Dear Friends,
The hits just kept rolling!
Signed, Sealed, Delivered…. can you finish the refrain by Stevie Wonder? Does it just make your body move?
It sure did for concertgoers last Friday at Cha’Rel Sings the Decades, our fundraiser benefitting Housing That Heals at Mile High Ministries. What a night to experience and remember. MHM gatherings become treasured reunions for old friends and a chance to meet new folks, and this one will be talked about for years.
“The Decades” theme had people from their 20s to their 80s clapping and cheering from the opening chords of the band for each song… even before Cha’Rel brought—and we mean brought—familiar lyrics to a packed room. Killing Me Softly (Roberta Flack), Girl From Ipanema (Astrud Giberto and Stan Getz), Ain’t Nobody (Chaka Khan), Someone Like You (Adele), and on an on until the encore. For newcomers to Cha’Rel’s talent and stage magnetism, jaws dropped.
We at MHM know Cha’Rel’s life well over the decades, from a teen in our programs on Denver’s East Side, to gracing stages around Denver and the nation, to a welcoming presence on staff in Joshua Station’s lobby, and now to Lead Community Advocate at Clara Brown Commons. We know some of her life’s great challenges. We know her tender heart and tenacity on behalf of our beloved residents of all generations. It makes her a perfect connector and community-builder in our resident hallways, and a perfect ambassador for our work. She lives our mission from the inside out.
Between songs, Cha’Rel shared her astonishment at what a girl finding her way in this neighborhood could have never imagined at the time. How God would unfold her life, through grit and breakthroughs, to reveal gifts of love to be shared in song and in care in the very place where this event was held—the Community Room at CBC. How beauty unfolds every day in the families living in our support-enriched housing communities.
Cha’Rel’s voice soared with the iconic lines of Whitney Houston’s “The Greatest Love”:
I believe the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
Let the children’s laughter remind us how we used to be…
We were inspired by each donor’s contagious enthusiasm as we participated in a fun, fast-paced “paddle raiser” auction in support of residents in our programs. The fundraising was a rousing success, and we couldn’t be more grateful!
