TERRE HAUTE —
Brenda Chubb lives near Hillsdale and teaches in Terre Haute, but each Wednesday after school, she returns north to Clinton, picks up her three daughters and comes back south to Terre Haute for choir practice.
The family has followed that routine since September, when the girls auditioned for and became part of the Terre Haute Children’s Choir.
“It’s a huge commitment, especially for us because of the travel,” Chubb said. Hillsdale, in Vermillion County, is about 23 miles from Terre Haute.
But the drive, even with today’s gas prices, is worth it, Chubb said. “It’s been an awesome experience,” she said.
Her daughter, Halea, a fifth-grader, is in a more advanced group, while twin daughters and third-graders Rachel and Ashlea are in a beginning, “sing-up” group.
Halea, 11, has made the Indiana elementary all-state honor choir twice. “I like to sing,” the Ernie Pyle Elementary student said before practice Wednesday.
Halea has had several opportunities to perform. In addition to traditional concerts, the choir sang for the Sisters of Providence at St. Mary-of-the-Woods, it performed the national anthem at an Indiana State University basketball game, and members participated in “Miracle on Seventh Street” in December.
While costs can add up for tuition, uniforms and travel, it’s not unusual for several siblings in a family to participate in the choir, said Cheryl Schopmeyer, the choir’s administrator and board president.
This year, five families each have three children who participate. That’s about 26 percent of the 57-member choir, which has its spring concert at 7 p.m. Friday in Central Presbyterian Church, 125 N. Seventh St. There is no charge to attend.Children attend practice from 4:30 to 6 p.m. each Wednesday, September through May, although some participate for only half of the season. The choir does fundraising to help defray costs, and tuition is discounted if more than one sibling is involved.
Some of the children who participate are home-schooled, including the children of Tammy May.
“We think that the Children’s Choir is an excellent opportunity for some quality vocal training,” said Tammy May, who has three children in the choir, Lydia, 14; Elijah, 11; and Eleanor, 9.
She’s had other children participate as well.
Lydia May has sung with the choir since she was 9. “I love to sing and it’s lots of fun,” she said. “I’ve made several new friends.” Being in the choir has helped her become a better singer, she said.
This year, the choir has a new director, Dan Tryon, who also is choir teacher at Honey Creek Middle School. The assistant director is Chad Roscoe, choir director at Woodrow Wilson Middle School. “It’s great to be around kids who love singing,” Tryon said.
Participants come from Terre Haute and other Wabash Valley communities. Everyone must audition, but everyone makes it, Schopmeyer said. “If they want to participate, we make a place for them.”
They will be placed in one of three groups, depending on their skill level. Tuition is $150 for the nine-month season, with a discount for additional siblings.
“We have scholarships for those who can’t afford it,” Schopmeyer said. The next auditions will be at the end of August.
Sue Loughlin can be reached at (812) 231-4235 or sue.loughlin@tribstar.com.
Top Story
Related Videos
Related Photos
-
Warming up: Terre Haute Children's Choir artistic director Dan Tryon puts his charges through warm-up exercises before rehearsal Wednesday evening. Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis
Discussion
Five families make up more than 25 percent of Terre Haute Children’s Choir (See Video)
- Top Story
-
-
Vigo polls close, counting begins
Polls in Vigo County closed at 6 p.m., and the vote counting is underway.
The key local race is for Vigo County Council at large — which features eight Democrats and four Republicans vying for three nominations in each party. -
BREAKING: Santorum suspends GOP presidential campaign
Rick Santorum is suspending his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination, clearing a path for Mitt Romney to become the nominee.
-
UPDATE: Federal authorities fear 'sextortion' case involves many teens
Federal authorities say a Clay County man has confessed to coercing scores of teenage boys into recording sexually explicit videos after he threatened to expose them on pornographic websites.
-
Navy jet crashes into Virgina apartments, pilots eject
A Navy jet crashed and set fire to an apartment complex in Virginia Beach today and the two-member crew ejected safely, officials said.
