How are you all doing today after such an amazing event this week-end?
For those of you who were in attendance, is it Cloud 9 or The OMG GALA ? The entire Gala experience was beyond words.
For those of you who experienced the Gala through the wonderful reports and “red messages”, I am sure you are thanking your friends for trying to use words to help you experience the event in a different way.
I am still on my way home and my brain is still working on over-time as I try to recall every little thing that made my smile bigger and bigger. There is so much to say, but today…just a few random thoughts…
I loved…
1. Traveling again with my dear friends and sharing a room, our thoughts and our friendship.
2. Meeting and sharing hugs with internet friends. No one is ever alone at a Clay Aiken event.
3. Seeing so many volunteers that put in hours to make the event run smoothly.
4. Seeing the excitement from the entire staff of the National Inclusion Project. Their enthusiasm is contagious!
5. The bus tour of the Raleigh area. It was loads of fun. A big thank you to Lori Finney for putting this together.
6. Seeing the charming Lynda Loveland again. She has been such a great friend to the Project and to Clay.
7. The presentation on Sunday morning by Aron Hall. He had us all on our feet, learning about inclusion by participating both mentally and physically.
8. Seeing the smile on Kristys face as she greeted all of us. She makes a person feel welcome.
9. Diane Bubel, Jerry Aiken, and Faye Parker…even after the many hours of preparing for the event, they were charming and friendly to all of us.
10. Ben Cohn…his talent is remarkable. His arrangements are always exciting and he always seems to put a new twist to the songs.
11. Learning about the outstanding accomplishments of Chris Burke, Kevin Connolly, and Walgreens. You all give us hope!
12. Quiana Parler…Wow..this girl can sing. Please come back to another Gala!
13. Clay Aiken…Thank you for being who you are! You put on the perfect concert for your fans. Each song selection seemed to be picked with care and you seemed to sing from your heart. And look at what a huge difference you have made in the lives of so many people. Your work with The National Inclusion Project has changed the world and kids everywhere will feel your love and commitment.
Well…my few comments seemed to grow. Can you tell I am still excited about the Gala?
Safe travels to all. I hope we can share our thoughts together soon. 2012 is going to be a fabulous year to be a Clay Aiken Fan!
Musicfan – you are so right – there are no words to express the joy and excitement of this whole
Gala from beginning to end!! Hearing and seeing all of the Honorees was wonderful and
inspirational and really hit home. Then there was Clay, Quiana, and Band – WOW!!!! Powerful,
inspirational, exciting beyond words once more!!! It's going to take a long time to get over this
experience!!! I actually got to talk to both Faye and Dianne – another dream realized!!!
What a great list of "loves"….From all reports the entire week-end was wonderful. Thank you for sharing all your excitement with us and helping us keep up with what is happening.
yes…thank you Musicfan for your recap of this wonderful weekend. I wasn't able to attend, but reading all the wonderful reports made me feel like I was right there with you guys…..
Clay said he wanted to make sure he made a difference…well…Clay!!!!! Good Job!!!!!
I love this!!! You said it all however, I wasn't able to stay for the Sunday morning Round Table so please share more about that. I would have loved to be there for that. My flight left too early that morning. Next year…I'll definitely be staying until after that! LOL
Thanks Musicfan for sharing all these wonderful moments. Wouldn’t it be great if the Gala was available on a DVD. I’d certainly buy one to cherish forever.
It's been wonderful hearing all the wonderful stories about the Gala. I'm so happy for everyone who got to go and I'm so proud to be a Clay fan. 🙂
Thanks Musicfan and all the other fans who shared their experiences at the Gala. I wasn't able to be there…but, you made me feel like I was there. So glad the National Inclusion Project did so well..and had such a great attendance. Clay and the whole team at NIP are certainly making a difference..in a big way. So Proud of them.
Really enjoyed all your news. Thanks
I completely agree with your lists of "loves" about this weekend in Raleigh! It was just such an inspirational, fun, exciting event-really can't find the words to describe how special it was. I know many children will be helped from the proceeds from the Gala and many special memories will be made for them. I am so thankful I was able to go. Clay and the others from the NIP certainly hit a "home run" with this years event and I thank them for all their hard work.
I'm going to call this the OMG Gala too. That name is perfect for the amazing event that the gala was. I don't see how they will ever top this years gala, but I sure hope they try and succeed.