By Dr. Dina Pannabecker Evans
It’s a thrill for me to be able to share some recent, extraordinary musical experiences with you, thanks to the support of the Country Club Christian Church congregation. On July 3, we sponsored an organ concert as part of the American Guild of Organists National Convention, held in Kansas City for the first time. I was told to expect about 600 people for the performance. We had at least 1000 people seated in the sanctuary, and extra chairs. The preschool children were excited to see the convention tour buses lined up along the curb. Our facilities, tech, and membership development staff went out of their way to make sure that every detail was in place. Welcoming greeters were excited to introduce so many new people to our beautiful space, and the Zappia sculpture received a great deal of attention. Minister of Music Emeritus, David Diebold, returned from Texas to attend the convention and help sell tickets at the event. We remain grateful to the Neihart family for their generous gift to the American Guild of Organists so that we could all remember Carlene in this once-in-a-lifetime event. At a conference workshop the next day, I sat by a woman from North Carolina. When I shared that I was employed here at Country Club Christian, she said that as the buses pulled up to the church on Tuesday afternoon, she and her husband immediately saw the sign out front – and noticed that the senior minister had a feminine name. They opted to sit in the balcony for the concert, and, as they walked up the stairway, marveled at the portraits of all the previous ministers, knowing that this church had made a definitive statement.
Two weeks later, I was able to represent the church at the annual Hymn Society conference, “Sacred Song in the Public Square”, in St. Louis. My goal was to find resources that we could use in worship services, reflecting progressive theology and inclusive language. While the days were long, I was pleased to learn of so many resources, and to renew and build a network of considerate, thoughtful, and helpful colleagues.
The mission of the Hymn Society is “to encourage, promote, and enliven congregational singing.” I look forward to sharing more music and meaningful texts with you over the coming year and thank you for your support of the music here at Country Club Christian Church.
