A video by
the Our Lady of Mercy school choir is getting thousands of views and has earned
the school a visit from B.C.’s Lieutenant Governor.
The video, seen more than 3,300 times on YouTube, won Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon’s Sing me a Song contest after the choir wrote an original song about Canada in honour of the country’s 150th birthday.
“I felt really proud of it because we put a lot of effort into it and our work paid off,” said Zehra, a Grade 5 student. “It felt really good.”
The video begins with students saying “Canada, this is my home,” in Portuguese, Mandarin, Italian, Hindi, and English. Then, they sing, “It’s a land of hope, a land of peace, it’s a place where people can be free. I proudly call this land my own. O Canada, this is my home.”
The children wrote the lyrics of the song, titled Home, with the help of their choir directors, who composed the accompaniment on piano.
Our Lady of Mercy beat all other contestants in the under 18 category and received a $1,000 prize. They also got a chance to serenade Guichon in person when she visited the school to congratulate the students May 17.
“I felt really happy she was coming here to see us because she’s a really important person,” said Charisse, a choir student in Grade 3. “It made the whole school happy.”
Guichon’s website states that song submissions, which came from all over B.C., were judged based on “musicality, spirit, and originality.”
“The whole choir felt a sense of pride,” said Anna Boots, one of the choir’s directors. “We won in the 12-18 category even though most of the kids in our choir are under 11 years old.”
A choir from Eric Langton Elementary in Maple Ridge won in the under 11 category, while choirs from Qualicum Beach and Ladysmith won in the “open” and the “enthusiasm and spirit” categories, respectively.
Boots said the $1,000 award will support Our Lady of Mercy’s music and drama programs with the purchase of items such as new instruments or microphones.
“I felt that we really deserved it,” said a cheerful Charisse. “I feel happy that we got $1,000. We’ll use it for music and drama. I think that’s a good thing.”
The video can be found on YouTube by searching for Our Lady of Mercy and Sing Me A Song BC.
