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Sweet Adelines Lake Ontario Region 16 Newsletter
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Submission Deadline for June Issue :
June 15, 2017
Here are a few guidelines to follow when submitting your articles:
- Keep your submissions to approximately 500 words. We all have a lot of great news to share and I encourage you to submit monthly so articles could be kept to a reasonable length.
- Send your articles either in a Word document, or in the body of an email. Please do not send as a PDF
- Send your articles to sheighwayreg16@live.ca
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Syracuse 2017... and that's a wrap!
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Winners and Scores
Congratulations once again to all our Region 16 medalists, especially our champions:
- Buffalo Gateway - Intl. representatives for St. Louis 2018
- Power Chords - Intl. representatives for Vegas 2017
- (Also representing Region 16 in Vegas are: Spritzer, North Metro, Canadian Showtime AND Greater Kingston Chorus!)
If you missed the last e-blast, click on the link below to see it.
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Thank you so much to
Genine Gehret for the wonderful candid photos of Region 16's convention. We appreciate you sharing your time and talent.
Please pass this album link along to all chorus and quartet members. Anyone can print as many 4x6's as they want for free, and use whatever they want for websites, as long as you GIVE GENINE GEHRET KEEPSAKE PHOTOGRAPHY WRITTEN CREDIT FOR THE SHOTS.
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A Message from Power Chords
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WOW! There were so many great quartets on the stage in Syracuse and our heartiest congratulations to all of our quartet sisters for their fine performances. We are honored to once again represent the best Region in the world at the Vegas 3 Sweet Adelines International competition in October! Thank you so much to...
...the Regional Management Team and the Blue Ribbon Club for your generous $ gifts of love;
...Sue McKinley, Jordan Travis, Jim Arns and DI PORSCH for your expert coaching ;
...to Buffalo Gateway Chorus, and all of Region 16, for your love and support!
We are beyond excited !
Sue Melvin, Rosalie Mattison, Cindy Rivera, Molly Rowland
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November 3-5,2017 Sheraton Parkway Toronto North
Guest Faculty: Erin Howden
- Director North Metro Chorus
- Certified International Faculty
- Choreographer
- Passionate motivator
- Sought-after musical and visual coach throughout the world
Watch for more details on registration in the coming months.
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| Regional Website Login Information |
Just a reminder that our Region 16 website does not have a member specific login. In order to get to the Regional Songs, enter the userID and Password below in the
"Members Only" area.
UserID: member16
Password:
singalong
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Click on the link below to see past issues of the Sixteenth Notes
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Canadian Showtime Welcomes:
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Let us know who your new members are and they can see their name
here too!
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There is LOTS of great resource tools on the Region 16 Website!
Take a look around!
You never know what you might find!
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Looking for a Quartet? Check out our "Spare Parts" area in the Quartet section of the website
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THE JOY OF GIVING - HAIR RAISING EXPERIENCES BY CANADIAN SHOWTIME CHORUS
Written by: JD Crowe
Canadian Showtime Chorus®
is always looking for ways to give back to the community and one of our members' came up with an incredible idea! We are barbershop singers, we are women, we have hair! What could be better than to partner with a local organization,
Hair Donation Ottawa,
whose mission is to raise funds for cutting edge child and adult cancer research and empower kids with hair loss by providing them with free wigs. The ultimate objective of this valiant organization is in support of "Cutting Edge Adult and Childhood Cancer Research at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute and The Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) Research Institute."
Back in the Fall of 2016, one of our members met with the President and CEO and Founder of the organization, Helene Hutchings, to pitch her idea. Helene loved it and visited the chorus to share her story with us. A cancer survivor herself, she is a passionate, energetic and dynamic community leader with a servants' heart! She talked about why she decided to start
Hair Donation Ottawa and shared her personal journey and her battle - and win - over cancer. There was not a dry eye in the house! Helene's story struck a chord with us as several of our members have battled cancer and won but sadly, a few didn't. As Helene talked, we heard that several of our members or their relatives have donated hair to Hair Donation Ottawa in the past! This appeared to be a match made in heaven.
