Sixty-one singers and sponsors represented Great Bend High School’s choirs, school and city and enjoyed lifetime memories during a trip to Washington, D.C., over Spring Break.

GBHS Director of Choral Activities Susan Stambaugh said the students had several scheduled and impromptu performances. At the airports, Southwest Airlines recorded them and asked for permission to share video on its web pages. Actor Kelsey Grammer happened to see them at the Kennedy Center and invited the students to sing for him.

“We sang a chorus of ‘God Bless the USA’ and his warm comments and friendly demeanor with the students was so appreciated,” Stambaugh said. “He shared his fondness for Kansas and how he has many Wichita connections.”

The choir also sang in the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, at a concert at the Lincoln Memorial and at Bethesda Presbyterian Church, toured all of the monuments, memorials, Mount Vernon, the Smithsonian museums, the National Archives, the Holocaust Museum, the National Cathedral, Arlington Cemetery and laying of the Wreath; and enjoyed a riverboat cruise with formal dinner and DJ’d dance to celebrate their successful tour.

“Their sponsors had a phenomenal impact on the success of this trip, and of course, the trip would not have been possible without the community and family financial support through the many fundraisers and rent-a-student opportunities,” Stambaugh said.

Choir students make this trip every third year, with band and orchestra students scheduling major trips on other years. Financial support comes from families and the community. The school does not pay for trip expenses, although it does support their ability to travel and offers support in other ways.

“We feel that we were a blessed group throughout the journey,” Stambaugh said. She also expressed thanks “for Southwest Airline’s wonderful care for our group’s check-in process and more; for Christi Penka who books our airline tickets; to Cori Miller who printed our shirts; to news coverage and on and on. We did not experience the delays, nor hassles that are common now in travel and overall, you could not have asked for a better experience. I am very grateful!”