The Tellico Village Singers turned two sold-out concerts into a $12,000 donation to volunteer first responders across the village … following their patriotic concert series at the beginning of July.
A SURGE OF TICKETS PLUS
The group sold 1,600 tickets in total — for one matinee and one evening performance — between July 1 and 2 in which all admission proceeds went to the local first responders and fire departments.
While a surge of ticket sales certainly got the ball rolling, donation boxes began to fill up as concert patrons left their seats and exited the Community Church at Tellico Village with their hearts touched and chords struck from the “event” of a performance put on by conductor Dennis Loy and his 100-strong singers.
For such a specific theme, the group hits a number of different musical modes throughout the performance as well. Split between Americana classics and traditional patriotic music, there’s usually a tune for everyone to enjoy throughout this setlist.
WHERE’S THE KLEENEX?
And, in typical Independence Day fashion, a medley of the five branch songs of the military was performed with veterans and their family members rising to the occasion when their song was sung.
Loy said it was an emotional moment, the Church filled with Villagers who had previously served in the U.S. armed forces.
“I had one person mention to me that we could make a little (more) money if we sold small packets of Kleenex on the way in,” Loy said. “Because there were so many people in tears, but they were tears of pride.
“It really adds a lot of significance to what we’re doing.”
The Singers pride themselves on their visual component of the performance as much as they audial, Vice President Jan Sampson said. …
As attendees started to file in, a video compiled by Sampson of more than 150 interviews with various service men and women could be seen and heard on the display screens at each end of the stage. Not only were various Villagers included, but members of the Singers themselves as well as their family members.
Another member of the Singers also crafted a presentation, along with his wife, to signal the importance of our nation’s constitution as a sort of prelude to the main event. The nine-minute speech came in at exactly 1337 words, the same word count as the original draft of that historic document that solidified the United States as an outlier and a new beacon of prosperity on the world stage 250 years ago.
AEDS THROUGHOUT THE VILLAGE
And all of that time in rehearsals, drafting speeches and splicing together interview clips wasn’t just for a show of talent.
The donations garnered through the price of admission and beyond are now being employed through the use of AED’s for volunteer fire departments throughout Tellico Village. Loy said that upon proposing that the donation money be used for these devices, the men and women of Kahite’s first responder unit had just returned from saving a life with one of these AED’s to thank.
The Singers have a rotating list of charities that have received donations over the years. The group has also supplied funds to Habitat for Humanity and Smoky Mountain Service Dogs before focusing on the Special Operations Warrior Foundation last year.
But the Singers acknowledged that these efforts weren’t completed alone — listing a number of different agencies as credited with the culmination of this successful event.
Loudon County Color Guard, Terry Weber from the WordPlayers, The Community Church at Tellico Village and their Minister of Music Rev. Dr. John Orr and, of course, the thousands of Villagers who came out to support their friends and neighbors that continue to fight for their independence were acknowledged.
The Singers are currently making headway on their next performance — slated for March 8 and 10, 2026. The group will be singing through “40 Years of the Grammys.”
Tickets will soon be available online through the group’s website, tellicovillagesingers.org. Any other information on the Singers can also be found on their website, and Loy says the crew is always accepting new auditions.
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that most of these proceeds went to Kahite EMR's. While Kahite did receive a portion of the funds, Tellico Village Fire Department was the main recipient.
