You served Him well

Sisters, as I begin the close of this chapter in our lives and in having the opportunity to blog each and every week with you, I want you to know how much I have come to love being able to serve in such a tremendous calling side by side with you. Many of your sweet faces I had never seen, voices I had never heard, and smiles I had never had a chance to see. Until now. :)

You all have amazed and inspired me every single week. You continue to bless my life as we spoke on the telephone, exchanged emails and text messages, and had the opportunity to visit each week as you prepared yourself to sing to the world. Your dedication and perseverance have been unwavering. The sacrifices you have each made to be to each practice and to continue your lesson as you studied each week on your own and perhaps with other friends will never be forgotten. The Sisterhood that emulates amongst all of you is truly one of the most beautiful sites to behold upon a set of eyes.

As I watched each of you prepare yourselves for the Broadcast yesterday afternoon my heart began to swell. The weather was not so fantastic but it set an incredible scene for the beautiful Fall colors that you were wearing. Each of you carried a spirit inside and it came shining through as you rehearsed with Sister Tall. The chatter and the smiles, the makeup and hair fixes in the bathrooms, the hugs exchanged between those of us in the background and those that perhaps were sitting next to you in the choir loft, the tears shed, and the final footsteps as you headed down the tunnel to find your spot in the loft.

But it didn't stop there. 

As you began to sing and as the words that you have worked so hard to memorize came out of your mouths, the tears began to fall. My eyes were full of tears and my heart was immensely proud of each of you. I have watched as you have worked so hard each week. I have listened to your concerns and your struggles with this piece or that. I know that there have been many prayers on your behalf. And tonight? Never in a million years would I, or anyone else in the world, know of all of those things. You guys are an amazing choir and you sang your hearts out and I KNOW that your Heavenly Father is so proud of you!

Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to come into your homes each week through this blog. Thank you for allowing me into your struggles and into your successes. You have all strengthened my testimony in Faith and in turning our concerns and worries over to The Lord. You have allowed me to witness miracles and blessings that never were dreamed of when this calling was first extended. I love you. I am proud of each of you. 

A quick recap on the evening and then some photos:

Watch or Listen Here

I don't have the link quite yet of the children in Korea singing "I Love to See the Temple" but did you just love that?! I kept thinking of all of the times we were reminded that your words would not be translated into any other language but that the words you would be singing would be felt. When those beautiful children began singing in their native language, you could not deny the Spirit that was there. It didn't matter that I couldn't understand them. I felt the love of the song through these sweet spirits. Just like the entire world did with yours last night.  :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Congratulations Sisters. You indeed served Him well.

It's TODAY!!!

EEK! I can't even begin to imagine the range of emotions you all must be feeling today as you go about your morning. The thoughts and feelings that must be going through your head and the overwhelming amount of love from your Savior that you have inside each and every one of you. I am so so proud of you and all of the hard work, amount of hours you have each put into this calling (in the choir and those of us behind the scenes), and the sacrifices you have continued to make each week.

A few quick reminders for you as you get yourself ready and head out the door today...

- It is raining out there off and on so please please please make note now that you may want to leave a few minutes earlier than you originally planned
- Please carpool!!!
- Don't forget to have your clothing laundered, pressed, and looking 100%
- Simple and natural makeup
- No loud lipstick. Just a natural lip gloss or chapstick will be perfect
- No fingernail polish. Please dip those babies in nail polish remover before heading out today
- No earrings, watches, or necklaces.
- Your Young Women medallion, Torch, or Relief Society medallion are the ONLY necklaces that will be approved
- Hair needs to be at its very best.
- Don't forget your credential!

When you arrive to the Conference Center please remember your credential is your parking pass. You will need it to park and to get inside. Please don't forget it!
- Arrive at doors #1 and #3 no later than 2pm.
- We will be having a light lunch/early dinner and having a rehearsal as well
- Family members will NOT be allowed in with you if they are not singing in the choir. They will be able to enter the Conference Center with the general public at 4:30.

We are just a few short hours away from being able to share your beautiful music with the world. I am so so excited and cannot wait to sit back and listen!! I am 1000% certain that your Heavenly Father is looking down on each and every one of you and smiling from ear to ear. I am certain He is so pleased with each of you and He is proud of you and what you will be doing today.

Good luck today! You are going to be GREAT!

2 Pictures you Need to See

Sister Oscarson is AMAZING and we have been blessed beyond words to have had an opportunity to have her in our lives. These tender moments are those that we need to hold tight and close to our hearts. Rely on them and have them help to strengthen our testimonies. These women live their lives in ways that we should all try to emulate

And does this photo not just say it all when it comes to Sister Burton?! She is a rock and an example in which I try my darndest to live my life to be like. If I can die even just 1/100th of the woman she is, well then, I will feel like I have accomplished myself here on Earth. Sister Burton's testimony and love of this Gospel is seen in how she carries herself and in the love that pours through her eyes as she speaks with you. The caption on this photo sums it up really because I know that if it were at all possible, she would wait and hug every last Sister that she could. Because she loves them. And she prays for them. And you are one of those Sisters.

