Community gathers for a holiday sing-a-long

Day two of Redmond Lights included a community sing-a-long led by Eva Moon.

By Stephanie Quiroz • December 6, 2018 8:30 am

On day two of Redmond Lights, community members gathered for a community holiday sing-a-long in the new Downtown Park on 16101 Redmond Way.

Redmond resident and musician Eva Moon led the community on Dec. 2 in singing holiday songs such as “Jingle Bells” and “Winter Wonderland.” Crowd favorites included, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” and “Take Me Home, Country Roads.”

Around 6 p.m. people of all ages gathered to sing their favorite holiday songs. Lyric booklets were handed out, and the ukuleles began to play. Redmond residents, Meka Zieger and Holly Schoubridge along with their husbands, came to the holiday sing-a-long for the second time. They brought their voices and a ukulele to play along.

“I love singing with people. I sing at [my] church,” Schoubridge said about the first sing-a-long. “I thought, ‘Oh my goodness, a community sing-a-long sounds like a lot of fun.’ It was a really fun time together. With the great variety songs that have been put together, it’s just a really easy group to join and not feel self-conscious.”

L-R: Meka and Jon Zieger, and Holly and Eric Schoubridge attend the comunity sing-a-long for the second time. Eric Schoubridge brought his ukulele to play along. Stephanie Quiroz/staff photo.

Zieger added how there were a great variety of songs during the first community sing-a-long.

“It was terrific. We didn’t know what to expect,” she said. “The atmosphere was terrific. “

For Moon, it was important to find a way to bring people together and find something that was positive. She was looking to cultivate a culture that would be able to get together and sing.

After speaking and singing for the city of Redmond, the city agreed to support Moon in the form of providing a venue and publicity. The community sing-a-long was formed quickly and people gathered at the Redmond Community Center at Marymoor Village on Nov. 1. Around 100 people showed up that night to sing and play for about an hour and a half. Community members brought their bongos, guitars and ukuleles to play along as well.

“Everyone was happy…I was blown away,” said Moon. “I had tears in my eyes. It was such a wonderful feeling. I was flying high.”

A large crowd gathered to sing traditional holiday songs such as “Jingle Bells” and “Let it Snow.” Stephanie Quiroz/staff photo.

The community sing-a-long happens on the first Thursday of every month from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Redmond Community Center at Marymoor Village on 6705 176th Ave. NE. People of all ages are welcomed to join.

Moon is reaching out to the Redmond multicultural community to join the next sing-a-long. If anyone is interested in singing a specific song from their culture, they can contact Moon at eva@evamoon.net.

Community members can find more information on the city’s activity page, as well as the sing-a-long song book, www.apm.activecommunities.com.