8/8/09 – For the third week in a row, we had a guest singer in our midst.  This time is was Cathy from Illinois.  Chris brought her over to meet us and introduced her as a gospel singer.  Was she ever!  She sang “Amazing Grace” in a beautiful soprano voice (I actually got chills).  You may wonder why so many of our guest singers choose to sing “Amazing Grace”.  No mystery really, it is a song that everyone knows and one that Russ and Lynn can easily provide accompaniment.

7/18/09 – One thing that’s great about the Mall is that you never know what to expect.  Our day started out REALLY slow.  There were a lot of people walking by, but everyone seemed to be in a hurry to get from point A to point B – no one was stopping to listen.  In the middle of the afternoon, however, everything changed.  That’s when Brenda showed up.  She had been standing and listening to us for a while, when Russ and Lynn started playing a jazz instrumental.  I sat down to take a break and she came over to introduce herself.  When she started asking questions about the band, I brought Jill over to talk to her.  Brenda is a graduate student at Washington Adventist University in Takoma Park, MD, where she is studying Counseling Psychology.  She is also a volunteer with the Community Living Center at Veterans Hospital.  She wanted to know if our band would be interested in playing for the residents at the hospital, to which we answered “Absolutely yes!”  She also let us know that she was a singer herself, and later Chris talked her into singing a solo.  Her rendition of “Amazing Grace” was wonderful!  At the conclusion there were several people with tears in their eyes (ok, I admit it, one of them was me).  She also helped us out with “Awesome God” at the end of the day.  All in all, it turned out to be an “awesome” day!

7/11/09 – We had a really fun day, due in large part to a special visitor.  My friend Charles came to sing with us and brought with him a lot of youthful enthusiasm!  He is a summer intern at my church who came all the way from Liberty, Missouri, to work with our youth and children.   I don’t think we’ve ever had quite such an exuberant rendition of “Jesus on the Main Line” (and we had the dancers to prove it!)  The crowds have been steadily picking up since our opening weekend.  Unlike the spring, however, when there were large groups of students in colorful matching shirts, we are seeing more families with small children.  And, as usual, we see the melting pot that is the Mall in Washington, D.C., where people from many different races, cultures and nationalities walk by every Saturday.  It is fertile ground on which to sow seeds and that is our mission!

6/27/09 – We are often blessed to have visiting pastors stop by.  They come from all over; from as far away as Korea or as near as Northern Virginia.  Two years ago we even had a Native American pastor from a reservation in Oklahoma.  Some have sung with us, some have taken up a mike to share their own personal testimonies, while others just sit and listen. On Saturday we were visited by a pastor of a Korean church from New York City.  What a delightful man!  When he spoke it was obvious to all that he loved the Lord and loved sharing the “Good News” with any who would stop to listen.  I admit it - after he spoke I could not stop smiling all afternoon! 

6/13/09 - We had a great day, even though the clouds looked a bit threatening.  The rain managed to hold off and we felt very secure under our new canopy.  We had visits from two of our regulars whom we hadn’t seen in a while.  One of them has been requesting the same song (“High Places”) for several years, so we just automatically play it now when we see him.  His enthusiasm must have been especially contagious this time, because we had quite a few people dancing to the music!  We love it when that happens!

5/30/09 - It was a quiet day; surprising for the weekend after Memorial Day.  Maybe it had something to do with the many graduations going on in the area.  We had an unpleasant surprise when we arrived – one of our big shade trees had been cut down!  When we started setting up at noon, there was only about a foot of shade on our side of the fence (yes, Folks, the fence is still up).  But by the time we started playing, there was enough shade for most of us to stand in.  There was also a cool breeze all afternoon, so it wasn’t too bad!  We talked briefly with a man who had seen us several years ago and was surprised and pleased that we are still around.  It is good to make new friends, but even better to see the old ones!

4/18/09 - Our opening weekend was terrific!  Not only was the weather perfect (if you don’t count the sunburns!), but there was a huge crowd of people.  I counted at least a half-dozen tour buses and we saw many groups of teenagers clad in matching shirts.  I think we sounded pretty good, too – well except for forgetting the lyrics to “Grace Like Rain”!  I guess that can be expected after a few months off.

