Special guest soloist Travis Graven returns to sing
Travis Graven, a 1997 graduate of East Greene High School, heads the line-up of choirs, duets, another soloist and a poet at this Sunday’s 4 pm community concert during the Nativity Festival being held that afternoon at the First United Methodist Church in Jefferson.
Graven was a two-time All-State Chorus member in high school, won a voice scholarship to Wartburg College in Waverly, and sang with Wartburg’s Castle Singers jazz choir that performed in Australia, along the East Coast of the U.S. and all over the Midwest.
A professional journalist, he worked four years as a reporter at KCCI-TV in Des Moines, then eight years with the Des Moines Register as a multi-media editor, earning a regional Emmy Award for his work there. He is now a producer at Iowa Public Television, working on the “Iowa Press” and “Iowa Outdoors” shows, as well as the broadcasts of the state championships of Iowa high school girls sports. He is also teaching a multimedia journalism class at Simpson College in Indianola.
“Unfortunately, I don’t sing nearly as much anymore as I should, or would like to,” said Graven, a native of Rippey.
But he amazed the crowd when he sang two years ago this month at the funeral of his high school vocal music teacher Carson Griffith, and agreed to return for another performance sometime later. He also occasionally fills in on piano or organ for services at the church where he grew up, First Presbyterian in Grand Junction. He said he sharpened his keyboard skills in 13 years of piano lessons from Monica McGregor in Jefferson.
Graven will sing twice during the concert, accompanied by Keri Brooker of Jefferson. Plans are that he will close the show with “O Holy Night.”
Other performers in the concert include sisters Maureen Borkowski and Angie Pedersen in a duet; the “Joyful Noise” women’s choir from the First Presbyterian Church of Jefferson; the Central Christian Church adult choir; the “Ordinary Cowboys” duet of Curt Nelson and Dave Harding; poet Tori Riley reading an original poem written for the Nativity Festival; soloist David Petersen, a Greene County High School junior, and the host Chancel Choir of the First United Methodist Church.
Harry Ahrenholtz, president of the board of the Habitat for Humanity of Greene & Boone Counties, will serve as concert emcee.
The third annual Nativity Festival begins at 3 pm Sunday when a display of dozens of locally-owned nativity sets will be open for public viewing. The concert is at 4 pm, followed at 5:15 pm by a soup supper and an auction of pies from Greene County’s best bakers. That’s also when the highest bid will be accepted in a week-long silent auction that has been held for a specially-made, large nativity set from “Sticks,” the art & furniture company in Des Moines. Bidding topped $1,000 on the first day the 15-piece set was on display.
All proceeds go to support the home-building and refurbishing work in Greene County by Habitat for Humanity volunteers. This Nativity Festival is the organization’s one fundraiser of the year.
