"The Joyful
Hearts" ensemble will be excited to meet the audience during a charitable
concert to be held at 18:00 on December 23, 2016 at Jono Basanavičiaus g. 18,
Vilnius, (St Constantine & Michael Church).
The admission is free for all to enjoy!
The sisters
of St. Elisabeth Convent have carried out their ministry in several boarding
homes for mentally challenged adults and children with special needs for about
twenty years. They provide art therapy, do handicrafts, and organise theatrical
performances. There is an ensemble named "The Joyful Hearts" directed by Nun
Sophia. Its participants live in one of the boarding homes for people with
special needs, many of whom have special talents, too. In spite of their
physical and mental disabilities, they never give up. Their creativity always
comes to the rescue. The members of this ensemble found themselves in the
boarding home at difficult moments of their lives. However, they are united in
their desire to stand up strong and make other people happy. "The Joyful Hearts" ensemble is an essential part of their lives. It is here that they find
inspiration, boost their creativity, make friends, and support one another.
Andrei
Natalchuk, a soloist of the ensemble, is blind. He cannot see this world but he
can sense it perfectly with his heart. He expresses his emotions in songs.
- I like all songs, - he says. – There is no
such thing as a song that is not my favourite one. Each song has a soul, and
each of them is fabulous in its own right!
Helena
Zakharevskaya, another soloist of the ensemble, shared her secret dream with
us. “I like performing – people applaud, and it is so encouraging! I would like
to visit France so much! I would like to see the Eiffel Tower in Paris, to
climb it and to look at the city! I would also love to talk with people who
live there. Each trip is something to remember: new friends and new moments to
cherish.”
"The Joyful Hearts" have already toured Russia with charitable concerts. Now they will hopefully visit Europe on their Singing Hearts tour with visa support provided by the Embassy of France in Belarus. The members of the ensemble would like to thank the Rev Konstantin Lazukin for his assistance in organising their Advent concert tour in Vilnius.
Learn more
about "The Joyful Hearts" ensemble here.
CONVERSATION