The opening ceremony for the 2014 New York World Camp was held at LTU Tiles Center. The participants of the camp as well as the citizens of New York filled the seats with high expectations.
The senate member of New York, Tony Avella and Philip Boyle, and more VIPs came to congratulate the World Camp and its opening. From the soldiers who participated in the Korean War to Michaelle C. Solage, a State Assemblywomen, and to Dr. Betty A. Rosa a Member of the Board of Regents in the New York State Education Department; many VIPs brightened the opening of the World Camp.
The VIPs, before the opening ceremony participated in the VIP reception and as a sign of gratitude for the work that IYF was doing passed on 3 manifesto of thankfulness, and heard the presentation about the IYF organization. During the opening ceremony one more manifesto was delivered so in total on that day 4 manifestos were received. Through the participation of many organization and their representatives one could check that co-operation of society from different regions towards the problem of youth.
The performance for the opening ceremony began with Patricia Kenny Dance Collection’s Reverence dance. Afterwards the sharp Taekwondo dance and the beautiful fan dance of the Masan Lincoln School students drew out great admiration from the crowd, and the heat of the performance was raised even higher through the newly created dance The World is Ours by the New York volunteers and a cultural dance of LA called Vida Life. And the heat of the performances reached its climax through the performance of the Gracias Choir.
As the sound of the Gracias Choir surrounded the auditorium the echoes and the reverberation in the hearts of the audience grew deeper. Every time the songs ended the audience responded with a standing ovation.
“I became a fan of soprano Alice(Hye-Mi Choi) through watching her on Youtube. I wanted to hear her singing in person so I flew all the way from Virginia to New York. It was really great. Although the other choir members sang well, for me Alice’s singing was the best. Tonight I will be sleeping in my friend’s house in New Jersey and will be returning tomorrow. I really want to see the Christmas Cantata which will be happening this week, but unfortunately because of work I have to return. But I am satisfied with having heard Alice’s songs in person!” – Ken
“Today, I am already participating in the fourth opening ceremony of the World Camp. The opening ceremony of the World Camp is always great whenever I attend. I think they improve by the day. I brought my friend along and it was very fun for both of us. I think it is a performance that the many youth should see at least once. What was my favorite performance..? It is really hard for me to pick one. All the performances were very touching!” – Sunita Matra, Ajay Batra (IVS TV Representative)
“It was an incredible show! Among the performances by the choir ‘New York New York’ and ‘Be Still My Soul’ were my favorite. It would be great if many other youths can see this performance. I believe that IYF is doing great things for the youth. Many youths now days live having lost the direction of their lives, it is impressive to see IYF suggest the right path. Pastor, as he was giving his message, spoke about opening and sharing the heart, and I believe one cannot despise the influence that one person’s heart can have on another person. I hope that the youth can learn about God through the IYF and learn also about faith. – Alice