Ontario District Association of Chapters

ONTARIO DISTRICT ASSOCIATION OF CHAPTERS

BARBERSHOP HARMONY SOCIETY

SING CANADA HARMONY CHAIR REPORT

TO ONTARIO DISTRICT HOUSE OF DELEGATES and DMT 13 APRIL,2014

In this report:

• Len Clement, Oshawa Chapter, Wins Best Seat In The House
• 177 Ontario Youth, Children and Barbershoppers Benefit from Sing Canada Scholarships
• April Is Volunteer Month in Canada –THANK YOU SING CANADA HARMONY REPRESENTATIVES
• Music Monday is May 5, 2014 and all Ontario District Barbershoppers should be involved
• In Memoriam: Ontario and Ontario District 2014
• Congratulations Ontario Youth A Cappella Chorus, Long Beach, California Youth Festival, 2014
• Congratulations O YA Leadership Team
• WOW ! ! ! - O YA Chorus Member Gives Back ! ! This Is A Return On Our Investment In Youth
• Clarification of Status of Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund for Ontario District
• Digger MacDougall Elected as Director of the Coalition for Music Education in Canada
• Congratulations Jordan Travis

Len Clement, Oshawa Chapter, Wins Best Seat In The House

Congratulations Len Clement, winning bidder for “The Best Seat In The House” at Ontario District, Spring Convention, 2014, in Toronto.

The “Best Seat in the House Program” was started by American Barbershopper Mike Kelly as a means to benefit the 2 official charities of the Barbershop Harmony Society, Sing Canada Harmony and Harmony Foundation International, and allow the winning bidder to sit, and hobnob, with contest judges. This is a win-win-win situation for Ontario District Barbershopper, Len Clement, Sing Canada Harmony and the youth and others who will benefit from Len’s generosity.

Anyone can bid on the best seat in the house, which is in the judge’s pit. The winning bidder makes a tax deductible donation in the amount of the bid to Sing Canada Harmony (for Canadian bidders) or Harmony Foundation (for Americans). The winner then sits with the judges, scores performances, socializes with them in the judge’s lounge and dines with them.

As of this year, Canadians can bid on the “Best Seat in the House” at the International and Midwinter Conventions of the Barbershop Harmony Society and have their winning tax-rebated bid go to Sing Canada Harmony.

Sing Canada Harmony extends sincere gratitude to all members of the Ontario District who participated.

More Ontario Youth, Children and Chapter Members Benefit from Sing Canada Scholarships

Thanks to the generosity of Ontario District, and other Canadian, Barbershoppers, Scholarship Awards announced March 1, 2014 by Scholarship Award Committee Chair, Gerry Borden, included awards to:

• Ottawa Chapter, Capital City Chorus, to assist 41 members to participate in Harmony University;
• Pitch Please Quartet, Brantford Ontario, to assist in coaching fees for 4 members;
• S.O.N.G. (Singers of the Next Generation), Northumberland County Ontario, to assist 36 choir members in acquiring sheet music;
• OYA Chorus Member, Vernon Simkins, Scholarship to attend Harmony University, in Nashville.

A scholarship was also awarded to Harmony Inc. quartet, BaSINGa!, Of Cambridge, Ontario for tuition assistance to attend Harmony University.

Earlier in 2014, the Ontario Youth A Cappella Chorus benefited from the generosity of Barbershoppers across Canada through a major grant from Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund.

Congratulations to all our Ontario scholarship award winners.

April Is Volunteer Month in Canada–

THANK YOU ONTARIO SING CANADA HARMONY REPRESENTATIVES

Sing Canada Harmony extends sincere thanks to all Ontario District Sing Canada Harmony Chapter Liaisons for their volunteer work throughout the year and into the future. Sing Canada Harmony Chapter Liaisons are listed on the E’Biz page of the Barbershop Harmony Society Website as Sing Canada Harmony Chapter Chairs. They are recognized as key members of each Chapter’s leadership team.

Sing Canada Chapter Liaisons have an important responsibility to endorse and recommend scholarship applicants not only from within their Chapters, but from all singing groups/choirs within their geographic regions. Chapter Liaisons facilitate donations to Sing Canada Harmony and communicate directly with the District Chair of Sing Canada Harmony to arrange for Memorial Tribute donor cards. Chapter Liaisons also keep Chapter Members informed of news items from Sing Canada Harmony by writing articles for the Chapter Newsletter or posting newsworthy items to the Chapter noticeboard and website. Ontario District Chapter Liaisons perform a great service to all Barbershoppers, and other singers, within the District boundaries.

Chapter Presidents are requested to ensure that the District Chair is advised of any changes in, or new appointments to, the Sing Canada Harmony Chapter Liaison or Chapter Chair position. Chapter Secretaries are requested to ensure that the name of the Chapter Liaison/Chapter Chair is posted to the website of the Barbershop Harmony Society E’Biz page. Notifications may be made to

Music Monday is May 5, 2014 and all Ontario District Barbershoppers should be involved

A great way to ensure a future for Barbershop Harmony in Ontario is for Barbershop Choruses to share the performance stage with youth and children’s choirs.A better way to ensure a future for Barbershop across Ontario District is for everyBarbershop Chorus, Quartet and individual Barbershopper to participate with a youth or children’s choir in celebration of Music Monday 2014. Many Canadian and other Barbershop Choruses from around the planet have already made a commitment to participate in Music Monday, 2014, which is the 10th anniversary celebration of this global event.

