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Retirement and the professional Choral Director

women’s volunteer choruses continue to grow. (The believed in what we were about to accomplish and the
choruses have since evolved into the River City Cho- community that would support our efforts. There was
rus.) no way I could have anticipated where this idea would
During our history, the women have been invited go. I knew only that I wanted to give the singers in our
to sing at a 9/11 citywide concert, and the men have city an opportunity to sing great choral music and to
sung for three Jacksonville Jaguars football games, two hopefully help make our community a little better in
Florida ACDA State Conferences, and several Police the process. We have commissioned a composition by
Athletic League events. Both choruses would perform Elaine Hagenberg titled “You Do Not Walk Alone,”
together in annual summer concerts for the commu- which has been viewed on YouTube over 500,000 times.
nity. After each of our free concerts, audience members I could have never imagined that would ever take place.
were encouraged to make a donation where 100% of Who knows what great ideas you might have resting in
the funds collected would be donated to a local non- your subconscious mind?
profit organization. As of summer 2023, over $100,000 Remember, all of us need a purpose. Specifically in
has been donated to local nonprofit organizations. our later years, we still have much to offer. The older
In 2022, I retired as the founding director, but the folks who sing with us also need a purpose in life, and
group continued under the baton of my longtime the small opportunity this gives them might be exactly
friend and former student, Dale Choate. This is my what they need. As one of my senior friends shared with
point: one twenty-five-minute ACDA concert was the me with a twinkle in his eye, “We ain’t dead yet.”
genesis for all of this occurring. This was not about me. My friend Nola Frink, who was the legendary admin-
I was merely the “idea guy,” but it was the singers who istrative assistant and choral administrator for Robert

P r e s b y t e r i a n A s s o c i a t i o n o f M u s i c i a n s
Worship & Music

Conference pRESBYMUSIC.ORG/

CONFERENCE

Brandon Boyd Jefferey Redding Emily Floyd Mark Patterson
A d u l t S e n i o r H i g h D a v i s F l o h r M i d d l e r C h i l d r e n ' s
C h o i r D i r e c t o r C h o i r D i r e c t o r C h o i r D i r e c t o r C h o i r D i r e c t o r

2024 June 16-21

Conference & June 23-28
mONTREAT, nORTH CAROLINA
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72 CHORAL JOURNAL February 2024 Volume 64 Number 6