The grassy area where we normally set up was fenced off.  Apparently the park authority thinks that “people are ruining the grass”.   COME ON – THIS IS A PARK!  Not to be deterred, however, people found a way in.  By the end of the day there were dozens of people sitting on the grass, throwing Frisbees and enjoying “THE PARK” the way it is meant to be enjoyed.

We made some new friends, including a young man who was studying to be a pastor.  He and his young son sat and listened to us play for most of the afternoon.  I didn’t catch where they were from, but hopefully we’ll see them again.

4/17/09 - I received this e-mail from Paul:

Iris,

Greetings!  Praise God!  I was just thinking about you all yesterday.  I have hooked up with two outreach ministries.  One is Christian Farmers out of Maryland and the other is local in Harrisonburg, VA  Communities4Christ.  Over the past year and a half we have been sharing God's Word at Festivals, Farm Shows, Car Shows, In front of several Wal Marts, etc. Many people have come to Christ as a result of HIS efforts and the Lord's use of us has been encouraging.  My colleague, Mike Barko, and I would love to visit with you on the Mall and share the good news within earshot of your fine musical group. Weather permitting, how does Sat.  August 22 sound?  Hope to get up sooner than that just to say hi and reconnect. I always remember with fondness our time together three years ago.  My best to Russ and the other members of the Troup.  God Bless you all!

Paul

8/3/08 - It was a beautiful day to be on the Mall, although it seemed a little quieter than usual.   There does seem to be a difference in the type of crowd that’s on the Mall on a Sunday afternoon vs. a Saturday.  Or maybe things are just starting to wind down for the summer.  We did have some dancers late in the day, in particular two little girls who appeared to be having the time of their lives.  They stayed for about an hour while their parents visited nearby.  Lynn made an impromptu change to the words in our trademark song “Down On The Mall”.  Instead of saying “we’re walking down on the Mall”, she sang “we’re dancing down on the Mall”!  It was a lot of fun.

7/27/08 - I was not there last Saturday so missed what sounded like a great day.  My thanks to Jill for the following report:

Saturday was wonderful, so many people sitting for the whole time we were singing.  We met people from China, Denmark, Lancaster, PA, and Leesburg, VA.  Many Christians stopped to say how refreshed and encouraged they were by having bold and unashamed Christians being on the Mall.  It was hot, but we had a cool breeze all day.  Jossalyn also joined in on “So Good To Me”.  We did have a lot of helpers.

7/19/08 - We had an amazing day!  To begin with, for such a hot day we were surprisingly comfortable in our shady spot.  There was a nice breeze all afternoon which kept us cool.  There were a number of memorable moments and I would like to share three of them with you.  The first one occurred when a park policeman stopped by to check our permit.  We were singing “Surely God is With Us” at the time.  He took his time looking over the paperwork.  We had finished the song before he climbed back on his motorcycle.  Then he said, “I have only one more thing to say – surely God is with us!”  Then he gave us a thumbs up and rode away.  Wow!

Later in the afternoon we met a pastor and his wife from Baltimore.  We learned that they also have a band and do similar outreach in and around the Baltimore area.  They came and introduced themselves after our last song and suggested that we get our bands together sometime.  We invited them to come back any time.  We love having other bands join us – it is always a festive occasion.  Last year when the Praise Team from the Church of Northern Virginia came down, we even had people dancing on the lawn with banners.  It was quite a sight!

The final amazing moment happened as we were packing up at the end of the day.  A young man (late teens maybe) approached us.  He was literally shaking and could barely talk.  He told Jill that he was part of a praise band from Southern Virginia and had heard us from across the street and wanted to meet us.  His name was Hanson.  As we prayed for Hanson, I felt it was the perfect end to a wonderful day on the Mall.

7/12/08 - We had a great day Saturday, but we really missed Jill!  She is our sound guru and makes sure we all sound great.  Without her we just sort of “set it and forget it”.  We must have sounded ok, though, judging by the positive reaction from the crowds passing by.  Every week there are one or two songs that really draw in the listeners.  Last week it was “Shout To The Lord”.  I have to admit that I even got chills listening to it!  There’s only one thing I know that can cause that kind of reaction on a 90+ degree day, so like one of our songs says, “surely God was with us”!

