Come Let's Sing!
Inside: Mini Song Camp in May, Red Oak summer camps for ages 5-16, Song Carrier Gathering in WA, Balkan Singing Workshops, and more!
Hello Friends!
How are you, and how are the places that you are caring for?
Here in the valley where the Center for Belonging lives and in our little town of Decorah there are many creative hands making good things happen. In Iowa. You betcha.
I’m glad to be able to share with you here some news about Center for Belonging events as well as the summer camps offered by Red Oak Outdoor School, whose director and mentor is Ida Rotto. These camps are THE BEST. There is still space in some of the camps for ages 5-16!
And, for those living within easy driving distance, take a look at Sophie Rog’s Balkan singing concert and workshops, March 30 and beyond.
Come join me a half-day mini camp and sing songs of Peace, Power, and Protest with me in May, and stay the night if you’d like!
My Song Carrier Training this April is full, but if you’re interested in getting advance notice of those that are yet to be scheduled this year, you can let me know here.
More below, and at the bottom, another great poem to make you pause and praise the art of poetry. ❤️
All my best,
Liz
EVENTS for FOLKS from
NEAR AND FAR
As in, these last long enough to be worth traveling a few hours or more! Need a place to rest afterwards? You can camp at Fern Hollow (free).
Songs of Power, Peace, and Protest
A half-day mini song camp
Saturday, May 24, 11:00-4:00* Register by May 10
At the Center for Belonging Folk School, Decorah Iowa, outside under the gazebo in the woods with Liz Rog. Free camping.
There are living songs for these times and they need us as much as we need them. Songs to hold us together in love and courage. Songs to hold us in our collective power. Songs to keep us grounded in what is true. Songs that affirm our commitments to life, love, earth, and justice. Songs the singing of which brings us joy! Come make friends with the songs and with others who are singing them. Then take the songs home and share them with your people. All voices and ages welcome, No experience needed. Registration sliding scale: $40-$80. You are invited to pay what is both generous and affordable for you. Register by May 10. 10% of funds will be passed along to local immigrant support networks.
*bring a sack lunch.
Learn more and register here!
Red Oak Outdoor School Summer Camps
Red Oak Summer Camp Registration info is here. All camps are 5 days, and all but the HeartSong backpacking Trip for teen girls take place either at Center for Belonging or a nearby location here outside of Decorah, Iowa. Folks coming from afar whose children are attending camp are welcome to camp for free here in the woods or to rent our cabin.
There are still a few spaces in the camps for ages 5-16!:
Chipmunks / ages 5-6 August 4-8
Coyotes / ages 9-12 / July 21st-15th
Coyotes / ages 9-12 / July 28th- August 1st
Into the Woods Overnight / ages 10-12 (for returning campers only) / August 11th-15th
HeartSong Backpacking Trip / young women* ages 13-16 / June 22nd-29th
Carrying Song as Service: Community song leading as a strengthening act in Washington
Are you excited about Community Singing? Would you like to help gather people in your home community to twine voices and hearts in this all-voices-welcomed way? Are you intrigued about the possibility of helping to lead songs yourself.
Join community songleaders Liz Rog, Heidi Wilson, and Sarina Partridge May 10-11, 2025 in Olympia, Washington for a special weekend of sharing tools for carrying song into your community. We will practice many of the skills involved in successfully getting other folks singing including: picking the right song for the moment, finding a good starting pitch, teaching in a clear call & response style, showing the rhythm and melody in your body, building confidence, and modeling joyful and welcoming humility. May 10-11, 2025 in Olympia, Washington. Learn more and register here!
EVENTS for
LOCAL/REGIONAL FOLKS
These are 2 hours long; if you want to travel for them do please come–you can camp at Fern Hollow!
You are invited to a
Community Songbath
ALL ARE WELCOME. Nothing is asked of you.
Come listen, rest, and receive. Close your eyes and relax as the singers share simple, repetitive songs of courage and comfort. Drop in anytime, stay as little or as long as you like. Come in silence, leave in silence.
Tuesday, March 25, 6:15-7:00 pm.
at the Fireside Room of First Lutheran Church, 604 W. Broadway, Decorah
A gift from Decorah’s Kitchen Table Singers, a volunteer group that offers songs to support the crossing of life’s thresholds.
All services are free.
Balkan Harmonies - Singing to Welcome Spring
Learn more and register here! The March 30th event will take place at the Yoga Studio, 306 W Water St in Decorah, IA.
Live Music: Nicolle Roen with Sophie Rog
Spring Songs
Tues, April 8 5:30-7:00
At the Phelps Park Bandshell Gazebo
Register here (drop-ins also welcome)
Donations welcomed, $5-$10 suggested
In the springtime do you sometimes just want to bust out in songs of praise for all that’s happening in nature? There are many songs just right for this time of year: for specific plants and birds, for the feeling of the air and rain, for the pleasure of it all. Come learn some songs that you can take home and sing on the trail, on the porch, at the kitchen table.
Advice
Someone dancing inside us
Learned only a few steps:
The “Do-Your-Work” in 4/4 time,
The “What-Do-You-Expect” waltz.
He hasn’t noticed yet the woman
Standing away from the lamp,
The one with black eyes
Who knows the rhumba,
And strange steps in jumpy rhythms
From the mountains in Bulgaria.
If they dance together,
Something unexpected will happen.
If they don’t, the next world
Will be a lot like this one.
Bill Holm
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