New Horizon's Anniversary
In October of 1998, I joined a performing arts group called New Horizon. This is a group of veterans who are very special; we are all recovering addicts. We have two purposes that we focus on in our group. One is to reach those who are suffering from some type of addiction, be it alcohol or drugs. The other is to show them that they also can be clean and sober and live a prosperous life. On May 7, 2000 the group celebrated their eight anniversary. This event was held at St Vincent's Church in Newport News, Virginia. It was an exciting and interesting celebration, one that I will never forget and always cherish.
In preparing for this occasion, the members of New Horizon decided to do something a little different than what was the norm when it comes to our attire. This year we decided that the men would buy and wear black tuxedos and the women would buy and wear an outfit that would compliment the men. At first we, the women of New Horizon, were going to have gowns made, but there was no fabric store that carried enough of the same material for 10 women. We then decided to purchase our gowns from Tiffany's Bridal Shop. Neither the men of the group nor the director knew what the women had chosen. We selected a royal blue gown that truly complimented the men's tuxedos. Our gowns were beautiful. We wore silver shoes with silver and pearl jewelry. The women of New Horizon were now ready for our anniversary.
Why is buying our own clothing such a big deal? Well, this group is comprised of individuals who came with nothing at all, people who were homeless, and the only clothing they owned was that which was on their backs. New Horizon has always provided uniforms for the group to wear. This time, to show that we have moved forward and become responsible adults in society today, we felt a need for us to purchase our clothing for the anniversary. Looking back on the time when the majority of us would use our hard-earned money, or moneys that we've acquired by whatever means necessary, rushing to the nearest liquor store or drug dealer, we actually thought that we were having the best time of our lives. No place to go, living for the moment, all we were doing was keeping liquor store's profits up and drug dealer's wallets full of our money. Our carelessness and strong desire to use benefited them, not us. Today it is truly a blessing and the grace of God that we no longer have to live from pillar to post. God is good, all the time. We have our own place of residence, clothing that we can change into at our leisure. The members of New Horizon now appreciate showering, eating, and living as law-abiding citizens and being accepted by society.
On the morning of the anniversary, getting ready for the event was fun and hectic. I helped several of the women with their hair. One of the girls helped others with their makeup. When we lined up to march into the church, the men and the director were all in awe because of how nice we looked.
The congregation was packed almost to its capacity. All the members of New Horizon were excited and felt good. We were about to put on a performance that would never be forgotten. We marched in singing our entrance song and received a standing ovation from the congregation.
I was excited and very happy because, the majority of my family was there to celebrate with me this joyous occasion. I led the group in a song that brought joy to the entire congregation. There was a tremendous amount of clapping and praising God. Even our director, Father Stevenson, was filled with the Holy Spirit. We sang several more songs, and then we had an intermission to get ready for the second half of the concert.
During this half of the concert, the coordinators of the group surprised several members of the group with special awards. The looks on the member's faces were truly expressions that I will never forget. They had no idea that they would be recognized for their achievements since joining the group. I was also surprised with an award. The director of the group gave two awards for individual talent. Our piano player was given an award for his talent for playing the piano. He never has had piano lessons before but plays all of our music by ear. God has truly blessed this individual with a gift. Then the director started speaking of an individual who came to the group with the voice of an angel. Finally the group has a female who can lead songs and also fill in when needed for other solos. He complimented her on how she has brought so much positivity to the group and what a blessing it is to have her with them. We finished the concert with a few more songs. Afterwards, refreshments were served for our guests and us.
I am really happy that I decided to change my life. Being a part of this group has brought so much joy to me. The best part about it is thanking God through song on saving me from a world of sin, and this concert experience symbolized for me all of the positive results of my involvement in New Horizon. I can never forget it.
Visit us at http://groups.hamptonroads.com/NewHorizon
or e-mail us at NewHorizonPag@aol.com