6/28/08 – It was a rather quiet Saturday with fewer passers-by than usual.  I’m sure that was due to the Folk Life Festival which was in full swing at the other end of the Mall.  We did have some very special visitors, however, beginning with our uncle and aunt (Russ’ and mine) from Pittsburgh along with our cousin, Eric, from McLean.  Later in the afternoon, Russ and Jill’s 2-year old granddaughter, Josie, picked up a mike and helped us sing “So Good To Me”.  Her favorite part?  “Na, Na, Na, Na!”  When the music ended, she was still singing!  Perhaps we’ll have a new lead singer in a few years.

6/21/08 – This Saturday was the first day of summer and we made it a day of celebration.  The weather was perfect – temperatures in the mid 80’s and nothing but blue skies.  There were a couple of memorable highlights beginning with a visit from our friend Sal from Tennessee.  He and a group of young adults were on their way back from a youth retreat in Ocean City.  Last year he blessed us by taking up a mike and giving his personal testimony.  We were thrilled to hear him speak again last Saturday.  Later in the afternoon, we had a visit from “Mr. Tambourine Man”.  He was an older gentlemen who just showed up carrying a boom box and a tambourine.  Before we knew it, he was dancing and playing his tambourine along with our music.  I heard him say to Russ, “If I’d known you needed me, I’d have been here sooner!”  He stayed for about four songs and then went on his way.  Maybe we’ll see him again some Saturday.

5/24/08 – Our 11^th season started off with a roar – the roar of Rolling Thunder that is.  Although we missed the big event, which was held on Sunday, the biker presence was definitely felt all afternoon.  The first thing I saw on Saturday was a row of about 15 motorcycles parked next to our spot.  Added to that was the occasional rumble of passing cyclists throughout the day.  We even had the occasional biker pass by and give us an enthusiastic thumbs-up to our music.  Awesome!

One of the highlights of the day came when a young woman joined us to sing a special request.  She was reluctant at first and had to be persuaded by her friends.  You could see her shyness gradually melt away, however, as she sang along with us.  When we got to the last verse, she sang it solo – in French! 

Overall, it was a great day.  We are looking forward to many more over the summer.  I hope you will come join us one day soon.

8/25/07 - Although it was hot, we had a nice breeze and lots of shade which made the temperature bearable.  What started out as a slow day with relatively few people walking by, turned into something spectacular.  I call it a “Forrest Gump” kind of day, because like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re going to get when you’re down on the Mall!  I’ve talked a lot about the international flavor of our ministry (the Chinese dancer, Korean singer, etc.).  Well that certainly was true last Saturday.  We were joined by a brother (a Native American pastor) and his sister from an Oklahoma reservation, who stopped to listen and ended up staying for about an hour.  Later, a man from India asked to use our microphone to offer his testimony about the love of Jesus.  He turned out to be a very dynamic speaker.  In fact, Jill kept turning the mike DOWN, but he still could be heard from a block away.  Talk about a supernatural experience!  Another speaker later in the day was a woman from the Salvation Army.  We learned from her testimony that she was originally from Australia.  So, from the Middle East to “Down Under”, the message that we have to share is indeed far reaching.

8/11/07 – (Tony’s account) A group of Chinese tourists stopped to listen and appeared to be very interested.  They were a group of seven and, it turned out, one family.  One of their members was a teen-age girl who was very attractive and a very good dancer.  We were playing an up tempo song and she began to dance.  Her dancing skills were excellent and her family was really enjoying and encouraging her.  She was so good that a crowd had gathered to watch and was enjoying both DownOnTheMall’s playing & singing and her wonderful dancing.  We went directly into another up tempo song to keep up the spirit of the moment going and she continued to dance and the crowd continued to grow.  I would estimate there were about 50 people gathered enjoying this spontaneous artistic display. 

One of the men in the family said something to her after the song was over and they both came over to talk with Tony.  It turned out than she was the only one who spoke English and she explained that this was her father, and the others were her mother and aunts & uncles.  The family was from northern China, near Mongolia.  She asked if her father could play Tony’s guitar and sing a Chinese folk song.  He strapped on the guitar, looked at Russ & Lynn and said “G”, which was the key he was playing in and nodded to them to “follow me”.  Music being the universal language, nothing more was needed to be said.  He began to play and sing a very beautiful song and, after a short while, Russ & Lynn both locked in to the melody and were accompanying him.  Tony picked up one of the spare mikes and offered a vocal harmony.  Shortly after the father began his song, the four of us were in sync. 

