Sing For Hope - One Voice

Photo Credit: Sing For Hope (2006)

For a mere $35, you can help someone less fortunate.

CONCERT TO BENEFIT THE HOMELESS

Sing for Hope/One Voice: Evening of Art Songs and Opera

As one of the first of many bicentennial celebrations, and in keeping with our 200 year tradition of ministering to the poor, on the evening of Tuesday June 3 at 7:30pm, Grace Church will host Sing for Hope: OneVoice, An Evening of Art Songs and Opera, a night of Opera favorites to benefit Partners in Grace, a coalition of eighteen groups and organizations working to eradicate homelessness in New York City. Metropolitan Opera soprano (and Grace Church chorister) Holli Harrison and fellow stars of the international music scene will star, performing a concert that celebrates the human spirit, with works by Mozart, Rossini, Verdi, Puccini, Offenbach and Bernstein.

Thanks to the generosity of Grace Church and the artists donating their performances, all of the event’s proceeds will directly support the vital outreach programs of Partners In Grace. Partners in Grace, a coalition of charitable organizations, meets the pressing needs of New York City’s hungry and homeless through an array of comprehensive, complementary service programs.

Along with soprano Holli Harrison (The Metropolitan Opera), the concert will also feature Christine Goerke (The Metropolitan Opera), Rochelle Small Clifford (Harlem Opera Theatre), and Camille Zamora (Los Angeles Opera); Mezzo-Sopranos Elise Quagliata (Glimmerglass Opera); Tenors Javier Abreu (New York City Opera) and Joel Weiss (Opera Pacific); Baritones Matthew Worth (Chicago Opera Theater) and Brian Kontes (Opera Orchestra of New York).

Ticketing Information

Outreach Sunday

OUTREACH SUNDAY – This-coming Sunday! Besides meeting new people, you will have a chance to learn about 16 different organizations working to address the needs of the homeless in New York City. Join us in Tuttle Hall at Grace Church immediately following the 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. services, visiting the outreach displays, and supporting the vision that no one is left without shelter in our great city.

Congratulations

Thanks to everyone who contributed to my birthday charity fund-raiser. Together we donated almost fifteen hundred dollars to feed NYC's needy.

Food Banks: We’re One Step From Running Out

From today's New York Times:
Food banks around the country are reporting critical shortages that have forced them to ration supplies, distribute staples usually reserved for disaster relief and in some instances close.

NYC Food Bank Scare

This past Sunday I was moved by one of our church's soup kitchen volunteers. She's a bundle of energy and teaches Broadway and film stars how to tap-dance when their roles require it. A group of us were having a light lunch after church at a nearby restaurant when she bounced up to our table and apologized for being late. She had the last-minute idea to let those poor souls in line dress up their chili themselves. Her words spoke volumes, "Yeah, I decided that when you're cooking an industrial-style meal like that, if you let those in line add their own dollop of sour cream and shredded cheese, it adds a feeling of "home" to the meal. Takes a bit longer this way, but it places a warm and personal touch to the meal."Last week's New York Times and NY Daily News both reported on our current dwindling supply of food for the needy, juxtaposed with an increase in those needing assistance. These poor often hold full-time jobs, while remaining homeless. That's right, they work hard just like you, but don't even get paid enough to afford a studio apartment in a bad neighborhood.

There is something you can do. You can phone our local NY representatives and tell them you support the 2007 Farm bill. But act now, because the bill expires October 31, 2007.