St. Alphonsus Student Choir Records CD at CCC
Stephanie DeVito, Director of Pastoral Music for St. Alphonsus, said the idea of recording a CD was suggested by fellow parishioner Michael Quill. He commented that the children’s choir was very good, and DeVito should think about making a CD and donating the proceeds to charity. Quill put DeVito in touch with DJ and music lover Jane Stebbins, who then contacted Cayuga Community College Telecommunication’s Department Chair Steve Keeler, who arranged for the choir to be one of Cayuga Records student recording projects. Students who participate in this program learn how to run a recording company from top to bottom. www.cayugarecords.com
The music on the CD will be a combination of Christmas songs, a few popular Broadway songs and church songs, totaling about 25 minutes worth of music. The recording is set for November 10th, and the CD release kickoff weekend will be Sunday November 20th, after which they will start selling the release in the community. All the proceeds from CD sales will be donated to the Christmas Elf program.
As an active participant in the school district and community DeVito chose the Christmas Elf program because she had advocated and aided families who were in need not only year round but during the holiday season.
She shared," To watch a child so distraught over the idea of not having lunch during holiday break, because the family relied on the school lunch program was disheartening. It wasn't the presents or the material items of the season that concerned them; it was about saving food from each day’s lunch as a means of survival during holiday break. So, I have been a big advocate of helping families especially during this time of year, which should be joyous for everyone.”
DeVito continued, “What a great way for kids to help out other children and their families, put a smile on their faces and make their holiday season shine a little bit brighter. The Christmas Elf is a wonderful example of a community coming together to make sure that these families are provided for and are given a great holiday season.”
The Christmas Elf program is run by Cayuga/Seneca Community Action Agency http://www.cscaa.com/home.html.
Community Outreach
DeVito makes a concerted effort to share the choir’s talents with the community. They have a very active schedule, which includes singing every Sunday at 10AM mass at St. Alphonsus Church. During the summer they sing the national anthem at Doubledays’ baseball games. They also sang the national anthem at this summer’s Founders Day event, and the City’s 9/11 sculpture dedication at Memorial City Hall. In August the students performed at a Downtown Auburn BID Summer Concert at Market Street Park.
In October, the choral group volunteered at the Halloween Monster Craze at the Fingerlakes Mall, which helped benefit the United Way of Cayuga County. They will perform on a float in the Downtown BID Holiday Parade, November 26th, and then sing again in Genesee Center during visits with Santa after the parade. Then they will be singing at the Seward House Museum for the Holiday Traditions open house on December 11th and on December 15th at Westminster Manor for their residents.
For more information about the choir, or purchasing the CD, please contact Stephanie DeVito at 315.252-7261 or sdevito06@gmail.com.
