Day 2 of tour took us from Akron, New York to Lowville, the home-area of Paul and Jacob Zehr. We began Sunday morning at Clarence
Center-Akron Mennonite Church, where we shared selections from our program in their service. We sang as part of the sermon time, and Katie and Jacob shared faith stories as well. Fitting with the choir tour tradition, we followed church with an enormous potluck featuring at least a dozen types of pie. After lunch we froze our hands off in a parking lot snowball fight, and piled back into the bus to drive to Maple Ridge Center, a Mennonite camp boasting the longest, steepest tubing run on the entire East Coast. We were a little worried, since the slope had about equal proportions snow and grass, but the icy
conditions made for a slick ride. According to Sophomore Ben Wiebe,”it was bloody fast!” Several of us opted for the cross-country skis
instead, and made our way by moonlight along the snow-covered trails.
Thank you to Lowville Mennonite Church for allowing us to join them at Maple Ridge Center for the potluck and tubing. Families also hosted us in their homes for the night. Miranda and I had a wonderful night with
Stephanie, Benjamin, Grace, and Luke, where we were served their very own bacon, eggs, and honey over conversation about the solar panels that Benjamin, an electrician, constructs.
However, please permit me a moment of bragging. On our first night, Naomi, Miranda and I stayed with Cheryl and Ron who took us on a spur-of-the-moment trip to NIAGRA FALLS! On our way home to their house and dairy farm, they decided that we should make a detour to the falls for a night where we watched the mist spray up through the
lights. Naomi, from Winnipeg Manitoba, leaning forward gazing longingly across the falls singing Oh Canada. What a memorable way to start chamber choir tour!
Cecilia Lapp Stoltzfus