In 2013, over 1 million singers and instrumentalists participated in Music Monday which was led from space by Canadian astronaut, and commander of the international space station, Col. Chris Hadfield. To assist in last year’s celebration of Music Monday, Barbershop arrangements were prepared by Ontario District’s own Barbershop Leader, Chris Arnold. The barbershop arrangements and details for music Monday 2014 are available at you visit this website please ensure you register your chorus and quartets as 2014 participants.

Ontario District Chapter Officers are encouraged to get their chapters behind Music Monday as a means of “ensuring that someone will sing tomorrow”, particularly barbershop harmony throughout not only Ontario and Canada but around the globe. This is too big an opportunity for Ontario Barbershoppers to miss. For additional information on the Coalition for Music Education in Canada please visit

Digger MacDougall Elected to Board of Directors of the Coalition for Music Education in Canada

An Ontario District Barbershopper and District Chair for Sing Canada Harmony, Digger MacDougall, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Coalition for Music Education in Canada. Barbershop leaders from around the world have congratulated Digger on this achievement which will serve to reinforce the position of Barbershop Harmony throughout the music education community of Canada. Digger accepted the position because of the strong alignment among the values of the Coalition, the Barbershop Harmony Society, Ontario District and Sing Canada Harmony.

In Memoriam: Ontario and Ontario District 2014

Sing Canada Harmony honours and remembers the names of individuals on whose behalf in memoriam donations have been received. Condolences are extended to family members, and where applicable to riser mates, of the following Ontario residents who have passed away during 2014.

Joyce Findlay

Bill Little (Ottawa)

Peter Hughes (London)

Tav Orsi (St Thomas)

John Ellis (Ottawa)

Ozzie Ward (Ottawa)

Anne White (London)

Roy McKee (Windsor)

Congratulations Ontario Youth A Cappella Chorus, Long Beach, California Youth Festival, 2014

Congratulations are extended to all members of the Ontario Youth A Cappella Chorus for their outstanding/superior performance at the Barbershop Harmony Society Youth Festival held in January in Long Beach, California. Sing Canada Harmony is proud to be a sponsor and supporter of the work you do to represent Ontario District on the international stage of the Barbershop Harmony Society Youth Festival. You and your leadership team have brought credit to Ontario District and all the people of Ontario who believe in the power of youth, the power of singing and barbershop harmony. You are models not only for the youth of Ontario, but for the youth of Canada and the rest of the world. Thank you for being great ambassadors of song and great ambassadors of Canada. Every barbershop or in Ontario is proud of you and your achievements.

Congratulations O YA Leadership Team

Congratulations, once again, to the leadership team of the O YA Chorus: Barry and Sharon Towner, Shawn Oakes, Dan Austin, and Charlie Henderson. Your work as volunteer leaders has not gone unnoticed. You are a credit to Ontario District, Barbershop Harmony and Canada. Sing Canada Harmony salutes your achievement, your leadership and your commitment to youth. Thank you!

Congratulations Jordan Travis

The Ontario District Chair for Sing Canada Harmony congratulates Jordan Travis for his achievements as an international coach, international judge and Canadian music festival judge. Jordan has been sharing his skills and experience at the Saskatchewan Music Festival, where he adjudicated and coached many school choirs and a barbershop youth chorus, as well as coaching and judging barbershop contests in and with BING, the German Barbershop Association.

Clarification of Status of Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund for Ontario District

Sing Canada Harmony is a Canadian charity that operates Canada-wide, is represented by Barbershop Harmony Singers from coast to coast, is a national charity registered with the Canada Revenue Agency, is supported by Canadians coast to coast, and is unique in the world for its charitable activities. Let there be no mistake about the status of the Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund in Ontario District. Sing Canada Harmony is the official charity of the Barbershop Harmony Society in Canada, is an official charity of Ontario Barbershoppers and Chapters and it is the only charity in the world that supports Barbershop Harmony and vocal music in all the schools and communities of ONTARIO and the rest of Canada. There is no other charity in Ontario District, or anywhere else in Canada or on the planet that has a mission that even resembles that of Sing Canada Harmony with respect to its support of Barbershop Harmony, youth, vocal music in the schools and communities of Canada or the missions of the 3 singing organizations (Barbershop Harmony Society, Harmony Inc., and Sweet Adeline’s International).

WOW ! ! ! - O YA Chorus Member Gives Back ! ! This Is A Return On Our Investment In Youth

He has benefited from Sing Canada Harmony Scholarships for 5 years as a member of the Cross Canada Chorus, one year, and the Ontario Youth A Cappella Chorus for 4 years. His name is Adrian Smith. Currently, Adrian is pursuing studies in geophysics at the Masters level in Calgary, Alberta, and singing with the Western Hospitality Singers of the Calgary Foothills Chapter. This former Ontario Barbershopper has just become a major donor to the Sing Canada Harmony Scholarship Fund as a Member Of President’s Council. Adrian Smith told the members of his new chapter in Calgary that if he could collect $1000 or more dollars, he would match their donations and make a gift to Sing Canada Harmony. As he enrolled online for the President’s Council, Adrian reported that he had collected more than $1000 and that there was more to come.

Congratulations Adrian Smith, former member of Ontario District, model Barbershopper, student, youth and leader. We salute you for your achievements in giving back “so that someone will sing tomorrow” in the schools and communities of Canada.