Even better, his daughter had switched her dancing from up tempo swing and rock & roll to a classical Chinese ballet type that was truly beautiful to watch.  And perfectly matched to the folk song that her father was playing & singing.  This really increased the crowd as people were fascinated to see this extemporaneous performance of Chinese folk song and dance happening On The Mall.  The crowd grew to well over 50 and there was generous applause when everyone finished.  It was quite an experience.  The family was very appreciative of being able to participate with us and we, in turn, were equally appreciative for this rare and spontaneous opportunity to mix the cultures.

This took place around 2:30pm and then they dispersed.  They returned around 4:00pm to see if they could help us break down and pack up!  Talk about a surprise.  The father, especially, was very eager to help and very interested in the instruments and the sound system, as would be true of a musician.  They were a big help and then we said our mutual goodbyes after a rare and very enjoyable experience.

8/3/07 – Last week we had a steady stream of people walking by all afternoon in spite of the heat.  The highlight of the afternoon for me came when a young Korean man with his little daughter stood beside me and wanted to sing along to “Shout To The Lord”.  So I held the microphone for him while he sang the chorus with us (he had a wonderful tenor voice).  In talking to him afterwards, I learned that he is a pastor in Korea.  Russ asked if he would like to say a few words to the passing crowd, but he declined stating that his English wasn’t that good.  I told him to go ahead and speak in Korean, because so many of our listeners are Korean!  Unfortunately, he still chose to pass.  Anyway, it’s wonderful to be able to meet our Christian brothers and sisters from such faraway places.

7/27/07 - We were blessed to have the praise team from the Church of Northern Virginia join us last Saturday.  They were wonderful!  We traded off doing sets and it turned out that each band was able to do two.  How nice it was to be an observer for a change.  For one thing, it gave me a chance to visit with other on-lookers, including a woman from Puerto Rico.  She was touring cities along the East Coast and happened to stop in Washington, D.C. just in time to hear our message.  She promised to tell the folks back home about our ministry and we hope to get an e-mail from her when she looks us up on the website. 

Speaking of the website, it was absolutely brilliant of Russ and Jill to come up with the idea for our banner.  It has generated a lot of interest as people stop to listen, or even just passing by.  And imagine if all those picture-takers see the website address in their photographs and check us out when they return home.  It’s all about planting seeds and that’s just what we’re doing!

6/25/07 - Last Saturday was a spectacular day on the Mall! The weather was perfect (temperature in the low 80’s and a nice breeze) and the Mall was very crowded. I have to admit, however, that things didn’t start out so great. As I was walking toward our spot at around 10:30 AM, I noticed a line of porta-potties that were set up directly in front of where we normally play! I thought to myself, “Oh, no! This isn’t what we are going to be facing all day, is it?” It turns out that I needn’t have worried, because GOD had another plan for us. Russ decided that we would back up about 20 feet and face the other direction (toward the Capitol). There is a foot path that cuts across the Mall from Madison Street to Independence and we set up right next to it. More than once during the afternoon, Jill remarked on how many more people seemed to be stopping and talking to us than we normally see in an afternoon facing the National Gallery of Art!

Two encounters in particular stand out in my mind. We were in the process of setting up, when a group of young men stopped by. They asked us what type of music we play and when Jill said “contemporary Christian music”, they told us that they also play that type of music. In addition to being a Christian band, two of them were pastors and they were in town to do a guest ministry at a local downtown church. They were very interested in our ministry, asking numerous questions. For instance, they wanted to know if in the last ten years we had seen anything miraculous. Jill related two incidents that were particularly memorable. I am thrilled to take this opportunity to pass these stories along.

The first story involved a man whose leg was twisted and crooked because it had been crushed in a train accident. He was only able to walk by leaning on the arm of his aide and using a cane. He asked that Russ and Jill play “Amazing Grace” stating that he knew he would be healed if they did so. About half way through the song, they heard screams from onlookers, who later reported having seen the man’s leg visibly straighten out! The man threw down his cane and started leaping around for joy. He stayed much of the afternoon, dancing on the sidewalk and praising GOD!

