Turtle Days Tent Jam '03
"Entertainment with a Blessing!"
Church Pastors and Music Directors:
Dear Music Director: Do you have someone in your church that when they sing they get your feet tapping and hands clapping like the music of Steven Curtis Chapman does or brings you to tears like the music of Rachel Lampa? Do you have a group that makes you stand up and praise the Lord like Newsong when they sing "Red Letter Day".? Then we want them to come to Turtle Days!!!!!
You must be thinking right now - what does Turtle Days have to do with Christian music? A lot - Tent Jam '03 - Entertainment with a Blessing!
We have some exciting news for you and your congregation! Tent Jam has been expanded to a 2-1/2 hour show at this year's Turtle Days Festival in Churubusco.
What is Tent Jam? It's a vision that we had four years ago for Turtle Days. Three years ago the board of directors of the festival (of which we are members) gave us about an hour of time to praise the Lord through music and we gave two local bands an opportunity to perform. With a downpour of 1-1/2 inches of rain prior to the concert, people came but it wasn't as exciting as we had hoped.
Last year was better. It still rained, but not as bad. We had approximately 200 people come to the event that featured several talented singers from the local area.
We were really blessed personally by this event, however, it didn't occur to us how many others would be blessed. Out of the blue, a carnival worker came up to Robin and thanked her for providing Christian music to the fair. He said he only gets to hear country or rock and roll and doesn't get to attend church. The Christian music blessed his heart. The next day we were eating breakfast at the local restaurant and the waitress thanked us for hosting the Christian event. She said that was her favorite part of Turtle Days and couldn't believe she was hearing music that was praising God. We never know who we will touch with this music. God has given us an avenue to share His love through song. A door has been opened to share the music that praises our Lord. There will be no sermon and no offering taken. This is a free event for the community. Even the parking is free!
In this area we are blessed with a lot of churches and we know from reading newspapers and visiting many that there is a lot of talent within the Body of Christ in our area.
This year we want to get more churches and therefore more people involved. We ask you to:
1. Pray for this event. It is from 7:15 p.m. to 9:45 p.m. on Thursday, June 19, 2003 at Turtle Days Entertainment Tent at the Churubusco Park. It is THE entertainment for the evening.
2. Place this event in your calendars and bulletins at church and invite your congregation to this blessed event.
3. Think about and submit a name of a person from your church that might want to share his/her or their talents. Songs must be under five minutes long. We only have time for 25 songs. We encourage all types of Christian music. We plan to have Contemporary, Southern Gospel, Traditional, Christian Dance and Instrumentals. We hope to begin the evening with a Praise Team and end the evening with the entire group of singers performing "God Bless America" with the audience joining in.
4. We will need helpers in the following areas: backstage helpers (i.e. handing out ice water to singers, check-in person, tape and cassette person (helping soundman), videographer (video tapes will be presented to local public libraries).
5. Check in time for people performing is between 6:30 to 7 p.m.
6. There will be no rehearsals for this event as a group. Individuals may want to practice, but no formal rehearsal will be held. A final list indicating order will be given to performers.
Denny's Music has agreed to provide the sound system. Instruments will not be provided, however, we may be able to rent a keyboard. Denny can play CD and cassette accompaniment tapes. The music we are hoping to gain from local folks is the type of music heard on local radio stations WLAB, WFCV, WLYV and WBCL. We will be encouraging them to announce this event.
Below is a form that you may use to fill out and give to us. We will be organizing this event as soon as possible. Keep in mind Rick and I coordinate two talent shows and a parade so Tent Jam is our first priority and will be the first to be organized. Your singer will confirmed with a letter and a copy of the words to "God Bless America". This is based on a first come, first served basis. So hurry and get your performer registered.
Name of Church__________________________________________________________
Name of Singer(s) or Group_________________________________________________
Singer's Address__________________________________________________________
City, State & Zip__________________________________________________________
Phone___________________________________________________________________
E-mail__________________________________________________________________
Song to be performed______________________________________________________
Type (i.e. Contemporary Christian, Southern Gospel, Traditional, Hymn____________________________________________________________________
Circle One - Solo Duet Trio Quartet Christian Dance Instrumental
Send this form to the Plasterers ASAP to: Rick and Robin Plasterer Turtle Days Tent Jam '03 239 West Whitley Street Churubusco, IN 46723 With questions call or e-mail the Plasterers. Please note: Robin is the Lifestyles Editor at The Post & Mail, but due her work in a busy newsroom, Turtle Days calls must be made to their home or cell phone.
May God bless you with your involvement in Tent Jam 03
Rick and Robin R. Plasterer