2nd Tour - Nov/Dec 1997 – North & South Carolina and Georgia.

Rocky Mount, Charlotte, New Berne. Raleigh, North Carolina

A party of 87 made this trip which was made up of 30 singers and family members as well as our good friends from Bristol, the Quarterjacks quartet.

We were met at the airport by Charlie Rose, from Rocky Mount, a real ‘southern gentleman’, who had done a lot to help put this tour together.

As soon as we arrived at the airport we were whisked off to visit the Charlotte chapter, the Gold Standard Chorus and after enjoying their hospitality travelled by coach to the Holiday Inn in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.

Our stay at this hotel took in the ‘Thanksgiving Holiday’ and we were asked to perform to the dining guests over three sittings at the Holiday Inn hotel on Thanksgiving Day. This was not only a great experience for us, but we also got a free meal!

We met up with the Rocky Mount Chapter and also travelled to meet the New Berne chapter. We performed on a show with both chapters in New Berne and various other acts.

During our stay in this area met the Research Triangle Chapter from Raleigh and performed with their chorus the General Assembly chorus.

We also travelled by ‘yellow school buses’ and visited two schools and performed to well over 1,000 students at the Englewood Elementary School and the James Hunt College.

We were made Honorary citizens of the City of Rocky Mount and received a Certificate of Appreciation from the governor of North Carolina, James B. Hunt

Savannah, Georgia

We then travelled south through South Carolina into Georgia and to Savannah. Here we met the Savannah Chapter and had a superb social evening. We also performed live on television in Forsyth Park, singing Christmas carols in the rain! The television company felt sorry for us and invited us to sing again in the cathedral the following night. They recorded six carols which were shown on television in the Savannah area on the run up to Christmas.

After the customary trip on a riverboat and sightseeing it was time to climb back on the coaches again and head for Atlanta.

Atlanta & Marietta, Georgia

Our final stop on this tour was in Atlanta and to meet up with our hosts from the Marietta chapter, who of course are more commonly known as the ‘Big Chicken Chorus’. Here we performed with them and champion quartet, FRED on four of their Christmas Shows.

Each show was a sell-out and although it was quite demanding we had a fabulous time on each show which was based on a Christmas theme.

We were hosted superbly and finished up with a great party at the home of Pookie, the tenor in FRED.