Songs for Sawyer

For those of you that were not able to attend the Songs for Sawyer concert, it was memorable. The orchestra led off and did a fine job, and then the choirs came on and were equally amazing. Every piece performed was absolutely wonderful, but the final song, Harvest Hope, set the tone for Sawyer, his parents and everyone that has been deeply touched by his (Sawyer's) situation. Here's a quick background for this song which may, or may not, be completely accurate. Visiting musicians, Dan Duggan and Peggy Lynn, were originally commissioned to write a song for the Saranac (NY) high school choir. At the time of this commission, the choir director was involved in her own battle with cancer. Ultimately, Dan and Peggy wrote the song, Harvest Hope, that had one simple message, 'hold onto hope.' With Dan and Peggy leading the choir, Harvest Hope proved to be very powerful raising both spirits and the roof. As we (Sawyer and his parents) head into the unknown of intensive chemo and the struggle to remain in remission, the one thing that we must do - the only thing we can do - is hold onto the hope that Sawyer's cure will be realized. The voices raised left no doubt that with the support of others and Sawyer's inner strength, this will indeed be the outcome.

On a related note, the event also included a free will offering. Based on the amount of support that we already received, we were not expecting too much. Once again we were taken aback and awed by the show of support. There is a lot to be concerned about in this world, but as long as there are places like Alfred, NY - which the world is chocked full of - there seems little reason to worry. It is an embarrassing understatement to simply say thank you to likes of Luanne Crosby for planning the concert, to Dan Duggan and Peggy Lynn for allowing Sawyer to be associated with the event, to each orchestra and choir member, and to the community for the ongoing kindness and generosity. However, that is exactly where we are and all we can do. So once again, thank you.