By MATT PIKE
St. Joseph Post
After a shortened tour last year, St. Joseph's New Generation Singers will hit the road tomorrow for their full 15-day tour for the first time in two years.
Director Byron 'Bemo' Myers II says this year feels like a sort of rebirth for the group.
"To be back up and running, and we've done a shortened tour but now we're going to be back up to the full-fledged thing," Myers tells KFEQ/St. Joseph Post. "You know our membership numbers, while not quite back up to the 70 or 80 that we usually have, we went up from 35 up to 50 so we're one step closer, another year of growth and we'll kind of be back in the ballpark of where we started."
The singing group comprised of 50 St. Joseph area students will travel on their annual 15-day tour, this year's tour titled Road to the Son.
It's the first time in two years the group has made the full 15 days. Last year the group traveled for the first time since 2019 on a 10-day tour.
Sixth-year member Molly Carlson looks forward to getting back on the road
"Going on tour every year has always been something really special," Carlson says. "We always grow closer with everyone on tour, and then with God, and then I'm really excited this year to go back to have our whole 15-day tour because we get to spread the message of God for the whole 15 days."
The group last went on its annual 15-day summer tour in 2019, just before the coronavirus pandemic.
Myers says the two-week tour, while special, can be challenging at times for some of the kids.
"Because it's easy for us to all to be good people when everything is going our way, but when you're on a trip, and you get worn down, you're physically tired, you're emotionally tired," Myers says.
"That's when we grow closer," Carlson interjects.
"Right, that's where you grow closer," Myers agrees, "because you then learn, it's like wow sometimes it's harder to be a really good person when I'm worn down, but when you find out that you can do that, that's where we really become a much more tighter knit group and there's value to all that."
The singers will depart at 9am tomorrow from Ashland United Methodist Church.
The group will travel north to Glacier National Park before coming back home for their homecoming performance in St. Joseph on July 30th.