Inside this issue:

The chapter and chorus meet  every Thursday evening at 7:30 p.m. at the First Methodist Church Activity Center
on the corner of Poyntz and  6th Street, Manhattan, Kansas.

Bulletin is published by the Manhattan Kansas Chapter and Chorus

   While most of us in the Chorus are breathing a sigh of relief at the completion of the Singing Valentines activities, Bob and Telva Swenson and their loyal crew continue to work diligently to collect from those who promised to pay, but haven’t done so yet, and to try to get all the expense statements in order. Take time to thank them for all they do for the Chorus. Compared to 2008 the number of requests was down significantly. There were 119 requests and all were delivered! Ninety of the requests were delivered on Friday and the remainder on Saturday. It is estimated that there were 1900 people who heard our quartets as they performed. Income was $4500 (numbers are approximate and hopefully conservative) less $2000 expenses leaving $2500 profit. This compares to a profit of about $3500 for 2008. The economy and the fact that Valentines Day occurred on Saturday were two of the contributing factors for the decline in revenue.

     Significant changes were noted in several of the components of the Singing Valentines operation starting with the emergence of three new quartets: 1) Terry and the Graybeards, 2) Sugar Daddies and 3) Three Hoots and a Holler, joined the ranks of our quartet lineup. Much of the credit for this accomplishment goes to Loren Alexander for his organizational skills and persis

tence in making this happen and to our Music Directors for their coaching and support.

   Bart Bartholomew had the web page up and running and the on-line orders increased dramatically this year. There were 50 e-mail orders (42%) compared to 70 phone orders. The more orders we receive on-line, the less time and trouble is required to collect on unpaid orders.

   With the demise of Polaroid film, digital cameras were used in most of the Singing Valentines deliveries. A system was devised so that the digital photo taken of a recipient could be accurately and quickly matched to that person’s e-mail address. The image could then be downloaded into a laptop and forwarded to the recipient. Karen Nanninga was responsible for a lot of this activity.

    Another “change” was utilizing the family life center (Presby Place) of the First Presbyterian Church as our quartet lounge. Special thanks to Helen Cooper, Joan Thomson and Fred Wachsmuth for their roles in making this happen. The amenities of the facility as well as the easy access for parking made this a big hit with the quartets, presenters and drivers.

   As we look forward to the 2010 version of Singing Valentines, and keeping in mind that change is inevitable, but not always good, let us know your thoughts of what we can do better ♪

Singing Valentines 2009

A job well done

By Ken Lyle

For the Singing Valentines Committee,

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