The Stairwell Carollers Copyright Ferris-Manning Photography
Peter Ferris-Manning of Ferris-Manning Photographyhas graciously allowed us to share this selection of photos he took of the Stairwell Carollers at our 2011 National Gallery concert. He was at the Mondial concert in Laval last weekend and is shocked and saddened by the suddenness of Paul's passing. Peter expresses his condolences for Paul's friends and family with the hope that these photos will be of some comfort. Fell free to copy and share them.
The Stairwell Carollers Copyright Ferris-Manning Photography
Yesterday, the world lost a beautiful tenor voice.
Paul Churchill, tenor with the Stairwell Carollers
Monday, June 25th, Paul Churchill was taken from us.
We are all still in shock and cannot believe we have lost him.
Paul was warm and intense, hilarious yet at times passionately serious, self-deprecating and generous. His sense of humour was irreverently fresh and funny.
Heading off to do Xmas caroling in the Byward Market
This past Sunday, on the way to and from the choir's performance at Mondial in Laval, Paul kept his carpool mates entertained. Andrea says his stories of his children and how proud he was of them, interspersed with outrageous anecdotes and observations, was typically "Paul" -- in high spirits as usual.
The concert was fun -- short and sweet, with a wonderfully receptive audience. Paul clearly had a blast at his final concert with the Stairwell Carollers.
We will miss him more than I can express here. We all had our own friendships with him, each as different and varied as Paul's own personality. Thus, I can only speak of our relationship. It was one of winks and grins across the circle in rehearsals, double entendre remarks right before performances, and deep serious discussions about the educational system. He was great at diffusing tension with humour and amused us with his "bon mots" during rehearsal.
Paul being Paul -- note the hat
His respect for our choir's director was complete, for he worked harder than anyone to improve his technique and follow Pierre's suggestions in rehearsal.
Paul's beautiful voice has been immortalized on our upcoming Sacred CD, Cantate Domine, which will be dedicated to his memory.
A memorial service for Paul is planned for Tuesday July 3 at 10 AM to take place at Capital Memorial Gardens, 3700 Prince of Wales Drive. The Stairwell Carollers will be there to sing a tribute to Paul.
The Stairwell Carollers, also known as
Les Chanteurs Stairwell (en Francais), will perform a half hour of
Sacred Music for the fabulous Mondial as part of the "Choeur en Ville" programme.
All the answers are there on the website just waiting to be found :)
Want to get there fast? Simply go to the Contest form and start surfing the Stairwell Carollers official home to find the answers.
Once you submit your completed form, and we have verified that all your answers are correct, you will be placed in the draw.
Contest deadline TOMORROW -- Friday, June 8th, 2012.
Contest draw change -- Saturday June 3Oth, 2012. Winner TBA.
*SORRY to our international friends and recent former Stairwellers...
Contestants must be Canadian residents and have reached the age of majority in the province or territory in which they reside. Those who have been members of the Stairwell Carollers since 2009, and their immediate families are not eligible.
This is just a quick note of appreciation to all of you who gave Nicole and me moral and/or financial support as (a) she attempted her very first 10km race (first step on the way to a fall marathon!) and (b) I attempted my ouch 17th marathon as part of USC Canada’s Run for Biodiversity here in Ottawa on May 27.
David
We had a record number (46) of dedicated R4B runners and walkers join us this year. They have helped raise a record $9,100 for farmers in Nepal and donations are still coming in, so a huge thank you for your generous financial support!
Your moral support and encouragement was also greatly appreciated this year.
Nicole
After the race, Nicole wrote this:
I had SO much fun on Saturday. The weather was amazing, I felt really strong the whole way, and wow, the cheering crowds were incredible. It was a blast. Can't wait to run my next race! I'm happy to see that the fundraising efforts were successful. A win-win for everyone! Thanks for the opportunity to participate in such a great project!
On my side, here’s how it went. During the marathon, I was feeling pretty good up to about the 30km mark, at which point I hit the wall.
I struggled mightily in the last 10-12 km, but drew inspiration from a visitation by my spirit bird, the great blue heron. Two of them in fact (!) – who were flying majestically in tandem along the Ottawa River at about km 32 – and I drew from their energy and told myself that was it, I would push myself to finish, and I did. (NB: I’m still wondering to myself whether this was a visitation, or perhaps a “vision”, as I seemed to be the only runner who was aware of their presence…..)
Anyways, I was able to finish the race in 4 hour 14 minutes, which turned out to be my best time since 2008 and 2007 when I ran similar 4:14 times – as a “young man” of 55 and 56 – so I can’t complain on that front.
Indeed, now that I have “advanced” to a new age group, 60-64, I actually placed a respectable 36th out of 94 fellow male runners my age, so everything is relative, maybe by the time I’m 70….
From both of us, thanks again for all your support – until next year!
David
David Rain
Legacy Gifts and Donor Recognition
Coordinator, Run for Biodiversity
USC Canada56 Sparks Street, Suite 705 Ottawa, ONCanada K1P 5B1