CANTON Back in 2009, when she found herself not working, Christine Allison found a passion that combined her lifelong dedication to music, with helping others.

Allison is founder and conductor of A Chorus for a Cause, a vocal group which raises money for locally-based nonprofits by way of live concert performances.

In 10 years, they have raised more than $100,000.

This month, the group will celebrate its anniversary with a pair of concerts, at 4 p.m. Sept. 28 at Community Christian Church at 210 N. Main St. in North Canton; and at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 29 at St. Stephen Martyr Lutheran Church at 4600 Fulton Drive NW in Jackson Township. Tickets are $15.

Allison said when her job as a church music director ended in 2009 after 30 years, she saw it as a chance to do something new. Her brother, David, encouraged her to organize a community chorus. She did, with the goal of recruiting 100 to 200 singers for a performance of "Sing for the Cure," which benefits the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

"I'd wanted to do it for 10 years," she said.

With the help of friends, Allison was able to secure 103 singers.

"Many of the women had had some sort of cancer, so it kind of resonated," she said, adding that the male singers also had family members or friends who experienced cancer.

Allison also was able to organize a 52-piece orchestra, with 51 of the musicians performing for free. St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in Plain Township donated space for rehearsals. McKinley High School donated Umstaddt Hall for the sold-out concert in September of 2009, which raised $12,000 for the Komen Foundation.

Following the benefit, Alison said a group of 80 singers asked her to keep the chorus going.

"That was amazing," she said. Of those original 80, 13 still remain. Members are from throughout Stark County, as well as Akron, Bolivar, Dalton, Brunswick and Cuyahoga Falls.

"Ten months after ACFAC performed our inaugural concert of 'Sing for the Cure,' we were invited to come sing that work at Carnegie Hall," Allison said. "I couldn’t believe it when I received the call. I thought it was a joke at first. We hadn’t even been together a year and to sing at Carnegie Hall?!"

No auditions

A graduate of the University of Mount Union, Allison worked as a church music director for more than 40 years. She still teaches private voice lessons.

Allison said about a third of A Chorus for a Cause members don't read music. Auditions are not required to join the group.

"It's worked out really well," she said. "I personally love directing a choir where they're not all 'auditioned' people. I prefer having a mix of trained and non-trained people. It all seems to meld together for a really nice sound."

Noting that they have performed with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, Allison said the chorus performs a variety of music, from classical to pop. Their anniversary concert will feature songs from each of the past 10 years, as voted on by the chorus members.

"Even though I'm a classically trained musician, I enjoy doing all types of music,"' she said

In 2011, the chorus' board of directors authorized Allison to add the Harmony Ringers, a semi-professional hand bell choir.

"I had been directing Bel VOCI for VOCI and they decided to do away with the bell choir. I hated seeing all those talented people not to have a more challenging place to ring, other than their churches," she said, "So we took on this group, which was amazing in itself because we were still a young non-profit, and have been gaining recognition on their own."

Over 10 years, the chorus has performed benefit concerts for 18 causes. They've already scheduled benefits through 2020, and into 2021. Second-generation chorus member Mark Kandel raised $8,000 for the Children's Dyslexia Center of Canton in honor of a family member who has dyslexia.

"I started with ACFAC in 2013 singing the Christmas concert that year, and have been singing with them ever since," Kandel said." My parents were singers at that time, and I attended one of the concerts to see them and was hooked immediately. We are not an auditioned choir, which definitely worked for me and my singing talents; but the most attractive thing I discovered was the kind, fun, and loving community that Chris and others have built into ACFAC. That is what really has held me there these past six years."

The chorus performs yearly Christmas concerts to raise money for their own expenses. This year's performances will be on Dec. 17 at Westbrook United Methodist, and Dec. 21 at St. Timothy's Episcopal Church in Massillon.

Friends and family

Mark Thewes, the longtime organist and director of music at Westbrook Park, has served as the chorus' accompanist from the beginning.

"I got involved because Christine and I had worked together for 25 years before the start of ACFAC," he said. "Our two church choirs did concerts every year. When she left the trenches of church work to start ACFACI wanted to be a part of it. I felt honored that she asked me to join the group at the very beginning."

Thewes describes Allison as a talented musician who can get the best out of her singers.

"Christine is a very caring person, as well as a dynamic choral conductor," Thewes said. "She has honed the choral sound of this group with her expertise to the sound we have today. When we listen to early recordings and then the recent ones, there's a noticeable difference for the good! She is well-loved by the group and myself."

Allison said the chorus has become like a family, noting that 45 members recently performed at the funeral service for one of their own.

"They help each other," she said.

Allison recalled another instance, when members visited a dying member so that he could sing "One Voice" with them one last time.

"I still get goosebumps telling that story," she said.

Allison credits support from the numerous friends she's made as result of the chorus, its board, and such people as the late Mary McManaway, who arranged for free rehearsal space in the North Canton Playhouse Youth Theater.

"Christine has become a very good friend of mine; something I think she strives for with most of the people she meets," Kandel said. "She wants ACFAC to be an inclusive, and accepting community of friends, not just another community choir. She sets that example every time we are together. I love that she sets the bar very high as far as our musicianship and precision. She demands excellence from us and usually gets it! She is a person making a difference in our world for the betterment of all of us in Stark County and beyond "

Asked what she likes best about A Chorus for Cause, Allison replied, "The best thing are the stories of what people in the chorus have done for each other. I'm constantly hearing those stories. It warms my heart. I started Chorus for a Cause to give away money. I started it from noting. To bring all these people together to generate a greater sum, that's something."

To learn more, visit their website at www.achorusforacause.org