Gospel concert raises $700 for people with disabilities

Praising the Lord, singing, stomping feet and clapping hands were the order of the evening during the inaugural Gospel Explosion event at Greater Gordon Chapel AME Church.

The event raised about $700 for the Walk a Mile in My Shoes ministry, which focuses on awareness and help for people with disabilities. The money will be used for building handicap-accessible ramps for people in the community who need them.

Church member Steve Strickland summed it up the feeling during the event when he said, “Somebody is going to catch fire.”

“You don’t know who it is going to be or when it is going to happen, but when somebody starts to catch fire, it just spreads to everybody,” he said. “I knew this was going to be a good time. It is just crazy good, it is organic.”

Roberta Bryan, founder of the ministry, said the Gospel Explosion event was “awesome.”

“If it were any better, I don’t know if I could have standed it myself,” Bryan said. “All the performers were willing workers for the Lord and they gave it all they had.”

Melvin Jefferson, one of the main organizers for the event, said the gospel groups and individuals were “phenomenal.”

“I was so humbled in their obedience to be able to give their gifts to praise the Lord,” he said. “We were blessed with the spirit of the Lord.”

Gospel groups that performed were Morning Doves, Calvery Adult Choir, Lifted Voices, Greater Gordon’s Harmonies of Praise, Innerfaith Community Choir, Moody Singers of Murrells Inlet and the Tabernacle House of Prayer Singers. Individual singers were Jacque Williams, Naz Rutledge and Shauna Woodberry. The Rev. Aundry N. Evans Sr., pastor of the church presided and Ron Daise, Gullah singer, songwriter and storyteller, was the emcee for the event.

Daise read from the “Gullah Bible” during the event. A translation of the New Testament in the Gullah language, the bible is a mix between English and African dialects, which took a team he was part of about 30 years to complete. He said the event went extremely well.

“Based on the response from the audience, it seemed like everyone was pleased with the evening,” he said. “It was billed as a gospel explosion and I think it lived up to its name.”

Evans agreed, adding that this event was an opportunity to many people together at one time.

“It was a good way to bring awareness of disabilities and how we are trying to help those who are not financially able to build ramps,” Evans said.

He urges anyone who has disabilities and needs a ramp to call the church at 843-651-2212.

This Gospel Explosion event was a prelude to the annual Walk a Mile in My Shoes festival set for Saturday, Sept. 23, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Waccamaw Baseball Park behind Tidelands Waccamaw Community Hospital in Murrells Inlet. That event features vendors, food, gospel performances and activities that give people an idea about the struggles of people with disabilities, including wheel chair races, sack races, blindfold games and more.

Jefferson said he would like to get more people involved with the Walk Mile in My Shoes ministry.

“We are doing good things now, but we are on the cusp of doing great things,” Jefferson said. “We are going to try to do another Gospel Explosion event in January and we are looking forward to it.”