FORT MYERS, Fla. (February 5, 2009) — The 2008/2009 Season of Praise Concert Series at The Village Church located in Shell Point Retirement Community continues with the God & Country Celebration featuring the Village Church Choir and special guest artist Bob Ralston, organist. This annual performance will be held in the Village Church auditorium on the Island of Shell Point on Sunday, February 15, at 6:15pm, and then again on Monday, February 16, at 7:15pm.
“The God & Country Celebration will feature popular and sacred music that commemorates America, the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave’,” says Randy Woods, Minister of Worship and Music for The Village Church. “With gratitude, this patriotic celebration will include a special honor to acknowledge the men and women who have served, or are serving, our country to protect and preserve our liberty.”
Bob Ralston is probably best known for his 44 years as pianist/organist/arranger with the Lawrence Welk Orchestra. The Welk TV Shows feature not only Bob Ralston’s fine piano and organ solos, but they frequently include his performances as a singer, dancer, and comedian. An alumnus of Illinois’ Wheaton College, Bob Ralston has been involved in Christian music all of his adult life. For 17 years, Bob assisted in producing and directing Birmingham, Alabama’s annual Festival of Sacred Music.
In 1989, Bob was featured as solo organist at the prestigious Hollywood Bowl Easter Sunrise Service, which is telecast worldwide each year. That performance resulted in Bob’s appointment as Musical Director for this internationally acclaimed Christian celebration—a position he held for 16 years. Every Sunday morning, except when he is on the road, Bob can be heard playing the 4-manual, 31-rank Wurlitzer pipe organ at Founder’s Church in Los Angeles, where he has been staff organist for the past 20 years.
Tickets are available for purchase for $10 each. To purchase tickets or receive additional information about the concert series, call (239) 454-2147 or visit http://www.shellpoint.org/villagechurch/events.htm.
The Village Church at Shell Point is a ministry of The Christian and Missionary Alliance and serves a congregation of more than 600. The Village Church is located near the entrance to The Island at Shell Point and seats 1,000 people. Shell Point Retirement Community is a continuing care retirement community located in Fort Myers just off Summerlin Road, two miles before the Sanibel causeway. Shell Point is a nationally recognized leader in the retirement industry.
