begin, and parents seek wholesome activities for their children, this is a perfect way to fill a Wednesday afternoon. For children in Moss-Bradley, the walk is short being right in the neighborhood. If you wish, you can bring your child by car, of course. Westminster Church observes safe sanctuary policies … there are always at least two adults in the room with children at all times.
Director of this endeavor will be Thomas Clark-Jones, Westminster’s Organist-Choirmaster. Mr. Clark-Jones, who has degrees from Wilkes University, the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia and from the State College of New Jersey has worked with children’s choirs for over fifty years both in church and secular settings. He is the founding director of the award winning ‘Cantate: The Children’s Choir of Central Virginia’, founded in 1993 and still going strong as a major piece of the cultural scene in the Central Virginia area.
So, if you’re looking for a learning experience your children will enjoy and come home singing new tunes … here is a good opportunity. The choir will be a ‘go’ when registrations reach 10 to 12 singers. Please call the church office at 673-8501 to register your children. Any questions, feel free to e-mail or call Tom Clark-Jones at 717.503.8929 or tclarkjones1227@gmail.com. Westminster seeks to serve this community and beyond … if we can give children the gift of music … that will be a great service to enrich our community.
Hello Westminster family,