City Singers will perform a Benefit Concert

Saturday, April 24 at 7:00 p.m. in the Westfield High School auditorium to hear the City Singers and Youthful Spirits, two wonderful choral groups, who have volunteered to perform on behalf of the Reema J. Samaha and Erin Peterson Memorial Scholarship Funds.

The City Singers is an outreach ensemble of the City Choir of Washington, a 110-voice chorus

drawing singers from all over the metropolitan area.  The City Singers were created to perform quality choral music, such as spirituals, show tunes, folk music, patriotic songs and popular music. The City Singers, directed by Danielle Spriggs, perform for a variety of audiences who cannot attend a concert hall, such as hospital patients, residents of senior living facilities and the homeless.  The City Choir, directed by Rober Shafer, began in 2007; they have opened their seasons with works from Handel.  

The Youthful Spirits is a group of young men from Mount Olive Baptist Church in Centreville who have performed since 1993. Ranging in age from 18 to 43, these young men sing gospel music and have performed at nursing homes, the Patriot Center, the Verizon Center, the Supreme Court, and the National Mall.  Their radio broadcasts have been heard all over the United States, Canada and Africa.  The Youthful Spirits will celebrate their 17th anniversary this year with a release of a new album this spring.

We are incredibly grateful to both the City Singers and Youthful Spirits for donating their time and energy to perform for our community on behalf of the Reema J. Samaha and Erin Peterson Memorial Scholarship Funds.  Both Reema and Erin were beautiful young women who were well loved by their families, neighbors and friends.  In honor of their memory and legacy, the Samaha and Peterson families created scholarships that reflect their daughters’ qualities in order to assist other young people to achieve.  

Reema’s scholarships are awarded to deserving seniors, from Westfield and Herndon High Schools, who exemplify Reema’s attributes such as academic excellence, exceptional character, openness of mind, and respect for diversity.  Although not mandatory, a love for the performing arts and being a student of French is appreciated.  

The Erin Peterson Fund issues the Erin Peterson Leadership Award and the Erin Peterson Commit to Excel Award each year to two Westfield and two Falls Church High School graduates who exemplify Erin’s qualities: a thirst for knowledge, commitment to excellence and a desire to help the less fortunate. The Erin Peterson Fund also gives two FastWeb scholarships, one of which is the Legacy Initiative, named after those who died at Virginia Tech. This year’s scholarship is named for Caitlin Hammaren.  Grants are also issued to Westfield’s Leadership for Tomorrow, a program that assists at-risk students.

More information about each fund can be found at www.reemasamaha.org and www.erinpetersonfund.org.  We encourage everyone to attend the concert on April 24, enjoy beautiful music and continue the legacy of Reema and Erin.