Later that day …
What a surprise! Many of the kids actually napped!
There was a race to get showered after getting all sweaty-sticky at the zoo and get to dinner before dressing for the concert. By 6 p.m., everyone was in the 2nd floor rehearsal room. One chaperone, the “fashion dictator,” armed with a lint remover, inspected every chorister.

Off to the concert!
At the Cathedral, the excitement was palpable – a strong vibe – as people buzzed around fussing with final details. One person was placing duct tape over wires, the sound guy managed to place his mike exactly where Sandra Snow wanted to conduct.
She got up on a box and ran the kids quickly through a rehearsal as members of the UU Church of Alton, Illinois, set up goodies for a reception afterwards.
Then a professional photographer (the heavy artillery) set up a few lights and took several fabulous-looking digital portraits of the kids.
At 7:30 p.m., the kids filed solemnly into the sanctuary and were startled to hear hundred of people clapping and screaming for them.
Ken Herman, who has been our skillful accompanist all week, seated himself and waited for Ms. Snow’s command. The children waited expectantly, too.
For the next half-hour, it was one great performance after another: Zion’s Walls, a revivalist song; At the River; Mayim, Mayim (Water, Water); a 16th century German chorale; Mbiri Kuna Mwari (Gloria); and the tear-inducing Give Us Hope.
After each piece, the audience clapped wildly and rose to a standing ovation at the finale.
The kids, staff, chaperones and audience members were all pumped.
Harry Mangle let the audience know that an audio CD of the performance was available for $20. The photographer’s “official” digital portrait of the group will also be available. The Leadership team of Leon Burke, Harry Mangle, Annease Hastings and Rita Anderson credited St. Louis helpers Barbara Bleisch, and Clint and Sue Blandford for their invaluable “on the ground” assistance.
The reception lasted well over an hour as UUs from different congregations met for the first time or reunited. Proud parents and grandparents bust a few buttons over the kids’ performance and one little chorister was presented with a large pink sunflower that was taller than she is.
Three families from the Virginia-Maryland area who had children in the UUCC didn’t realize until the concert that their older, high school children were already “con friends.”

Finally, it was time to go.
On the bus ride back to De Mat, the kids rocked the two buses with loud, happy singing. Even the adults joined in on #123 – Spirit of Life. The other hit was Come Sing a Song with Me.
In the rehearsal room, Harry Mangle and Annease Hastings congratulated the choristers, gave them an extra half-hour of socializing as a reward, and sent them off with a long set of instructions for tomorrow.

Tomorrow, we sing at the General Assembly.