The second story was about two men who had stuttered most of their lives. They were in town for a stutterers’ convention. One of their assignments was to go out and talk to strangers. They asked if they could speak on the microphone, because, after all, you couldn’t get much bolder than that! When the first man started speaking, he stuttered the first few words and then suddenly was speaking clearly. His friend was a little shyer, but eventually was convinced to try and also spoke clearly. Once they began talking, they didn’t want to quit!

Our second memorable encounter last Saturday happened later in the afternoon. A young man from Tennessee asked if he could use our microphone to give his personal testimony. It was a very moving experience for me, because I heard much of my own story in what he had to say. Perhaps others were listening as well. It reminded me again of our purpose for being out there, namely “to answer the Great Commission and boldly and publicly preach the Gospel of Salvation through faith in Jesus Christ”.

6/15/07 - Update from last Saturday – we had a beautiful day and what a crowd!  There were thousands of Girl Scouts on the Mall for their sing-along.  It was easy to spot them because most of the groups were wearing matching shirts.  It is always a thrill to have young people stop by and listen to our songs and message.  Chris laid down his microphone for the day and was very busy talking to people that were interested in what we had to say.  Our new banner with our website address also caught a lot of attention.  It will be interesting to see if that translates into more hits.  According to Russ, we are currently getting around 5000 hits a month.  That in and of itself is very encouraging, but we are hoping for even more!

5/25/07 - I was out of town last weekend, so I had Tony make some notes for me.  Here is what he had to say:

Saturday DownOnTheMall was a beautiful day - pretty windy (thanks again for the tip on strong clips!) - but gorgeous.  There were a few people that nodded their approval as they walked by and one guy who came by and said our version of Shine (done earlier when he must have been listening) was "really good". 

The highlight (of sorts) of the day occured about 3:00p when a huge gaggle of teenagers - around 30+ of them with ages probably between 14 to 16 - came by en masse and were really surprised and very curious to see a live group in front of the Art Gallery.  They stopped to chat and I whispered to Russ "Jesus on the Main Line".  He cued it up and they exploded!  They were jumping up and down, clapping, rocking, swaying and having the best time.  They locked into the easy words and nearly all were singing with us.  It was quite the sight! And it was really fun to be standing only a few feet from them as they were really getting off on this song.  And then, I broke out my kazoo solo and the crowd went wild!  And I mean wild!  They were screaming and applauding and absolutely losing it.  Who knew my kazoo playing would have such an effect on teenagers?!  Am I missing my calling?!  Russ was laughing so hard he nearly dropped his guitar.  My solo lasted extra long because of the fun they were having with it and we finally ended the song after playing it at least 5x longer than it probably has been played before.  Jill asked them where they were from & it was Canada.  (Perhaps the kazoo is the national instrument of Canada like the sitar is for India and the concertina is for France?)

3/01/07 – The DownOnTheMall band is gearing up for the new season. I can hardly wait! We have added a couple of new band members and are working on several new songs. I think you will like our new sound, but of course you’ll still be able to hear all of your old favorites as well. What’s most important, however, is that our message is unchanged. What you will continue to hear, in our music and in the words we have to share, is that Jesus loves each one of us and there is a way to be saved! So I hope you will come join us on Saturdays beginning around the 5^th of May. Watch this space for more updates!

11/24/06 – Happy day after Thanksgiving! I am happy to report that Team DownOnTheMall.org made a fine showing in the 5^th Annual Trot for Hunger that was held yesterday morning in D.C. The race was sponsored by the local charity So Others Might Eat (S.O.M.E.) which has helped to feed and house the homeless of D.C. for many years.

The turnout for the race was impressive, despite the gloomy forecast. There were over 2000 runners registered and at least as many walkers. Our team of five consisted of one runner (Russ) and four walkers (Jill, Charlie, Gretchen, and me). I was the slow poke of the group, coming in last, but still managing to do the 5K in less than an hour. The other members of the group must have been worried, however, because they sent Russ back to look for me. He and I walked the last 1K together. I guess that means that he actually did a 7K!

The temperature at race time was in the upper 40’s (perfect for running, according to Russ) and the rain held off until Russ and I were just crossing the finish line. And the best news of all: our team of five raised $400 for the cause. Not too shabby!

