Cougar Blues perform in NYC
Comet staff report

A trip to remember Cougar Blues members are pictured on their trip to New York City. Pictured, lr, are: Front - Weston Rinehart, Isiah Stevens, Alix Parrett, Drew Ayres, Leann Hazelgrove, Cally Ayres, Lauren Wilkinson, Kaitlin Kennedy, Hope Hayden, Melani Cox, Hannah Brewster, Anna Scharer, Aubree Herron, Kevin Ives, Amber Hughes, CJ Grace, Matt Morehouse. Back - Kevin Eikenberry, Seth Pencek, Angel Jackson, Chase Meade, AJ Butcher, Nick Jones, Kurtis Robeson, Valerie Allbaugh. Also going on the trip but not pictured were Michael Myer and Drake Harper. Photo provided

Carroll Jr.-Sr. High School's show choir, Cougar Blues, performed this month in New York City and also took a whirlwind tour of the city.

Prior to their performance, they went to a studio on Broadway and spent one and a half hours with a professional who prepares singers and dancers for auditions. Cougar Blues director Joe Spence said the professional made complimentary remarks to the group, including "love your harmony," and "I've never worked with a choir before, but you guys are very well prepared."

The Cougar Blues members were among 1,700 total performers from California, Florida, Canada, and all points in between. The choirs, bands, and orchestras performed at Riverside Church in front of three collegiate judges from different parts of the U.S.

Cougar Blues sang "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Over the Rainbow," and "Chili Con Carne."

One of the judges commented, "I like how your dancing doesn't distract from the music."

At the awards ceremony, Cougar Blues received a "gold," meaning their scores were 90 percent and above. Of all the show choirs attaining "gold" status, the Carroll group placed second.

Other highlights of their trip included seeing the Broadway show, "Wicked," Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, Rockefeller Center, Plaza, and "Top of the Rock," They also hiked across Central Park and through Strawberry Fields, rode the famous antique carousel, and visited Harlem, the Cotton Club, Apollo Theatre, Lincoln Center, and Columbus Circle. On the way to Chinatown and Little Italy, the group passed Ground Zero, now a construction site.

The trip concluded with a Circle Line Cruise dinner/dance around the island with other teenagers.

The 27 show choir members and 12 chaperones left for the Big Apple by charter bus on April 2 and returned home April 6. The trip was the reward for months of fundraising by the Cougar Blues and their parents.

Chaperones were Phil and Beth Hayden, Nathan and Diann Hazelgrove, Suzi Huffer, Marilyn Jackson, Rhonda Jones, Zach Parrett, Jill Scharer, Cecelia Stevens, and Joe and Pat Spence.

"Thanks to many parents, community members, and especially Jill Scharer (trip coordinator), this was a great trip," Spence said. "It was educational, challenging, and fun!"