Just a few short days left and we will all be meeting again up to the Conference Center. Keep practicing! We will see you soon.
.

Last Rehearsal Practice!!!

Can you believe it is finally here? Did it seem like we had a lot longer to put this together at the beginning versus where you are right now? I know as a committee we are all shocked at how quickly this has come up but we couldn't be more proud of each of you and your hard work that you have put into this choir.

So, as we prepare to sit down one last time as a choir to rehearse these amazing pieces you have all memorized and will present here soon we want to go over a few last reminders.

Rehearsal this evening will begin at 7pm due to the Ogden Temple Re-Dedication. We will be located at the Stake Center where we have been previously located at 8400 W 3100 S in Magna. Check in will begin at 6:30pm. We ask that you come in your choir approved clothing as you have done so in the past few weeks. We also ask that you come with your hair and makeup done as you plan on having it done for Saturday.

Hair: You can wear your hair however you would like. Please remember who you are representing and that you will be seen worldwide. Spend the time to make yourself and your Heavenly Father proud

Makeup: Simple and natural. That is what we are hoping for. We don't want theater makeup. Please remember you are beautiful just the way you are.

Lipstick/Lip Gloss: Simple and natural again. If you need lipstick or gloss it just needs to be a natural color or what works even better is a simple layer of Chapstick.

Nails: NO nail polish! You can have a clear coat but no color.

Smells: Please please please remember to not wear perfume. There are some sensitive noses in our choir and there may also be sensitive noses among those that will be seated on the stand in the Conference Center. Be respectful to your fellow choir members and leave the perfume, body spray, scented lotion, etc at home that day.

Attire: You have all been approved on your choir clothes. Please be sure to arrive this evening in your wardrobe. Your shirt needs to be untucked please. We have had a lot of Sisters who are still tucking in and on Saturday that won't be an option. :)

We are in the last and final stretch! You need to take a step back before you arrive this evening to glance in the mirror. You then need to tell yourself that you have done amazing things in these few short weeks! You need to be proud of who is looking back at you and that the reflection of what you are seeing is blessed because of the sacrifices you have made. Your participation in this choir may only touch one but it may also end up touching and affecting the lives of millions. You are special and your Heavenly Father, I am certain, is so proud of you and is so pleased that you have chosen to accept this calling and participate in the Broadcast this week.

A Request

Ladies we have a request. :) We know how much of a hot commodity the tickets to this special broadcast are. Especially because you get to be a HUGE part of it and would love to have your family there with you.

There are a few sisters who do not have enough tickets for their family members to attend with them at this time. There has been a request that if by chance you have an extra ticket that you know will not be used, could you bring that with you to rehearsal this evening?

This evening as you check in there will be two (2) extra sheets of paper on your Stake Check in Table. One will be for those who have extra tickets and the other will be for those looking for tickets. If you fit in one of these categories, please be sure to sign up and from there we will be able to see if we can help out!

Thank you in advance and we look forward to seeing you this evening.

It's going to be special indeed

So we are all anxious about tomorrow. Some of us are still awake and wondering what kind of feelings and emotions will take place as we come together as a choir, sitting in the choir seats at the beautiful Conference Center. Others are lucky and are sound asleep. :)

I am here trying to put pieces together after working with a few of you this afternoon and into this evening getting final pieces put together, questions answered, and peace of mind for others who just needed someone to hear them out. So, I apologize that this post is late but there have been some Sisters who just needed a little extra boost this evening so I appreciate your patience.

Now...we have a lot of amazing special guests who will be in attendance with us tomorrow! I cannot even begin to express the overwhelming humility that came over me as I heard the list and wrote them down so I could blog and share this news with you.

As you enter the Conference Center tomorrow you will be greeted by various members from the following: The ENTIRE General Young Women's Presidency will be there, the ENTIRE General Primary Presidency will be there, 2 members (& maybe more) from the General Relief Society Presidency, plus 10+ staff members from each organization. Can you feel the excitement that is about to take place in your life tomorrow?!

This is going to be such a sacred and humbling moment for us. We are not only going to be rehearsing and singing to the Lord but we will have the multiple women who are the mouthpiece for the Lord here on this Earth attending our rehearsal. I wish that as I typed this up you could see and feel the happiness that this brings me!

Sisters, we are praying for you and for this experience in which you are dedicating your time and efforts to. We are grateful for you and for your willingness to serve in this calling and for being willing to put in the hard work and sacrifices that this has taken. We are looking forward to sharing with you the hard work, the tears, the efforts, and the relying on Faith that you have worked so hard in these past few weeks to put together. We love each and every one of you and we are grateful to have this opportunity to serve alongside with you. 

You are on Camera!

We are super excited to have the link to the video that was filmed at last weeks rehearsal. :) We are so grateful for Brother Cross and his willingness to help out on this task. He did ask that I let you each know that this has not been edited and it is super raw footage so he apologizes for the lack of 'professional' touching that could be done. No worries Brother Cross! We were just looking to see what we looked like on camera so we could learn to focus on Sister Tall and not you.

The link for the video is here: You are on CAMERA!

You will need to enter the password: music

Thanks again Brother Cross.