This has been our journey so far and its' been a rewarding one!
Our first initiative was meant not only to raise funds but also raise awareness. This first "Hair Raising Experience - Hats for Hair Part 1" involved this Sweet Adelines' vast collection of 64 (yes 64!!) hats for a photo shoot - quartets, best buddies, contest roomies, coaches...any and all pairings were welcome - for a small donation, photos were branded with our own chorus logo, as well as Hair Donation Ottawa and members were invited to share their photos with friends and family, by email, and on social media networks with a link to our team fundraising page.
Our chorus management team, in addition to supporting all the various "hair raising experiences" supported fundraising efforts by donating a portion of the proceeds from our weekly 50/50 draws for four months.
Our quartets got into the spirit with various community sing-outs - our City of Ottawa supported this effort by providing free space in our beautiful City Hall. Quartets scheduled their sing-outs, and related fundraising efforts around National Barbershop Quartet Day (April 11).
One of our members,
who takes care of our costuming and branded clothing held an impromptu clothing sale - she called it "Clean up the Cupboard" sale...
 Two vendors at a Christmas Craft sale held in Ottawa kindly provided donations of their crafts to support the cause - the first, in keeping with our "Hair Raising Experiences - Hats For Hair Part 2" involved a local hat maker -
Mad Cap Hats
, donating some of their unique and hand crafted summer hats for an online auction, which took place online for several weeks.
The second were hand-painted watercolour note cards donated by local artist
Cori Lee Marvin
, which were gifted to those making donations at the quartet sing-outs.
We also had some family members / colleagues get on board with fundraising by donating their hair to be used for wig making for cancer patients ...
And all the hair that could not be used is not wasted - it is repurposed and used for environmental cleanups.
To culminate our fundraising efforts, on Sunday, April 30, 2017, Hair Donation Ottawa held its annual large-scale hair donation and fundraising event at Algonquin College! Both Canadian Showtime Chorus and KeyRings Quartet performed at the event.
All in all, Canadian Showtime Chorus and our team raised over $4,000 over a four-month period for this important cause - and in the process, had a lot of fun opportunities to team-build, create a feel-good giving opportunity, support our community, all while sharing our love of music.
We are Sweet Adelines and we can make a difference in the fight against cancer!
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Anna Shen SAOTY 2017 - 2018 with SAOTY 2016 - 2017 Susan Mander |
The votes were cast and here she is, our Sweet Adeline of the Year, 2017 - 2018, Anna Shen, with SAOTY 2016 - 2017 Susan Mander! We announced our SAOTY at our retreat on the first weekend of April. Anna joined the Circle of Harmony through our Christmas Choir programme in 2015 and became a full member in the Spring of 2016. She has proven herself to be an invaluable member of the Circle of Harmony in that short time, and is currently on the Board as our Communication Chair! Congratulations, Anna!
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| From top left to bottom right: J.J, Rita, Lisa, Donna, Michele, Amy, Sydney, Tanya |
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This year will be a first of many things for our beautiful new members, and here they are at their first retreat!
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From top left to bottom right J.J., Rita, Lisa, Donna, Michele, Amy, Sydney, Tanya |
And now that contest is behind us, our lovely "newbies" are "newbies" no more! Here they are after their first contest at our Saturday night dinner in Syracuse, having a lovely time basking in the glow of a second-place finish! Way to go ladies!
Newbies no longer! Here are our lovely new members after their first contest!
The Circle of Harmony wishes all our sisters in harmony very successful Springs!
Susan Mander
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From
GKC's 'Happy Place' !
