i have just had the most amazing week of my life.
YAY for ELMIRA YELLOW!
last night was absolutely, without a doubt, the start of something SUPER special!!!!
i can't believe we pulled it off.
this crazy idea i had about getting students to sing WITH me, instead of just sitting in the audience, to HELP me deliver the message of SAVING the HOOCH...
we TOTALLY KICKED CANCER'S ASS last night!!!! together.
for real.
at my alma matter - Southside High School - the concert choir is the FIRST choir to do HIGH SCHOOL YELLOW UMBRELLA - and it was one of the most incredible experiences i have ever had.
(and i've had some pretty incredible experiences!)
to stand on a stage that i performed on 25 years ago as a teen-ager, and look up at the risers full of kids in yellow, singing my songs, HELPING me get people to THINK and TALK and then DO something about preventing this preventable cancer.
it was soooooooooo cool.
hundreds of people sat in silence and listened intently as the kids became my choir of angels in Martha Mae, and other songs.
mom and dad BAIZ (old school spelling) in the house, along with barb vandine (who made Elmira yellow week happen) and my BFF growing up and former teachers and friends and parents of friends from WAY back...
there was SO much LOVE in the house!
and really - that has been the case all week long.
i really wasn't sure if i was TOTALLY up for all the events - my first week doing things since my back thingy...
but i did 3 tv interviews and then went into action.
visiting the Jr. High Schools on monday was VERY cool. my first time taking the message to 6th, 7th and 8th graders - and it went over REALLY well, and i was pleasantly shocked and surprised.
next - the YWCA event for middle-schoolers and their moms was also really neat. they decorated the Y with yellow umbrellas and pink ribbons (cuz there was a boob girl there too - representin' MORE girl parts!), and created an intimate coffee shop setting that allowed for good discussion and questions...
and from that, the Y (in elmira) has decided to jump under the umbrella and create a "yellow embassadorship program" of sorts using the students to create messages that resonate with students... so they talk to one another AND to their MOMS about ALL the tools available to help the hooch.
:)
wednesday at Elmira Free Academy was WAY fun because we got to sit in with the EFA Jazz band and watch kids make awesome music all night. i had a BLAST with my "blazettes" at my side (YAY meagan and marlin!). and they all wore yellow to support the cause, and then gave my band and i the opportunity to do our thing - for their fellow students AND their parents! pretty cool.
thursday brought another wonderful event - the Hibernians! i always love this gig, but it was EXTRA special this week. a wonderful, beloved woman, who is a WARRIOR, came out to the gig with 12 of her friends, all decorated in Yellow (even yellow toenails!), to help celebrate HER life. it was a packed house full of love and prayers and support and kindness....
i love the hibes.
then friday we rocked the Relay For Life after i had the honor of speaking and lighting the first luminary. those teams walked ALL night long because they BELIEVE in a world without cancer.
me too.
which takes me back to last night at SHS POPS.
i'm honored that they let me crash their party.
i'm honored that they WANT to be under my yellow umbrella and HELP make a DIFFERENCE.
i believe it's happening.
it's so perfect to have KIDS help - because they need to take advantage of the HPV vaccine, and their MOMS need to take advantage of the HPV test! HIGH SCHOOL YELLOW is all about getting kids to talk to their moms, and moms to talk to their kids....
it's AWESOME and i REALLY think that the first HIGH SCHOOL YELLOW UMBRELLA - thanks to Rob Dumas and the SHS Concert Choir - was a HUGE success and truly the start of something special.
WOOHOO!
bring it!
:)
cb