Youth Chorus funding revives summer singing

A recent children’s choir camp used to be a regular staple of summer activities, Jane Johnson said.

After some years of not holding the camp, this year, more than 20 youth were able to participate in a camp, held in a meeting room at the Newton Public Library, the week of July 25, aided by funding from the Iowa Youth Chorus and some generous local support from Newton Rotary and the Jasper County Arts Connection.

There was no charge to young singers or their families for the camp.

Jane Johnson, a longtime Newton-area music teacher, said she isn’t exactly sure when the choir camp was last held in Newton, but she would certainly like to see it again become a regular staple of summer activities in the area.

“It had kind of fallen by the wayside,” Johnson said. “I’m just glad we didn’t have to turn anyone away this year.”

The camp, held over four evenings, included at least 8.5 hours of instruction, Johnson said. A final performance, including a created musical based on a book of their choosing, will be presented to the public on the fourth and final evening.

The final presentation turned out to be a musical based a story chosen from a library book by the group of young singers at the camp.

The group chose a story called “The Ant and the Grasshopper.” Johnson said the group also considered another story that has more speaking parts.

In-kind donations from Mattingly Music, Subway, McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza and Taco John’s were also made, Johnson said.

Most of the singers were from the Newton area, though there were some youth visiting from out of town.

“It really helped that (NPL Director) Nicole Lindstrom and her staff are so supportive,” Johnson said. “It’s so wonderful to still have so much backing for fine arts in this community.”

Contact Jason W. Brooks at 641-792-3121 ext. 6532 or jbrooks@newtondailynews.com