Wow, wow, and triple WOW !!! As I write this we are still flying high from this just ended, fabulous and emotional Region 16 Contest weekend in Syracuse NY...and what a weekend it was! The persistent grey skies and rain tried to 'dampen' our enthusiasm, but completely failed to rain on our parade! We are bursting with pride over our individual and collective achievements; congratulations to our own Andrew Carolan for winning the Novice Director Award in his first outing as a front line Director; to our beloved Walkin' On Sunshine quartet for their 3rd place finish; to our GKC newbies Elizabeth Conley, Lucille Fragomeni, Nina Elkin, Candice McMullen, Joann Butcher-Williams, Julia Armstrong and returning member Faye Hoadley for enjoying their first time on contest stage as the 'Class of 2017'; and of course to ALL our GKC veterans, JOB WELL DONE! We tried, and succeeded together in fulfilling our motto... to 'Make Every Moment Count.'
N
ow our sights are set, full steam ahead, on representing Region 16 in Las Vegas in October in the Harmony Classic AA category!
And who can ever forget the emotional, heart-felt tribute to the inimitable June Dale, on stepping down from her 45 years as Director of North Metro Chorus???!! June's 'retirement' is the start of a new chapter in her life, and she has left her beloved chorus in the more than qualified, multi-talented hands of daughter Erin Howden, who has proven that she can rise to the challenge! We love you and wish you both well !!
We hope that all Region16 competitors enjoyed and learned from their experiences this weekend, and continue to grow and strive towards their shared goals and achieve their personal best! Hopefully you had a great time, saw some old friends and maybe made some new ones!
Marilyn O'Connor
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This is the easiest task I've had all contest season, because this article literally writes itself. I only have to sit back and quietly reflect on the few weeks building up to those few precious moments on stage. Remembering the increasing surges of adrenaline as that date approached. I smile and giggle as I go over the tons of pictures taken (some of blackmail quality), along with the dozens of likes, hearts, shares and comments on facebook and the emails, cards and messages received prior to, during and after contest.
I'm personally reflecting on the abundance of hugs received over the weekend from so many people that I only cross paths with on a contest week end, never mind the swapping of hugs between my LCV chorus sisters. There was a point that I worried about the pain in my right hand from all the hi fives after our Div A first place win. I wondered if my grasp of the steering wheel would hamper my ability to drive home. Alas, the stinging has subsided, and the redness has all but disappeared.
I'm reflecting on the droopy eyed, 7 am drive home, still shivering from the bone chilling dampness from 3 straight days of rain. The drive took my daughter and I though more rain which I tried to put an optimistic spin on. It started out likening it to gentle angel tears, dancing gleefully from the ever darkening clouds, then rapidly changing to thoughts of it all actually being a devilish torrential downpour!!! Minutes after entering Canadian road space the wet was now freezing with my wipers scraping through the build up of slush on my windshield. I know it was all made worse by the warp speed I was travelling, the vision of my own bed becoming more vibrant with each mile travelled. I think at one point I heard myself mumble ...."beam me up Scottie". Finally, I pulled into my driveway, eyes drooping, an orange tinted, half washed face giving up the highway tension. I was exhausted and my muscles were screaming. I was in total disbelief when I stepped out of my car to be met by cold, wet, white stuff dropping from those same black clouds. (cruel I thought, seriously, snow ???? Mother Nature needs to get a hobby. Perhaps she should join a barbershop chorus?) However, the white of the flakes falling from the sky, were an interesting contrast to the blue of the words dropping from my mouth. I heard my pillow and bed call my name as I opened my back door. I also thought I heard a Bf from a pitch pipe, however, in hindsight I think I might have been hallucinating from sleep deprivation.
Easier this gets, as I reflect on the animated comments from some of our first timers. Lucky us, we had 6 of them on stage. It was fun, I have to admit, to watch some of them get ready, knowing from experience, that there were no doubt some thoughts of...."seriously, you want me to pancake my elbows, my ears, my chest?" Observing some of the shocked looks when they were unable to recognize who was staring back at them from the hotel mirrors!!!