-
Large tornadoes, damage reported in Dallas area
Tornadoes tore through the Dallas area today, tearing roofs off homes, tossing trucks into the air and leaving flattened tractor trailers strewn along highways and parking lots.
-
Kansas digs hole too deep against Kentucky
This time Kansas couldn't come all the way back.
-
UPDATE: Rockville rally comes up short in IHSAA boys Class A title game
The list of things Rockville did right on Saturday in Bankers Life Fieldhouse is a fairly extensive one, with defensive effort and hustle and determination fighting for spots at the top of it.
-
AP Source: Peyton Manning chooses Broncos
Peyton Manning wants to play for the Denver Broncos in Act II of his outstanding career. A person briefed on negotiations said the NFL’s only four-time MVP called Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams and told him that he had picked the Broncos.
-
UPDATE: Fugitive remains at large; police urge caution
The search continues today for a fugitive wanted by police.
Michael Joe Cheesman, 44, remains at large as of 9 a.m., according to Chief Deputy Clark Cottom of the Vigo County Sheriff’s Department. -
UPDATE: Storms kill at least 14 across southern Indiana, number expected to rise
A series of powerful tornadoes that tore through southern Indiana on Friday killed at least 14 people and left several small towns in ruin. Authorities warned a death toll that rose throughout the night could grow further after dawn as rescue teams began to search in the daylight.
-
PHOTO UPDATE: Man trapped in grave under burial vault treated and released from hospital
A man who became trapped in an open grave under a 3,000-pound burial vault this morning escaped serious injury and was successfully extricated by rescue workers in less than an hour.
-
Vehicle crashes into downtown storefronts
Downtown Terre Haute got a noisy shock late this morning.
A motorist backed her Pontiac G6 through the store-front windows of Mic’s Pics and the Blu Katt Lounge on Wabash Avenue in the heart of the city. -
Perfect game: ISU shoots NCAA record 12-for-12 from 3-point range in win over SIU
Indiana State set an NCAA record for 3-point percentage and consecutive 3-pointers made Saturday afternoon in Hulman Center, connecting on all 12 attempts during a 78-68 win over Southern Illinois.
-
Indiana House approves right-to-work bill
Indiana’s Republican-controlled House of Representatives cleared the way Wednesday to become the first right-to-work state in a traditionally union-heavy Rust Belt increasingly targeted by non-union foes.
-
ISU men knock off No. 25 Vanderbilt 61-55
The Indiana State men's basketball team ended the game on a 16-2 run to defeat No. 25-ranked Vanderbilt on Saturday night 61-55.
-
Burglary suspect dies in police shooting
The shooting death this morning of a West Terre Haute burglary suspect is being investigated by the Vigo County Sheriff’s Department.
-
Dem caucus picks Crooks as 8th District candidate
From cities, farms and the towns in between, Democrat leaders of the “Bloody 8th” named Dave Crooks their man for 2012.
-
VIDEO: Will Ferrell stands at crossroads, odd locations in Terre Haute ads
America is at a crossroads, and Will Ferrell stands right in the middle of it.
-
VIDEO UPDATE: Will Ferrell’s Terre Haute beer ads hit the TV airwaves
That whirlwind visit to Terre Haute made by comic actor Will Ferrell three months ago had a purpose after all.
-
Bennett wins re-election in Terre Haute
Incumbent Terre Haute Mayor Duke Bennett won a resounding re-election victory Tuesday night.
-
BREAKING: Gibault walk-away dies following crash of stolen truck
The rear-seat passenger in a stolen pickup truck that crashed while fleeing an Indiana State Police trooper has died of his injuries. The crash occurred late last evening in the city limits of Terre Haute on U.S. 41 (Third Street) northbound at College Street.
-
UPDATE: Gadhafi, Libya’s leader for 42 years, killed
Moammar Gadhafi, who ruled Libya with a dictatorial grip for 42 years until he was ousted by his own people in an uprising that turned into a bloody civil war, was killed Thursday when revolutionary forces overwhelmed his hometown, Sirte, the last major bastion of resistance two months after his regime fell.
