When we arrived at the Scottsdale Bible Church, our orchestra was practicing in the sanctuary.  The concert tomorrow would have some special additions dedicated to our sister-in-law Frances McMurrin who died of cancer in May. The McMurrin family is spread across the United States, but the daughter of Lee and Frances McMurrin, Marianne Bursi, lives in Scottsdale, and she was hosting a family gathering and a memorial service preceding the concert.

Added to the program would be “How Lovely Is Thy Dwelling Place” from the Brahms Requiem, the spiritual “Give Me Jesus,” and “What a Friend We Have in Jesus,” arranged by Harold Best in a New Orleans style.

Our first evening was with our hosts, however. Wow! Two nights in a row, without a concert. We shared our time between our hosts Chris and Carol Nahm, faithful supporters of our mission, and the McMurrin family at Marianne’s house.  Roger also did an hour that evening at the choir rehearsal of the Scottsdale Bible Church choir. It is what he used to do for many years, while he was director of music in American churches.

The next morning Carol Nahm and I had a great time going to a discount mall called Arizona Mills. There we found a Chico’s outlet that had some terrific buys. I really can’t shop much, because I’m so limited in space in our trunk to haul around my belongings. But I did buy a few things, that gave me a real lift emotionally. Nothing like a new outfit  to make you feel younger and more energetic.

At 3 pm Roger and I attended the memorial service at the home of our niece. It was wonderful to be together with family, something so rare in our missionary lives.  And as I meditated on how fragile life is, and how precious family relationships are, it occurred to me that we need to appreciate the beauty God gives us every day, in nature, in friends, in health, and in the awareness of God with us.  How blessed we are to belong to God and trust everything to Him!

The concert that evening at Scottsdale was again wonderful. The large sanctuary was full of excited listeners, and the variety of entertainment kept them enthralled.  The home-stays of our Ukrainians were so much fun, and the Americans would have kept them longer than two days if they could.

At the Scottsdale concert, so many hosts came to me to say how much they enjoyed their Ukrainians, and they wished they could stay longer.  Then at the end of the concert, 

Brenda handed me a letter that warmed my heart. It was from San Clemente:

“Bob and I want to let you know what a blessing the concert weekend was for all of us. Our two Ukrainian guests were a delight to have in our home. We feel richer for having had them here. Before this weekend, the Kiev outreach program seemed distant. Worthy, yes, but distant.

“No longer, for now we have seen and heard and touched and thus can feel attached in a more concrete way to their mission. How grateful we are for that.

“Svetlana and Larisa are cellists…full of energy and zest for all that’s new. Because of their enthusiasm, we were able to fill each and every moment with love and laughter.

The music will ring in our hearts and minds from this day forward. Our hopes and prayers will be with them as they carry out this mission of move to places near and far.”

Also enclosed was a note from Carter Clark, husband of Diane, who managed the San Clemente concert arrangements. He said, “Diane has already received 25 hand scripted thank you’s and a similar number of e-mail notes passing raves to her about the KSOC Tour and her efforts to bring it to St. Andrews.”

So with that I put aside my feelings of worry. There may be a couple of bumps in the road, but this tour is making Americans happy, Ukrainians happy, and we continue on in faith.

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CHAPTER 21: Prescott, Arizona

To pronounce the name of this city, you must say “Press-kitt” not “Press-cott.” It rhymes with “biscuit.”  I learned that on our first visit here in the year 2000. At that time I thought it was the ideal place to live. The air is so clean and the temperature “just right.” The scenery of the surrounding mountains is breath taking and the vegetation is lush, with many kinds of trees. Also it is quiet, very quiet, and very little traffic. It still is a thrill to sit on a porch and relax, which is where I am writing this chapter.

We arrived at the Yavapai Community College, where we would give the concert. Don and Jade Riley were the organizers of this venue and also our hosts. Jade took us home so that Roger could rest some more. ‘Did he really need this much rest?’ I thought. But Roger slept another hour, as Jade prepared a fabulous meal for the two of us. ‘I wonder what the group is eating?’ I thought, as I helped myself to fresh asparagus, steak and mushrooms.

We arrived at the concert, fifteen minutes before the downbeat. The hall reminded me of a professional theater, with a large lobby and even a coffee bar. Indeed they did host concerts of visiting artists, and there were posters for a ballet of Romeo and Juliet later this month. They also took 20% of our profits on our sales.  But that is expected in such halls.

Brenda said that the meal had been excellent, and she was still eating hers at the sales tables after the choir processed in, as she usually does. “I never can eat before a concert,” she says. “I’m too excited.”

Because of the faltering American economy and the large inventory we still had in the truck, we reduced the prices on some of our merchandise. Some things on the souvenir table were selling for half-price.  People just were not buying very much.

