Hope for Africa Children’s Choir

The music of hope will be hitting the rafters Friday at Stull United Methodist Church, 251 N. 1600 Road, Lecompton.

A free 7 p.m. concert will feature the Hope for Africa Children’s Choir singing Christian songs. The choir, composed of children from across Africa, will be visiting the church as part of a tour through the United Methodist Church’s Kansas East Conference, July 25 to Aug. 8.

Kirsten Price, the chairwoman for council on ministries at Stull UMC, hasn’t been able to get enough of the choir. She attended the group’s performance Tuesday in Ottawa and says she was blown away.

“If I had the time I would probably just follow them around. They’re really incredible,” Price says. “They are good singers, but they just project such energy and enthusiasm. I mean, their smiles … just melt your heart.”

Founded in 1984, the choir was formed by the United Methodist East Africa Annual Conference. Many of the children have come from refugee camps in Uganda, where a civil war and AIDS have ravaged the region for two decades. The children in the choir now live at the Humble United Methodist School in Mukono, Uganda.

Through the U.S. tour, which runs until November, the children hope to raise awareness and funs to provide education, food, medical care and room and board for other children. Price says the church will have a collection that will go exclusively to the children and that the choir will also be selling memorabilia to raise funds.

“They still just have such great attitudes,” Price says of the members, many of whom are orphans. “They still believe they’re blessed by God and their calling is to spread God’s love through their music and through their positive attitudes. They’re just an inspiration.”