Over the past summer, I sent out periodic updates to a growing list of e-mail recipients. My original idea was to keep people apprised of our upcoming Saturday schedule. As time went by, however, I started to add interesting tidbits about the previous weekend’s events. I’ve assembled a few of those updates below. I hope you enjoy a brief look at our past summer and that you will be encouraged to come join us next season.

9/15/06 - Last weekend was interesting, as there was a different mood on the Mall.  The tourists were gone to be replaced by anti-war protesters.  We saw various costumed figures, including Death (dressed head-to-toe in black and carrying a scythe) as well as George W., Dick, Condi, and Donald all decked out in prison garb.  The last four attracted a big crowd in front of the museum, which was good for us!  Unfortunately, we also had a persistent heckler who seemed intent on getting us to change our message and join in the protest.  It took a lot of persuasion on Russ’ part (as well as a good deal of patience) to finally get him to leave our spot.

8/18/06 - Last Saturday was a spectacular day!  We could not have asked for nicer weather.   I was reminded of every picture I’ve ever seen of the National Mall – the ones with a perfectly cloudless blue sky in the background.  Lucky for us – a friend showed up with a camera to help document the day.  As usual, we had an enthusiastic crowd of on-lookers and passers-by.

7/7/06 - Update from last Saturday:  you have probably noticed the letter that I attached and are curious about it.  We found it near our spot as we were loading up the van at the end of the day.  We think it was written by a young man who was sitting with a group of young people for most of the afternoon.  Jill said she had noticed that one young man was writing a lot.  I really can’t say what he was thinking – was he being serious in his letter, or just being funny as young people do sometimes.  One thing is certain, however, he heard our message and is now thinking about his own salvation!   I’ll let you be the judge.

6/19/06 - Last Saturday was our first 90+ day of the season, so we were all very tired by the end of the day!  The Mall was still crowded and as usual we met wonderful people from all over the US and beyond.  Remember the dancers of a week ago?  They were mostly Asians.  This past Saturday we had a man that looked Middle-Eastern who sat under a tree with his two children for most of the afternoon.  We really do have a great spot when it comes to reaching a culturally diverse group of people.

People often ask us if we represent a particular church.  Actually, we all attend different churches and not even the same denominations.  Our sole purpose for being down there is to tell people about Jesus’ love and sacrifice.  So we don’t talk about what church we attend and we don’t collect any money.  We do have a table set up with tracts and books to distribute, including Bibles, to those who are interested in reading more about Jesus.  We would love to have some volunteers to man the table, so that we can concentrate on spreading the word through our music.  The past few weeks our literature has remained in a box under the table.  So if you feel called – come on down, we’d love to have you help us out!  It’s a great experience.

6/16/06 - Update from last week:  it was cool and windy most of the afternoon, but there were a lot of people out and about on the Mall.  There was a lot of enthusiasm for our message and at one point we actually had people dancing in the street (well, on the sidewalk anyway)!  It was interesting to see people walking by who just couldn’t seem to control their own feet!  One of our songs goes “makes you want to dance, makes you want to sing . . .” and that’s the truth!  So come join us and you’ll see what I mean.

6/2/06 - Update from last Saturday:  after a late start due to threatening clouds, we had a great afternoon.  The sun came out, but the temperature was pleasant.  There were a lot of people on the Mall again.  The highlight of the afternoon was meeting “Brother Reggie”.  We had noticed him sitting on the bench across from us during the last hour of our set.  You could tell he was really getting into the spirit of the music!   After loading up the van, we went over to talk to him.  He described himself as “the handshake minister”, telling us that he didn’t have a formal church but rather went where the Holy Spirit led him, i.e. missions, street corners, etc.  On Saturday, he was led to us.  He prayed for each of us in turn, and then Russ prayed for him.  It was truly a moving experience.  Hopefully we will see more of Brother Reggie as the season progresses.

5/12/06 - Just a quick update – our opening day was great.  We had a beautiful day, although a bit windy, and there were a lot of people on the Mall.  We saw a lot of groups of young people from out of state and talked to a visitor from the UK who was just winding up a tour of the East Coast.  It turns out he is from Bristol, which is where my son, Andy, will be heading in October.