The Friday night festivities of Wildcat Days will feature a new event and a rare treat – a performance by the African Children's Choir. Made up of 80 children from Uganda between the ages of nine and 11, the choir is currently touring North America and will be bringing their one of a kind show to Elkford.
The choir is a non-profit and humanitarian relief program and is run through Music for Life (MFL), an organization working in seven African countries: Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa. With a strong focus on education, MFL works to create new leadership for tomorrow's Africa with several different relief and development programs. Donations raised through performances by the African Children's Choir go towards education, care and relief and development programs.
Nate Longstaff, a chaperone with the choir, said the group generally performs at schools, churches and community centres in towns both big and small.
“We do a variety of sizes of towns because it is not just about the fundraising, it's about blessing communities,” he explained. “The hope that these children bring is immense to a community and it is wonderful for small communities to be able to be experiencing the culture, the enthusiasm and the beauty of these children.”
He went on to say, “During the performance, the children will say what they want to be when they grow up, and they each want to be high profile positions like doctors, lawyers, politicians. When you think about where they're coming from – many of them are orphans, many of them come from the lowest of the low - and yet they have this tremendous hope; it is inspiring.”
Each performance features a mix of traditional and gospel songs, dances and drums, as well as testimonies from choir alumni.
“People that turn up to concerts are so moved, they just don't go home the same person,” remarked Longstaff. “Their perspective on life is changed and that alone is something worth investigating.”
Don't miss the African Children's Choir when they hit the Wildcat Days stage at 6 p.m. this Friday night.