Any trip or vacation requires a little bit of planning and money to become a reality. Put together a trip for a large family and it takes even more scheduling and funding. Now, take a group of 30 boys and girls and transport them across the Atlantic Ocean to a foreign country for a 17-day singing tour and you’ve got yourself a major logistical operation with a whole lot of money to raise!

Our Anglican Heritage Tour this summer will take 30 boys and girls from the Orlando Deanery Boychoir and Girls Choir to the England. Tours are a vital part of the choirs’ experience, musical education, cultural enrichment and outreach mission. As cultural ambassadors of the United States and the City of Orlando, the choirs have previously toured Japan, England, Ireland, Wales, Canada, Washington DC, Niagara Falls, New England, the Bahamas, Florida and the southeast, New Orleans, Carnegie Hall in New York, Vienna, Prague, Munich, and Salzburg. This past December, the choirs traveled to Washington DC as guests of President Obama to perform a Christmas concert in the White House.

Each of these 30 boys and girls needs to raise $4,000 for the England trip. They have been doing this for the past year through individual and choir fundraising efforts. At the same time, tours like this would not be possible without the support of many corporate and individual sponsors. We’ve established different levels of giving for this tour:

Gold Medal Level – $4,000 or more
Yellow Ribbon Level – $1,000 to $3,999
Red Ribbon Level – $500 to $999
Dark Blue Ribbon Level – $250 to $499
Light Blue Ribbon Level – $100 to $249
White Ribbon Level – $25 to $99

A current list of tour sponsors is posted here on our website, but there’s room for more names! Each sponsor donation — no matter how large or small — brings us one step closer to the doors of St. Paul’s Cathedral in London and Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford.

Won’t you consider a donation? Download the donation form here.

Earlier today, the Orlando Deanery Boychoir and Orlando Deanery Girls Choir performed at the Orlando World Center Marriott for 1,200 Little Caesars franchisees from across the U.S. and around the world.

Our performance included the singing of America the Beautiful and a patriotic tribute to military veterans in the audience. This was followed by a moving rendition of What a Wonderful World.

Because of Little Caesars corporate privacy rules, we weren’t permitted to photograph, videotape or record the concert. The best we can offer are these photos of the rehearsal just prior to the concert. All proceeds earned from today’s performance will benefit our Anglican Heritage Tour in August.

This summer is a busy time for our choirs as we prepare for our Anglican Heritage Tour to England in August, but it’s an even busier summer for the United Kingdom.

This year marks the Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, marking the 60th anniversary of her accession to the throne after the death of her father, King George VI, on February 6, 1952. The Queen came to the throne on February 6 but her official Coronation didn’t take place until June 2, 1953. There are special Diamond Jubilee events taking place across London in June, including a Diamonds exhibition at Buckingham Palace and a Diamond Jubilee Pageant on the river Thames.

The month of July will bring the opening ceremony and start of the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. The games, featuring 26 different sports, will be played in and around London from July 27-August 12. Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh will officially open the games at the opening ceremony.

In late August, the Notting Hill Carnival 2012 will be held in London. The two-day carnival attracts around one million people each year, making it Europe’s biggest annual street festival and the second largest street festival in the world after the Rio Carnival held in Brazil.

It’s an exciting summer to visit England. We can’t wait!

Thanks to everyone who came out tonight for our Chili Cookoff to support our upcoming Anglican Heritage Tour to England. Guests enjoyed a variety of homemade chili and cornbread, prior to the singing of Solemn Evensong in the Cathedral.

We were the guest choir at last Sunday’s 10:15 a.m. Eucharist at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke in downtown Orlando. Here’s a few photos from Sunday’s service.

This Sunday, April 22, the Orlando Deanery Boychoir and Girls Choir will be the guest choir at the 10:15 a.m. Eucharist at the Cathedral Church of St. Luke in downtown Orlando. The cathedral is our home base, where we conduct our weekly choir rehearsals and sing frequent services and concerts.

Please join us at 10:15 a.m!