-
UPDATE: Indy 500 winner Dan Wheldon dies after massive crash in Vegas
Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon died Sunday at Las Vegas Motor Speedway after his car became ensnarled in a fiery 15-car pileup, flew over another vehicle and landed in a catch fence just outside turn 2.
-
Hauteans do a double-take when Will Ferrell makes surprise appearance downtown (see Video)
Actor/comedian Will Ferrell was in downtown Terre Haute this morning at Seventh and Wabash, the Crossroads of America.
-
Special 9/11 section on Saturday
As part of the Tribune-Star's 10th anniversary coverage of the 9/11 attacks on New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pa., we offer a special section — 9/11: Ten Years Later — in Saturday's print and online editions. The 10-page section includes more 9/11 memories and stories on how events on Sept. 11, 2001, changed life in the Wabash Valley.
-
9/11: Where were you?
As part of our coverage of the upcoming 10-year anniversary of 9/11, the Tribune-Star and Tribstar.com invite you to share your recollections with us and our legions of readers. We will compile responses and post them online in coming days.
-
SUNDAY UPDATE: 5 dead in Indiana State Fair stage collapse
Five people have now died and more than 40 injured when a stage collapsed Saturday night during a storm at the Indiana State Fair, where the country group Sugarland was set to perform.
-
Two new Brent Long memorial items in time for today's National Night Out
The Terre Haute Police Department has two new items for sale to benefit the Officer Brent Long fundraiser, available in time for the Terre Haute National Night Out celebration scheduled 5 to 9 p.m. today in Fairbanks Park.
-
PHOTO UPDATE 2: Abducted Terre Haute child recovered, suspects in custody
A Terre Haute boy abducted Tuesday has been recovered unharmed, and the two suspects in his abduction are in police custody.
-
PHOTO UPDATE: Hunt on for missing 4-year-old
Federal assistance has been requested in the case of a 4-year-old Terre Haute boy allegedly abducted Tuesday morning by a Terre Haute couple.
- More Top Story Headlines
-
Raw Video: Activists Allege Massacre in Syria
NJ Man Charged With Murder in Death of Patz
Astronauts Enter World's 1st Private Supply Ship
Today in History
Shell Readies Arctic Drill Ship
Biden Addresses West Point Graduating Class
Support, Fun for Kids of Fallen Soldiers at Camp
50 Years Later, Underground Fire Still Burning
Raw Video: Unruly Passenger Restrained in Miami
Fugitive Penguin Caught, Returned to Aquarium
Light Show Transforms Sydney Opera House
Passenger Restrained on Flight to Miami Arrested
Calif.'s Coronado Named Nation's Best Beach
Raw Video: Soldiers Plant Flags at Arlington
Police: Gunman Has Hostages in Realty Office
Dragon Arrives at Space Station in Historic 1st
Colorado College Student Shot While Trespassing
Raw Video: Wildfire Burns 110 Square Miles
Raw Video: Robber Uses Drive-thru Window
Raw Video: Dragon Arrives at Space Station
Wild weather for Memorial Day weekend
Inspiration for the class of 2012
Will Smith & Josh Brolin on "Men in Black 3"
80-Year-Old Skydiver's Nightmare Jump
JWoww Sizzles in a Black Bikini
Sliders on the Grill
Cruise ship crunch
Backstage With Beyonce
Ultimate Creamy Potato Salad
Pope's Personal Butler Under Arrest
Jenny McCarthy's New Man
Tyler's Classic Coleslaw
Britney Spears Under X Factor Fire
Flesh-Eating Bacteria Victim Hits Milestone
Hurricanes and Heat Waves Across America
Kristen Stewart Is Red Hot
Shark Attacks Australian Fishing Boat
Bradley out for playoffs
Kayaker Survives Trip Over Washington Waterfall
