Watoto choir

Two weeks ago the Watoto Choir was at our home church. Several people have told us how wonderful the concert was.
Seeing the choir about five or six years ago was our first exposure to the Watoto organization. After that concert we started sponsoring a child and a mother in the Watoto organization, participated on two building teams and now here we are! The choirs travel the world as ambassadors for the organization. They were our “entry point” and are a very important part of the organization so we thought we would talk about them in today’s blog.
When we talk about “The Watoto Choir”, it makes it sound as if there is only one. In reality there have been 61 different Watoto choirs that have gone out touring different parts of the world and choir number 62 is currently practicing in preparation for a tour to Australia.
Many Watoto children have the opportunity to see a part of the world as they travel with a choir. Children only participate in choir one time and no one is required to participate if they don’t want to. Some of the adults that accompany the choirs do go on multiple trips- we have met a few people who have been on tour five times.

Prior to going out on tour, a choir prepares by practicing hard for six months. The children are taught the entire program that they will be performing. In addition, the children are taught what the expectations are as far as behaviour while they are on tour and staying in people’s homes. In a meeting a few weeks ago, Marilyn Skinner talked about this. She stated that in the past some people have said, “Oh, you shouldn’t be so hard on them. They are orphans.” Marilyn’s answer to them was, “Someday our children may be in the presence of the queen or the president of the United States. They need to know what is expected of them.” To date, Watoto choirs have performed for the Queen twice and for three different US presidents. There is a picture hanging in Watoto Central of a Watoto choir having juice and cookies in the White House with the US president.
As we stated, choir number 62 is currently practicing at Watoto Central and will be heading in Australia to minister to people there and raise awareness for the Watoto organization. Although we have absolutely loved every Watoto choir we have seen, choir number 62 is our very favourite! We know that we shouldn’t pick favourites, but the boy we sponsor (Richard) is a member of this choir. This has been a huge blessing in so many ways. First off, Greg gets to see Richard on a nearly daily basis and has been able to get to know him a little better. Lorenda finally got to see him last Thursday- wow, he has grown so much taller in just one year!
Another way that choir 62 has been such a huge blessing to us is by showing us what it has done in Richard’s life. Like all Watoto children, he has a story that none of us in North America can even imagine. When we met him last year, he was very shy and withdrawn. His Watoto mom described him as a child who keeps to himself and has difficulty trusting. Watching him singing, dancing and drumming with the choir brings tears to our eyes. Being part of the choir has brought him out of his shell and has given him such confidence.
Next time you have the privilege of seeing a Watoto choir, sit back and enjoy the amazing singing, dancing and personal stories. We also encourage you to think about the difference the choir experience is making in the lives of each of those children and then stop for a moment and thank God for what He is doing in those young lives.