Concert To Raise Funds For Kids In Extreme Poverty
Posted
David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
A night of voices will help raise money for an organization that works to empower children out of extreme poverty around the world. “Voices For Light,” the second annual fundraiser for When I Grow Up, will be at 7 p.m. March 18 at the Warsaw Community High School Performing Arts Center auditorium. Tickets are $20 and include a dessert and drink bar. The dessert bar opens at 6:15 p.m. in the PAC black box theater, and also will be open at intermission of the concert. The concert features all 25 of Thomas Hall’s voice students. They will do their own pieces, as well as group numbers to break up the evening. Genres will range from pop and musical theater to folk tunes. “It’s a great evening,” Thomas said. “It’s exciting to see, from the teacher’s standpoint, the growth that they are making, but also to see how they’re excited about wanting to give to When I Grow Up.” While most of his students are from Warsaw middle and high schools, they also come from Whitko and Grace College, and one student is doing a duet with a girl from IPFW. Gilbert Foster, the founder of When I Grow Up, will speak at the event. Bethany Hall, Thomas’ wife, said students were given 20 tickets to sell, so they’re responsible for raising $400 each. Tickets also will be available at the door or at the WCHS box office during regular school hours. In 2014, Foster came to the church where the Halls attend to do some work as a church coach. The Halls got to know him very well, according to Bethany. When I Grow Up was founded in 2006. The group has a goal to reach 10,000 children out of extreme poverty, she said. “They partner with the local people, and their goal is not to just go in and fix, but it’s to go in and help them train so they can build up their own communities,” Thomas said. “They focus on kids especially, because by feeding and educating the children, they’re able to, in essence, affect an entire family.” Bethany said When I Grow Up has a school in Huruma, Nairobi, Kenya, called Furaha; in Zone 18 in Haiti, “an extremely dangerous Haitian area”; and in Guatemala. “They have schools in each of these places, educating children, promoting the whole child — helping with lice care, helping feeding them every day. And then they support a full functioning staff of teachers for each of these schools,” she said. Thomas said they serve students through high school. In the last two years, he said Furaha had its first high school graduates and were moving into college education. Gilbert and his wife, Deb, visit these places as a team, Bethany said, and visit Kenya three times a year. His goal is to let them know they’re not a forgotten people and to raise funds for them, and to be their friend. “They don’t go do anything. They don’t go build anything. It’s not the typical mission trip. It’s a partnership, and they call them partners,” Bethany said. It’s a constant collaborative atmosphere, Thomas said. After learning about When I Grow Up, the Halls decided it was a worthy not-for-profit organization to give to. Thomas, who also is the WCHS choir director, has been teaching voice lessons since 2003 in a private studio. They had never done a recital before, so the first fundraiser in 2016 served as Thomas’ students recital, with 100 percent of the profits going to When I Grow Up. Last year, the event raised just over $3,600. This year, they hope to raise a minimum of $10,000. “The feedback was phenomenal last year,” Bethany said. “We did it two nights last year. Lots of emails, lots of ‘this is so good,’ and separate donations above the ticket prices.” Event sponsorsA night of voices will help raise money for an organization that works to empower children out of extreme poverty around the world. “Voices For Light,” the second annual fundraiser for When I Grow Up, will be at 7 p.m. March 18 at the Warsaw Community High School Performing Arts Center auditorium. Tickets are $20 and include a dessert and drink bar. The dessert bar opens at 6:15 p.m. in the PAC black box theater, and also will be open at intermission of the concert. The concert features all 25 of Thomas Hall’s voice students. They will do their own pieces, as well as group numbers to break up the evening. Genres will range from pop and musical theater to folk tunes. “It’s a great evening,” Thomas said. “It’s exciting to see, from the teacher’s standpoint, the growth that they are making, but also to see how they’re excited about wanting to give to When I Grow Up.” While most of his students are from Warsaw middle and high schools, they also come from Whitko and Grace College, and one student is doing a duet with a girl from IPFW. Gilbert Foster, the founder of When I Grow Up, will speak at the event. Bethany Hall, Thomas’ wife, said students were given 20 tickets to sell, so they’re responsible for raising $400 each. Tickets also will be available at the door or at the WCHS box office during regular school hours. In 2014, Foster came to the church where the Halls attend to do some work as a church coach. The Halls got to know him very well, according to Bethany. When I Grow Up was founded in 2006. The group has a goal to reach 10,000 children out of extreme poverty, she said. “They partner with the local people, and their goal is not to just go in and fix, but it’s to go in and help them train so they can build up their own communities,” Thomas said. “They focus on kids especially, because by feeding and educating the children, they’re able to, in essence, affect an entire family.” Bethany said When I Grow Up has a school in Huruma, Nairobi, Kenya, called Furaha; in Zone 18 in Haiti, “an extremely dangerous Haitian area”; and in Guatemala. “They have schools in each of these places, educating children, promoting the whole child — helping with lice care, helping feeding them every day. And then they support a full functioning staff of teachers for each of these schools,” she said. Thomas said they serve students through high school. In the last two years, he said Furaha had its first high school graduates and were moving into college education. Gilbert and his wife, Deb, visit these places as a team, Bethany said, and visit Kenya three times a year. His goal is to let them know they’re not a forgotten people and to raise funds for them, and to be their friend. “They don’t go do anything. They don’t go build anything. It’s not the typical mission trip. It’s a partnership, and they call them partners,” Bethany said. It’s a constant collaborative atmosphere, Thomas said. After learning about When I Grow Up, the Halls decided it was a worthy not-for-profit organization to give to. Thomas, who also is the WCHS choir director, has been teaching voice lessons since 2003 in a private studio. They had never done a recital before, so the first fundraiser in 2016 served as Thomas’ students recital, with 100 percent of the profits going to When I Grow Up. Last year, the event raised just over $3,600. This year, they hope to raise a minimum of $10,000. “The feedback was phenomenal last year,” Bethany said. “We did it two nights last year. Lots of emails, lots of ‘this is so good,’ and separate donations above the ticket prices.” Event sponsors include Hawkins Family Farm, MudLOVE, Bella Vitale, Rua, Kohl’s, Dr. Jasmine Schlitt Family Dentistry, Summit Orthodontics, Latte Lounge, Warsaw Orthodontics and Elysian & Co. The event’s Facebook page can be found under “A Night of Voices/Voices For Light.” The website for When I Grow Up can be found at whenigrowup-global.com. include Hawkins Family Farm, MudLOVE, Bella Vitale, Rua, Kohl’s, Dr. Jasmine Schlitt Family Dentistry, Summit Orthodontics, Latte Lounge, Warsaw Orthodontics and Elysian & Co. The event’s Facebook page can be found under “A Night of Voices/Voices For Light.” The website for When I Grow Up can be found at whenigrowup-global.com.