Speaking of make-up, I personally wrestled with the eyelashes for the first time in years. It used to be I could pop those fluffies on in minutes, but this year I found that I needed my glasses to see my eyelids, but then needed to remove my glasses to be able to put them on. It just doesn't work. Meanwhile my thumb was glued
to the side of my nose. The end result giving the look of a caterpillar that had crawled onto my face, curled into a fetal position, and died halfway between my fake, arched eyebrow and my cheekbone. To heck with it. I scraped off the glue and tripled up on the mascara! I had briefly thought that I'd just glue them to the front of my glasses but set that idea aside when I realized that I wouldn't be able to blink through the performance, for obvious reasons.
Sorry, I digressed from this 'easy' task.
What is easy though, is to cut and paste from our facebook page. (thanks to whoever posted because it is so indicative of who we are). Here are some bits and pieces of that post. "LCV is bursting with pride and gratitude!" "Members of LCV had no expectations other than to individually dig deeper as musicians....to go beyond the score...and to have FUN while doing it!" "That, along with its get-over-yourself attitude and drive to push the envelope has proven once again to be a magical combination". "You HAVE to be over yourself to start a new uptune 8 weeks out from contest, bring in a second director 4 weeks out, and change up your tag entirely only 10 days out! But that's how we role!".
Our thanks go to so many people who made this all possible. Our beloved director Kristin Stevens, an int'l top ten co-director Mo Field, our associate director, choreographer and super big sister Vanessa Patterson. A special thanks also to Amelia Charnock for sharing her warm up expertise and so kindly lending her voice to our lead and baritone sections.
There are so many other people to thank for such a successful week end and if I try to thank them all here I will surely forget somebody but you know who you are. Kudos to our regional convention team who make the week end look like a piece of cake. They do such a professional job. To the theatre staff, so pleasant and really genuinely happy to see us all again. I had a great giggle talking to a young fella at the top of the escalator who was happy to brag to me that he had just turned 80 and had been doing this for 25+ years. He loves the whole convention and proudly wears two pins given to him from somewhere in the past. He only wished he'd had a program so he could follow along over the week end.......I gave him mine and you'd think he'd won the lotto.
Congratulations to Power Chords, Greater Kingston Chorus and Buffalo Gateway Chorus. You inspire us to raise our bar ever higher! Good luck to our region 16 representatives in Vegas this year, North Metro and Cdn Showtime Chorus.
See you all next spring. In friendship and harmony, Limestone City Voices.
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What a fabulous contest we had this past weekend. Our members look forward to seeing our friends every year. Congratulations to Buffalo Gateway Show Chorus and Power Chords for tremendous performances! We will enjoy supporting Canadian Showtime Chorus, Greater Kingston Chorus, Power Chords and Spritzer in Las Vegas this year.
Everyone on the Convention Team works hard every year to operate the best weekend in Sweet Adelines - and they succeed each time. Our chorus is grateful to the wonderful women who plan every event during the contest weekend and we thank you for your hard work and dedication to our Region.
Thank you to everyone in Region 16 for your support and enjoyment of our June Dale Tribute as our Outgoing Champion Package this year. It was indeed a joy to perform, despite the tears running down our faces! As you all witnessed with our tribute, we are very grateful to have benefitted from 45 years of directorship with our beloved June Dale. There are not sufficient words to describe how much we miss her waving her arms in front of us, but Erin certainly keeps us on our toes. We are blessed to have such a fabulous team moving our chorus forward. June is never far away and will be seen on our show stage in September. By the way, keep September 16, 2017, open as our show date is quickly approaching. Tickets will be on sale at the end of June, so keep an eye on our website for complete information.
A big thank you to Mo Field for an excellent Educational presentation during Regional this year. Many of our members attended and were enthralled with her story and words of encouragement. Our own Cathy Stovold was thrilled to receive the Region's Leadership Excellence Award and one of our new quartets, Strike a Chord, won the Novice Quartet Award.
What's next for North Metro? The wonderful Peggy Gram is dropping in on May 24 and 25 for what promises to be an exciting coaching event. June and Erin are leading a chorus retreat in June at the Nottawasaga Inn. The International competition is in October at the MGM Grand and all roads lead to Las Vegas. We will be spending the summer on our new finals package, learning the choreography, and finalizing the presentation. We eagerly await the International stage, under the direction of Erin Howden.
