Across years and miles too many to count, more than two dozen members of the Swarthmore College Alumni Gospel Choir returned to campus in August to celebrate, remember, share stories, and — of course — join in joyful song.
Choir members had long planned to mark their 50th anniversary with a concert during the College’s year of Celebrating Black Excellence. Sadly, their Spring 2020 campus performance was one of many lost to the pandemic.
Their concert in Sharples Commons, their first opportunity to sing together on campus in more than five years, had a more reflective, yet still joyous purpose. For the first time, they interspersed their songs with, as Freeman Palmer ’79 said during his welcoming remarks, “remembrances of friends who have gone on to sing in the heavenly choir.”
Those remembered: James Batton ’72 (24:13), Terrence Hicks ’73 (28:50), Phillip Hayes ’73 (32:28), Renee Smith Schaffer ’77 (40:11), Cassandra Thompson Benson ’77 (43:24), Ruth Diamond Trammel ’77 (47:30), Eedy Nicholson ’78 (59:10), Debra Bennett ’79 (1:03:45), Kenneth Jackson ’79 (1:09:35), Mitchell Chase ’80 (1:13:20), Alvin Holt ’80 (1:16:09), Leon Jones ’80 (1:17:35), Kenneth Reeves ’88 (1:24:10), Marguerite Simpkins ’88 (1:27:15), Hayley S. Thomas ’93 (1:31:35), Renee Gaddie ’93 (1:35:04), Sheila Gonzales (1:39:50), and Brenda and Tamika Jones (1:47:55).
This incarnation of the choir included several “choir babies” — the affectionate term for grown children of choir members. Two of them sang solos. See the full program below.
The celebration also encouraged reflection on the choir’s origins. Cynthia Hunter Spann ’75 recounted how the choir was founded amid the backdrop of late 1960s Black student activism, the FBI’s notorious efforts to spy on Black students, and the lack of diversity in the College’s arts programs at the time.
“These and other experiences provided incentive for us to form a gospel choir,” Spann said, “and provide refuge for our spirits and for our cultures.”
The choir grew, from informal rehearsals around a piano in then-new Willets Hall to annual concerts in Swarthmore Friends Meetinghouse. More performances followed, first across the country and then around the world. The choir also released two collections of songs — Hallelujah! Amen (1996) and Star Gazer (2000) — whose sales support two College scholarships (both are available for digital download at the Campus & Community Store website). In 1999, the choir received the Joseph B. Shane ’25 Alumni Service Award, and the choir’s longtime, versatile director Vaneese Thomas ’74, H’14 received an honorary doctor of arts degree in 2014.
“For us, the choir provided a place of rejuvenation during our college days,” Spann said, “and has continued to sustain us and provide a sense of family and spiritual fellowship for our members today.
- The Complete Program
The Unbroken Circle
Saturday, August 10, 2024
4 p.m.
Sharples CommonsProcessional: God Is Already Here
Soloist: Marissa Davis ’08Opening Prayer
Cheryl Sanders ’74History of the Swarthmore College Gospel Choir
Cynthia Hunter Spann ’75I Bless Your Name
Soloist: Christina HayesIn Memoriam Year of Passing Remembrances James Batton ’72 1986 Carolyn Mitchell ’74 Terrence Hicks ’73 2018 Christian Hicks Phillip “Bush” Hayes ’73 2024 James White ’73 Renee Smith Schaffer ’77 2010 Patrice “Pixie” Davis ’77 Cassandra Thompson Benson ’77 2009 Vaneese Thomas ’74, H’14 Ruth Diamond Trammel ’77 2014 Harold “Tex” Trammel ’73 Mighty Good Day
Soloist: Patrice Harris Pompa ’75In Memoriam Year of Passing Remembrances Eedy Nicholson ’78 2021 Gina Hardy Harris ’78 Debra Bennett ’79 2020 Sandra Epps Flint ’79 Kenneth Jackson ’79 1987 Freeman Palmer ’79 Mitchell Chase ’80 1995 Bernita Taylor ’80 Alvin Holt ’80 1998 Bernita Taylor ’80 Leon Jones ’80 1992 Bernita Taylor ’80 When I Die
Soloist: Michael D. YanceyIn Memoriam Year of Passing Remembrances Kenneth Reeves ’88 2012 Keith Reeves ’88 Marguerite Simpkins ’88 2013 Joan Cargill ’89 Hayley S. Thomas ’93 2004 Alisa Giardinelli Renee Gaddie ’93 1990 Vaneese Thomas ’74, H’14 Sheila Gonzales 2024 Avril Somerville ’93 Brenda Jones 2021 Keisha Jones Capel Tamika Jones 2021 Keisha Jones Capel Nothing Can Turn Me Around
Soloist: Vaneese Thomas ’74, H’14Choir Associates in Memoriam
Ernest Davis Jr.
Prior Choir Director and AccompanistWayne Pedzwater
BassistAnn Geer
Honorary MemberBenediction
Freeman Palmer ’79Director’s Note
“When we were students, the choir was our cultural, spiritual, and educational refuge,” says Vaneese Thomas ’74, H’14. “We needed each other for everything, so the concept that we’d still be singing together is not so far-fetched. There’s also the need to mentor students as we were mentored. We’re committed to that.”
