Lincoln Methodist Choir at Carnegie Hall

My name is Andrew McCormick, Music Director for the First United Methodist Church in Lincoln, Maine, and I am fundraising on behalf of our adult church choir members who were recently invited to perform at Carnegie Hall in November 2023!

Distinguished Concerts International New York, a leading producer of concert experiences at renowned venues, came across a YouTube video of our 2022 Christmas cantata ("Carols" by Heather Sorenson) and extended the following invitation:

"In recognition of your dedication to musical excellence, and due to the high quality of your audition recording, it is with great pleasure that I extend an invitation to you and the First United Methodist Church of Lincoln, Maine Choir to participate in a performance of Joseph Martin and Heather Sorenson’s Christmas Dreams on the DCINY Concert Series in New York City. This performance is planned to take place November 27th, 2023 in Isaac Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall under the baton of Joseph Martin. Congratulations to you and your singers on this wonderful achievement and recognition." (Jonathan Griffith, Artistic Director and Principal Conductor)

To perform on such a famous stage with over two hundred other singers and orchestra is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and 11 of our members, plus two friends from the Ellsworth United Methodist Church, will be making the trip. We are planning to leave Bangor on Friday, November 24. We will spend the next two days rehearsing and exploring the city. Our concert will be held at Carnegie Hall on Monday, November 27, and we will return home the following day.

DCINY's concerts are supported by the artists themselves, meaning that those of us attending will be paying a fee to rehearse and perform at Carnegie Hall. In addition to that substantial expense, there are the costs associated with transportation and lodging.

Estimated Travel Expenses: $10,000

Our goal is to raise the funds to cover these $10,000 in estimated travel expenses through craft and bake sales, a bottle drive, a calendar raffle, a burrito and strawberry shortcake sale out of our church's food cart, as well as through the generosity of our friends, family, and you!

Thank you in advance for any support you can give to our small church choir. We are grateful for you and your willingness to help make this dream come true. God bless you!

UPDATE: We are getting very close to our goal! With all of our fundraising and online donations, we are about $1000 away from being able to cover all of our travel and transportation expenses!