A LOOK BACK AT THE POHC SPRING 2023 OUTREACH SEASON

by Carrie Wesolowski

Photos by: Frank Asencio

The reviews are in. And they loved having us.

One lady who sang along wholeheartedly to "Over the Rainbow/Wonderful World" gently took my hand and told me how our music brought her so much joy!

It was a very special Peace of Heart Choir outreach concert on Saturday, April 29 at Atria Living West 86, a welcoming independent living and supportive senior living community. This was our real first time back to a senior facility since February 2020.

(With one difference though--we were singing masked.)

To quote René, to make it here on this extremely rainy day, we had "endured the deluge."

It started with a check-in at the kiosk at the front desk and a quick temperature check and we made our way to a holding area where we could hear the sounds of the Chilean film that residents were watching in the next room. Once the film was over, they were ready for our live musical performance in their recreation room.

We began with our signature opening "Siyahamba/Shosholoza" (with soloist Gary) and a word from Gary thanking our audience for welcoming us into their home. And I was reminded of that when I saw Schleppers, the NYC moving company, carrying a large table through the front door.

As I shared the Indigenous Land Acknowledgment Statement which meant that it was time for the "Cherokee Morning Song, the lovely sounds of the Native American flute played by René began to fill the room and we sang the "Cherokee Morning Song" in a round.

**René** **plays Native American Flute during Cherokee Morning Song.**

A lady with a walker who arrived during "Hard Times Come Again No More," let out an almost stifled triumphant ‘yay’ as she found her seat at the back of the recreation room. You could feel her excitement. (She would later use the word "special" to describe our musical performance.)

There was an abundance of sing-alongs, "Peace Like a River," "Lead With Love" featuring soloists Carrie and Nancy, "Oh, I Woke Up This Morning" with soloist Deb, and "Singing for Our Lives."

This afternoon of music had been more three years in the making and before we knew it, it was time for our last two songs: "One Day" featuring soloists Gwyn and Gary and our signature closing song, "Let There Be Peace on Earth" with soloist Cheryl and then, it was time to take our bows.

Thanks to René, our accompanist Marv, to Atria Living for having us and to our wonderful audience.

I enjoying visiting with members of our audience after our outreach. And one audience member loved us so much, she asked if we could come back next week. Then she laughed and reckoned that might be too soon and suggested instead a more reasonable request that we make sure to come back in 3 months or so.

There's no doubt in my mind. "We'll be back!"

On Sunday, May 7, we returned to our friends at the NYC clubhouse of Fountain House, our 1st time back since before the pandemic. It had been a while but how could I forget those familiar forest green double doors of the Georgian Colonial style building beckoning me and as I spotted them, I slowed down and made my way up the steps and walked through. On the other side of those doors were warm and welcoming members of the community, a new member offering to direct me to the community room where we would be singing for them this afternoon—their lovely living room full of plush, comfy couches and chairs and the room’s taupe colored wallpaper illuminated by the glow of the candelabra chandelier. An audience had already filled the room as we warmed up.

Fountain House, a national nonprofit created for and by people living with serious mental illness is dedicated to the recovery of men and women with mental illness through education, employment, and housing by contributing their talents through a community of mutual support. The concept of a clubhouse — which was pioneered by Fountain House in the 1940s — starts with the idea that “community is therapy.” From our rousing opening number “Siyahamba” to our spirited encore “Let The Sun Shine In,” our music was that sense of community and therapy on this sunny spring afternoon. I greeted some familiar faces and got to know some new ones. Ours was a friendly, inquisitive audience who expressed enthusiasm and applauded us and who asked questions as we did song intros and sang and we were happy to answer them. René, our maestro was definitely the man of many instruments alternately playing the Native American flute, xylophone, mandolin, piano—hope I didn’t miss any--and he enjoyed sharing different tidbits of information about the instruments with our audience too. Thanks to our choir instrumentalists Andy and Marv who picked up where René left off, our soloists, and all of our choir members who came out for an afternoon of music and to Fountain House for welcoming us back but once again. A Fountain House staff member told us after the concert that it was such a beautiful outreach and that we had to come back some time soon.

We can’t wait!!

In Harmony,

Carrie Wesolowski, Alto 1