All of ���ѱ�’s first-semester, first-year students are required to attend the festival – surely one of the most fun “requirements” a student could have. The university is providing free shuttle transportation from the Campus Commons to the festival site at every half hour, from the time the festival opens at noon to its 6 p.m. closing. (On-site parking is restricted – check the for more details.)

“We believe your hearts will be enlarged with the love you will find here, where smiles and hugs and beats that set your feet to dancing will re-energize your spirits in the beauty we share together,” say the festival co-chairs, Vauna Brown and David Kreider, on the event website. (Kreider, who has been a festival organizer for a number of years, holds three degrees from EMU.)

In this, its 17th year, the festival is recognized as an annual tradition in Harrisonburg, perhaps the most ethnically diverse city in Virginia. Harrisonburg is also one of the most harmoniously livable cities in America by . Festival organizers believe this is not a coincidence.

“We have a lot of refugees in our community because of the Anabaptist movements and the responsibilities they feel to help refugees settle here in our community,” explains Brown. In the early years of refugee re-settlement, “some of the churches had monthly potlucks and during those potlucks they would sit around and have a brainstorming about what they could do to [further] help.” From this brainstorming came the idea of a festival.

Local civic leaders – from the hospitals to the educational systems to city government – have not only endorsed the festival, they have stepped up to help create a hospitable climate in Harrisonburg. This year’s list of reads like a business and non-profit “Who’s Who” of Harrisonburg, with two of the top eight sponsors being EMU and the , founded and directed by EMU alumni.

“This year we are really focusing on unity and on the richness of our differences, which bring us together into a whole,” says Heidi Jablonski, an 2014 EMU grad who is assisting Brown and Kreider. “These differences draw people together to make the valley such an interesting and dynamic place.”

���ѱ�’s with a renowned children’s performer, Jose-Luis Orozco, at 2:15 p.m. This is one of the eight musical performances of the day, which wraps up with the dance-rhythms of a new Eritrean band, Zara.

of ���ѱ�’s is coordinating the making of unity flags, which are somewhat akin to Tibetan prayer flags. “This is a community art project for anyone – children, teenagers, adults – anyone is welcome at the ‘peace and justice area’ close to Pavilion 12,” she said.

“Participants will get a blank square of fabric and they will be able to put on symbols or prayers or poems that talk about unity,” said Amstutz. “Then, if they want, they can take them with them. Or they can pin them on pieces of string, which will be hung around the pavilion.” She noted that this activity fits with ���ѱ�’s focus on .

The festival also provides opportunities for fledgling entrepreneurs to get their start, says Brown, pointing out that at least three restaurants – the , , and – got their first exposures at past festivals.

Orozco, who performs internationally before enthusiastic crowds, will be appearing on the invitation of the SVCC, and Harrisonburg City Schools. “He is our gift to the community,” said SVCC artistic director , who has prepared nearly 40 students to sing with Orozco at the festival in Hillandale Park.

Orozco and SVCC share the goal of gathering children, families, and communities around a singing culture, Hostetter said. Orozco’s performances employ a singalong style, through which he engages people of all ages.

“He’s like an Hispanic Raffi!” said SVCC assistant director Joy Anderson.

SVCC begins its 2014 season with Hostetter stepping into the artistic director position; a renovated office location in an EMU-owned house on campus; and aspirations for a new set of uniforms to replace the children’s 20-year-old outfits.

To usher in the upcoming term, SVCC held a group retreat at on Sept. 13. Choristers became acquainted with some of this season’s repertoire, while building bonds among themselves and with staff. Rehearsal time, games, dramatic sketches, s’mores, and scampering about the woods packed the 11-hour day at the camp.

Hostetter’s passion for musical education is rooted in her own experiences as a high school chorister. “I learned much about listening and connecting to the people around me in those years,” said Hostetter. “I experienced the way community can be built through the members who give, based on what is needed for the good of the group.”

As a musical instructor, she fondly remembers the transformation of in Dayton (Va.) during her years teaching there. Singing “was not cool” when she arrived, but both attendance and camaraderie burgeoned under her tutelage.

Transposing these experiences into her new position with SVCC is akin to “stepping off a plane into a beautiful flowering field.”

Hostetter is familiar with said field in her prior roles of SVCC parent and guest conductor, but now assumes full responsibility for nurturing SVCC. Studying the choirs inside and out helps her “ensure the ongoing success and continued growth of an already strong and flourishing organization.”

SVCC’s strength and prolificity are evident in their history. They have performed at the White House, Carnegie Hall, two Mahatma Gandhi Global Nonviolence Award ceremonies, and the Tuscany International Children’s Chorus Festival in Italy, among other illustrious venues.

“People are always shocked when they hear us,” said Anderson. She says it is “unheard of” to be this well known, given that SVCC is not based in a major urban area.

There are currently 157 students enrolled for the school year in and performing choir programs. Music Explorers consists of students in kindergarten through third grade, with an emphasis on basic choral education. The performing choirs, made up of the preparatory, treble, and concert choirs, are divided based on age and singing prowess. Preparatory choir eligibility begins in second grade, and students must audition for acceptance into each level. Concert choir, with students from sixth to twelfth grade, is the longest-distance touring group of SVCC.

Participants come from families of Mennonite, Jewish, other Christian, and no religious inclination. This diversity of faith tradition is key to SVCC’s character. “We want this to be a very inclusive atmosphere,” said Anderson.

“Cultivated properly,” Hostetter said, “choral ensembles can give students a place of learning and belonging.”

Other upcoming SVCC performances include:

• JMU’s production of “La Bohéme” by Giacomo Puccini, in which nine concert choir students will make up the “Ruffian’s Chorus.” Performances on Nov. 7, 8, and 9 in the Forbes Center, Harrisonburg.
• A fall concert in tandem with the , with the treble and concert choirs each having their own sets as well as two songs in conjunction with the orchestra. This is the first time the orchestras and choirs have collaborated on stage. Performance on Nov. 23, 4 p.m., in Lehman Auditorium.
• A Christmas Concert including all three performing choirs performing a collection of Celtic-themed songs. Performance on Dec. 7, 4 p.m., in Lehman Auditorium.