Spirit met last night, Wednesday, August 2nd, for the first session of the 2006-07 year. What a joy to see those in attendance. We even had an unscheduled visit from Stacy, Lacy and Carley. It seems like just yesterday they were part of our group. They've grown so much since they left, I could barely recognize them.
Several of our normal participants were previously engaged and unable to attend. Therefore, I thought I would post some of the decisions and discussions we had as a group. Many of these items are still in the "discussion" stage and will be researched further. Tony, and the other sponsors, have given lots of thought has to what we want for SPIRIT this year, and are extremely excited for some of the opportunities we'll have.
Let's start at the beginning. Our plan is to meet each Wednesday from 6:00 to 7:00. No big news there. We will open our sessions to "newbys" on August 23rd, the first day of school in the SAISD. We are always glad to have new participants. However, Tony asked us to PLEASE inform any invited guest about ALL the committments of SPIRIT. This is not just an end of year trip. It's a year long committment, which includes monthly anthems at FUMC, Christmas time performances, fundraisers, a Spirit Renewed show, additional weekend rehearsals as needed, and an end of the year trip. There may or may not be an ice cream social related to this get together. It all depends on Brett! (He's the one with the new braces on his teeth.)
Tony has been working on anthems. Think WOW book! He would like to use some of those songs again. The group indicated they would like to take a pretty active role with regards to Christmas performances, including our traditional Christmas Eve performance. Tony will meet with the Church to schedule our participation.
Several themes were thrown out there for Spirit Renewed. It is not too late to get your idea to Tony. I personally liked the SPIRIT Goes to the Movies, as there are a large selection of songs to be sang from a large selection of movies. However, there were other good ideas and I'm sure eventually, we will come up with something that will produce a show that will reaise large sums of money and make our parents proud!
Our initial thinking, is that SPIRIT will cross the Deep South this year in an effort to spend time in Atlanta, GA, Charleston, SC, Savannah, GA, and Jacksonville, FL. Lots of planning will be necessary to pull this off. But, at least for now, that is kind of what we are thinking. We've discussed having an emphasis on studying civil rights during our year long journey to coincide with the Tour. We'll let you know as we progress.
Finally, we remembered Jane in our prayers. She is and has been one of the most valuable and consistent parts of this group for years. In some ways she has been sort of the mother of the SPIRIT family for a long time. We deeply regret her loss, but are thankful for all the opportunities this program has offered her and James over the years. If you get a chance to see her, just let her know how much you love her. She thinks the world of each of you.
When we think of something else, we'll let you know.
Little Boze