As I went up to the stage to do the commercial at the end of the second half, I decided to change my opening statement. “Did you hear, ‘There’s snow in the Rockies’…. ‘And there’s a nip in the air tonight’…. And you know what that means?”  Roger looked completely baffled.  “Christmas will soon be here,” I said. We started bantering about Christmas, and acted a little crazy.

During intermission, as I was signing books, a young girl in her 20’s came to me. “Do you know who George Burns is?” she asked me. “Yes….” I said.  “And Gracie Allen?” her eyes looked expectant.  “Yes..” I replied.  “Well,” she said, “you two remind me of them.” 

I looked at her, wondering how she could hear of such people from my generation, not hers.  “Am I George or am I Gracie?” I asked her. And we all laughed.

In spite of the fact that our people were tired, they gave a terrific concert. The audience loved it!

Afterwards, the housing assignments were a little bit chaotic, as Americans had numbers, which they held in their hands, but they were scattered in the hall, not in numerical order. So some Ukrainians went home with the wrong people, out of weariness. But finally everyone was in a home.  Brenda Tompkins was with us at the Riley’s.

The next day the bus was ready at 7:45 am to take an excursion to Grand Canyon. It would be a three-and-a-half hour trip one-way. I loved this excursion but I decided not to go. I was just so tired. I stayed in my pajamas until 2 pm.  There were Ukrainians who were tired too, and some stayed home with their hosts.  Roger went of course. “I just can’t wait to see their faces when they first see the Grand Canyon,” he said. “It’s the best sight in the world.” I think he meant their faces, not the Canyon.

About 125 people went to the Grand Canyon with Roger. Since the Park charges $300 per bus to enter the tourist area, The 125 people crowded into two 56-passenger buses, thereby saving us some money.  Bill, the bus driver, let our people out and would meet them at another checkpoint which he was told was a 20-minute walk along the edge of the Canyon. What the Ukrainians and Roger did not realize was that it was an hour and 20-minute walk in the hot sun.  But the Ukrainians were so enthralled with this wonder of the world that they did not complain, even though it made them an hour late for dinner at their host home.

Two Ukrainians Victor and Ludmila Dribney came to our host home that night.  Ludmila was suffering from a cold, and they had been housed in a garage the night before, so Don gave up his bed for them, and they moved in. They were very grateful as we sat around the dining room table feasting on salmon, rice, salad, green beans, dinner rolls, and pumpkin pie.

The next day I was ready for an adventure. The group traveled by bus to Sedona, a city north of Prescott, that had beautiful red cliffs, spattered with green bushes. The overall effect was enchanting. We wandered the town with its charming little shops. Roger bought maple walnut fudge, cut it into little pieces, and offered it to the musicians as they came back to the bus. Some loved it. Others said it was too sweet.  One of the new tour members bought Roger a present, a key ring with Roger’s name on it. “This is the first present from an orchestra member I have ever had,” said Roger, thanking him.

We arrived at the college right on time, at 4 pm, and our hosts were there waiting for us. Don and Jade had picked up some more musicians, whose host had to go out of town, etc. and so we had thirteen people for dinner including Marcia and BJ. 

The Americans wanted to watch the Presidential Debate, and the Ukrainians patiently waited or sent e-mails on the computer. The DOW had dropped another 500 points today, and that made everyone sad, especially Jade who works as a stockbroker.

On Wednesday morning, we woke up at 5:30 am, and the Riley’s with the help of the their two mini-vans, transported Roger, Brenda, Victor, Ludmila, and me to the college to meet the buses.

The Ukrainians were having trouble getting all the suitcases into the baggage area of the buses.  Evidently many of the musicians don’t want to ship home their extra weight that they have purchased.  This was the case in our first tours, and some of our people are new. They may be afraid that they won’t get everything from customs. They also may not want to wait until Christmas until they see their treasures again. But we are trying to tell them that the airlines will charge them lots of money to take extra weight on the plane.  Vika said she would find out the baggage limit for Delta international travel – either 50 pounds or 70 pounds for each suitcase.

BJ got behind the steering wheel, and I sat down beside her with the map. Roger slid into the back seat and said, “What’s all this?”  He was referring to the extra little bags and things which we had accumulated.

“The trunk is full,” I said. Roger insisted that he could find more room in the trunk, which he did, by taking everything out and putting things in again.

One lady came to the car, and said that she wanted to adopt a widow with Music Mission Kiev. “Thank you for bringing the Ukrainians,” said another lady. “They were delightful.” 

There were some tears as Ukrainians parted from Americans. In three days, they had become like family, even though they can’t speak each other’s language.  How does this happen? It’s a mystery!

We drove off into the brilliant rising sun.  We were entering the “home stretch” of the tour.  In the next 11 days, we would present 10 concerts, and the first two were long drives as well.  So we began our journey through beautiful hills, flatlands, and painted desert, toward the great city of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

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