On a bright Saturday afternoon at the end of September, Zion Lutheran Church on Davis Road opened its doors to Fairbanks for a free concert. It had no tickets and no agenda beyond a simple one: good music, the true stories behind it, and a reason to hope.
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An afternoon about hope
Before the doors opened, Pastor Bobby Key, who travelled up from Southern California to host the afternoon, explained what it was all for.
How it came together
It began with Bill Sladen, one of Zion’s elders, who wanted to give the community an afternoon like this. He asked Josh Vigran, Zion’s music director, who would be a good fit. Josh had an answer close to home: his sister Becky, whom he has sung with all his life, and her husband Bobby. Becky and Bobby flew up with their two daughters, who spent the afternoon running around with their cousin.
The music ranged widely. There were songs written by the musicians on stage, contemporary Christian songs many people already knew, and hymns that have been sung for hundreds of years. In Becky’s words, all of them were “meant to stir up hope once again” and to carry one message: that Jesus loves you, that you are seen, and that you are loved.
Becky sang one song she wrote when she was sixteen, Pick Up the Faith. It has meant something different to her in each decade since.
Where hope met them
Between the songs came stories from two people in Zion’s own congregation: Liz, who leads the church’s Celebrate Recovery group, and Robert Heffle of Lutheran Indian Ministries. Each told where hope had met them. Pastor Bobby then drew the songs and stories together into a single message about where that hope comes from.
Thank you
Thank you to Zion Lutheran Church for opening its doors, to Bill Sladen for the idea, to Josh, Becky, Bobby and every musician who played, to Liz and Robert for their stories, and to everyone who came and brought a friend.