Night of music, light of hope
The lights dimmed at Martins Creek Mennonite Church on Sunday, Dec. 4, and as the lights went down, the beauty of voices and instruments lifted in praise provided a perfect setting to kick the Christmas season into high gear, as Jann Hershberger presented the ninth annual Share-A-Christmas Night of Music.
Following the freewill offering taken during the service, a grand total of $3,279 was raised, pushing the total for the past nine years to more than $20,000.
“Look what God has done. He turned $100 into $20,000,” said Hershberger with a smile following the event. “Hey, look what God has done? That sounds like the perfect title for next year’s 10th anniversary show.”
Hershberger’s venture began nine years ago when then-pastor Carl Wiebe and the church gave all of its families $100 to “make an investment” in the community around them. Hershberger used her $100 as the seed money to begin the show, and chose Share-A-Christmas as the benefactor. What a blessing that has been for the local outreach ministry, with $20,000 going a long way in helping to meet the needs of local families at Christmas and even beyond, as the program gives year-round to families in need, supplying children with coats, gloves, clothing and much more all year.
Share-A-Christmas chair Bob Porter was again on hand for the musical event, as he has been over the past years, celebrating with each song what God has done for the community through the event.
“What a ministry this is,” said Porter. “You break down the donations received this year, and we’re looking at supporting more than 20 families, just from this one event. Jann has done an amazing job at putting together something that is very fruitful.”
As always, the music was the highlight of the evening. But the night actually kicked off not just in music, but in sign language, with the signing group Beyond Words performing sign language dance to the song It’s True. Then, former Hiland graduate Charles Scamman sauntered down the main aisle in dim light, crooning O Holy Night, his mellow voice bringing many to tears.
Those two performances got the evening off to a tremendous start, that continued to showcase much of the musical talent in Holmes and Wayne counties. High Country Bluegrass performed O Beautiful Star and Mary’s Christmas, the Hiland jazz band performed several upbeat numbers, and then Todd Swallen dazzled the crowd with piano pieces including I Heard the Bells and There’s a Song In the Air. Peg Luzader presented a mesmerizing performance of I Believe, Micah Raber, a sophomore at Central Christian, awed with his incredibly rich, deep bass voice on Amazing Grace and Away In a Manger and the four-legged kingdom ventured into the church, courtesy of Rita Boyd’s dog Cody. From the touching performance by young violinists Emma and Mattie Mast, to the gut-busting Smothers Brothers tribute from husband and wife team Zak and Rachel Miller, to Brent Young’s sizzling trumpet solos, there was plenty of music to go around on this night, and the aforementioned list was only a portion of the evening’s entertainment line-up.
Following the performances, the crowd was invited to partake in a time of fellowship and refreshments.
The church called in the donations the next day, providing for funding to cover more than 20 families via the WKLM Share-A-Christmas fundraising campaign.
Yet while the music took center stage, Hershberger said that it served as only a vehicle to the real meaning behind the night of music, which was to provide for needy families as well as present the gospel in a meaningful way, and to reach people and touch lives in a way that regular church services may not be able to do.
Following the freewill offering taken during the service, a grand total of $3,279 was raised, pushing the total for the past nine years to more than $20,000.
“Look what God has done. He turned $100 into $20,000,” said Hershberger with a smile following the event. “Hey, look what God has done? That sounds like the perfect title for next year’s 10th anniversary show.”
Hershberger’s venture began nine years ago when then-pastor Carl Wiebe and the church gave all of its families $100 to “make an investment” in the community around them. Hershberger used her $100 as the seed money to begin the show, and chose Share-A-Christmas as the benefactor. What a blessing that has been for the local outreach ministry, with $20,000 going a long way in helping to meet the needs of local families at Christmas and even beyond, as the program gives year-round to families in need, supplying children with coats, gloves, clothing and much more all year.
Share-A-Christmas chair Bob Porter was again on hand for the musical event, as he has been over the past years, celebrating with each song what God has done for the community through the event.
“What a ministry this is,” said Porter. “You break down the donations received this year, and we’re looking at supporting more than 20 families, just from this one event. Jann has done an amazing job at putting together something that is very fruitful.”
As always, the music was the highlight of the evening. But the night actually kicked off not just in music, but in sign language, with the signing group Beyond Words performing sign language dance to the song It’s True. Then, former Hiland graduate Charles Scamman sauntered down the main aisle in dim light, crooning O Holy Night, his mellow voice bringing many to tears.
Those two performances got the evening off to a tremendous start, that continued to showcase much of the musical talent in Holmes and Wayne counties. High Country Bluegrass performed O Beautiful Star and Mary’s Christmas, the Hiland jazz band performed several upbeat numbers, and then Todd Swallen dazzled the crowd with piano pieces including I Heard the Bells and There’s a Song In the Air. Peg Luzader presented a mesmerizing performance of I Believe, Micah Raber, a sophomore at Central Christian, awed with his incredibly rich, deep bass voice on Amazing Grace and Away In a Manger and the four-legged kingdom ventured into the church, courtesy of Rita Boyd’s dog Cody. From the touching performance by young violinists Emma and Mattie Mast, to the gut-busting Smothers Brothers tribute from husband and wife team Zak and Rachel Miller, to Brent Young’s sizzling trumpet solos, there was plenty of music to go around on this night, and the aforementioned list was only a portion of the evening’s entertainment line-up.
Following the performances, the crowd was invited to partake in a time of fellowship and refreshments.
The church called in the donations the next day, providing for funding to cover more than 20 families via the WKLM Share-A-Christmas fundraising campaign.
Yet while the music took center stage, Hershberger said that it served as only a vehicle to the real meaning behind the night of music, which was to provide for needy families as well as present the gospel in a meaningful way, and to reach people and touch lives in a way that regular church services may not be able to do.
Published: December 6, 2011