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The poem below,
composed by our member, Jacquie Di Federico was read to our chorus at our Installation Dinner and we thought it would be great to share it with Region 16.
What will I do with this ribbon of blue, so much meaning it had for a year.
Each week would reside, I would wear with such pride,
round my neck, it did bring me such cheer.
This ribbon would hold, with its color of gold, a medallion of proof how we tried.
I'll remember that day when they gave it away
to this woman so humbled, she cried.
My bags are unpacked and neatly put back. The costume's hung up under cloth.
Those painful darn shoes that made my toes bruise,
don't seem quite so bad now they're off.
Now, my brushes are clean, you know what I mean. I've put all that makeup away.
Tho it seemed quite a lot, in the mirror I'd spot,
someone who was Queen for a day!
Those lashes replaced in their gossamer case. The shimmering purple all gone.
How easy they were to remove in the blur;
how annoyingly hard to glue on.
Did you sleep? Not at all! was the answering call from my comrades who all shared a floor.
We knew not to heed if there was a need
"just come and knock on my door".
These women are more than a musical Corp, they're My sister's, my family, my friends.
Jan-Ake our pal, he's just one of the gals!
An honor we're glad to extend.
Home, tired and happy I rest in my chair, thinking back on the laughter and fun.
I'm bursting with pride, such a feeling inside.
Another convention is done!
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STILL SEARCHING!
Bytown Beat Chorus, Ottawa ON, Region 16 Sweet Adelines Intl. ,is a small chorus of enthusiastic, performance oriented, fun loving women who are serious about their musical goals. We are seeking a musical director with experience in directing and who has strong and positive teaching skills. Applicants will have, preferably, a knowledge of women,s 4 part barbershop harmony or a willingness to learn this a cappella style.
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Costumes for Sale!
These gently used costumes would be suitable for western themed show
Bytown Beat have for sale:
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37 LL Bean shirts, pink and white check s
izes XL to XS
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Qty 42 white Stetsons
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Some accessories available (boot covers, belts, scarfs)
Cost for shirt and hat = $22
Cost negotiable for entire collection
Shipping to be arranged
Contact Doreen 1-613-837-2462
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Save the Dates for these two awesome North Metro Events!
On the evening of Friday, February 16th, 2018,
North
Metro Chorus will host its first A Cappella Challenge for Youth under 30. It will be open to coed. youth choral groups, not soloists or groups who are already fully members of Sweet Adelines. We are inviting you to save the date to join us. The A Cappella Challenge will take place at the Richmond Hill Centre for Performing Arts.
This initiative is part of our outreach to inspire youth in the craft of a cappella music and expose the local music education
community to our chorus and our amazing organization. For those of you who watch The Sing Off, the Voice, America's Got Talent, or more local events such as Show Choir Canada, it is clear that our youth possess phenomenal talent. This is another avenue for them to share that talent and develop a relationship with our organization.
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SAVE THE DATE!
York Harmony's Yuk Yuks Comedy night
Saturday, June 24th
Join us for an evening of comedy,
DJ, dancing, food, extensive silent auction and more!
Claim your spot at this show by emailing us at
yhctickets@gmail.com
In Newmarket, tickets can be purchased at
"Good Vibes", 254 Main Street South. Tickets are $35 each.
Groups of 10, will have a reserved table. Tickets must be
purchased at the same time. Cash
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SAVE THE DATE!
Scarborough Chorus and East York Barbershoppers present Ads and Lads on June 24. Show times are 2 and 7 PM. Location is Scarborough Bluffs United Church, 3739 Kingston Road in Scarborough. Special guest performers are Yonge Guns, Ontario District BHS champs! Tickets are $25. Children 12 and under are free, but need a ticket.
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Sweet Adelines Region 16
Sue Heighway - Communications Coordinator
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