Chorus receives grant for concerts

The Harmony River Chorus will soon be singing tunes of comfort and peace to area senior citizens, thanks to a grant approval by the Grassroots Arts Program of the Georgia Council for the Arts.

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Marilyn Grau, a member of the 38-person chorus, said the group recently received word that it had been approved for the grant, which is administered by the Greater Augusta Arts Council and appropriated by the Georgia General Assembly.

The grant will allow the all-female Harmony River Chorus, which consists of members ranging in age from their 20s to 80s who perform without music, to provide four musical performances to the county's senior citizens.

The shows must be held in nursing homes or senior centers.

Facilities interested in holding a show should contact Grau at the Senior Citizens Council, (706) 826-4480 or (706) 868-0120.

Grau said priority will go to nursing homes or centers with mixed race and ethnic groups, those where residents have limited mobility and organizations with small programming budgets that limit outside entertainment.

The grant also allows The Harmony River Chorus to provide entertainment at five Richmond County venues.

"It is our hope that family and friends will also attend the performances along with their older loved ones," the group wrote in their grant application. "In this way, the music of Harmony River, so familiar and reminiscent of special times, will truly help strengthen the thread that binds these older Americans to the life of their community."