The Maine Balkan Choir will present a charity concert in Portland Sunday May 21st at 3 PM at the Greek Orthodox Church, 133 Pleasant street. The theme of the event is “Songs and Flowers from a Ukraine Garden,” Proceeds will be donated to Save The Children Ukraine fund. Bring your friends. Children are welcome. People will be asked to donate what they can afford, and nobody will be turned away at the door for lack of money.

The Maine Balkan Choir was formed in 1998, and has mostly focused on Bulgarian a capella singing. Like everyone else in Maine, the Choir has been saddened by the invasion of Ukraine, so in January we decided to learn a program of Ukrainian tunes. We set up three subgroups rehearsing around the state, with a total of fifty members. Our Choir includes Ukrainians as well as Ukrainian-Americans, and many Mainers who felt the need to do something. We are sending the message that Ukraine does not stand alone. For the concert we will be accompanied by members of the Huddled Masses Orchestra. The tunes are crowdpleasers from the vast repertoire of folk songs, including a lullaby.

The Choir is donating proceeds of this event to Save The Children Ukraine project. This is an international NGO that focuses on medical care and nutrition to meet the basic needs of the most vulnerable population. For that reason, there is no “admission fee.” Attendees can donate as much as they wish; nobody will be turned away.