A cappella shows are not a foreign concept on Elon University’s campus. Each of the five groups has concerts and small shows every semester, but junior Nick Cook, the president of Vital Signs, and the rest of the group are doing something a little different. Their next show will benefit the Make-a-Wish Foundation.
“We always thought about doing a benefit concert,” Cook said. “We have a voice on this campus, literally, and we want to make a positive difference. We want to do something for somebody else, instead of [making money to put] towards our own projects.”
Choosing Make-A-Wish of Central and Western North Carolina was a decision that had a direct connection to Vital Signs. Nick’s younger sister, Bella, has been fighting leukemia for two years. She is a Make-A-Wish child – the organization sent her and the rest of Nick’s family to Disney World this past summer. Seeing first hand the good the organization does, Cook said he felt motivated to give back to them.
“I have so much love and respect for this organization,” Cook said. “It is powerful what they do. We could have done a canned food drive or a book drive, but a concert has never been done before. We wanted something that could continue.”
Sophomore Mary Asimos, Vital Sign’s vice president and musical director, said putting together the benefit concert has varied from the typical concert experience because it’s not just about one group, but nine groups working towards one cause.
Cook’s first order of business was reaching out to Elon’s four other a cappella groups, Rip_Chord, Twisted Measure, Sweet Signatures and Smooth Progressions, to see if they were interested in joining the lineup. The groups were enthusiastic to comply with Cook’s request.
Junior Wiley Marsteller, a member of Rip_Chord, was excited for the opportunity to help a good cause and collaborate with his fellow groups.
“We love getting the opportunity to make a difference with our performances, and we hope that our presence at the Make-A-Wish foundation event will help to raise money towards a fantastic cause,” Marsteller said. “This event also gives Rip_Chord the chance to work together with other a cappella groups toward a common purpose, a trend we should incorporate more frequently into our schedules.”
Senior Katie Middleton, president of Twisted Measure, echoed Marsteller’s sentiment, adding that it was an opportunity to show support for a member of the a cappella community.
“We decided to participate in this concert because of the wonderful cause and the chance to support our fellow co-ed a cappella group, Vital Signs, and their inspiring organizer, Nick Cook,” Middleton said. “Having events such as these on Elon’s campus allows us to put our talent toward helpful causes and experience a combination of fun and philanthropy for such a relevant and famous foundation.”
Besides Elon’s a cappella groups, there are four other groups from other schools performing. Cook and his coordinator’s assistant, junior Bethany Coats, are both North Carolina natives. They used their connections at other schools to fill the concert’s roster.
The guest groups that will be performing are the Sea Belles of University of North Carolina at Wilmington, the Enharmonix and the VoiceMale from Appalachian State University, and the Ladies in Red from North Carolina State University. Cook said they sought out a mix of groups so there would be equal representations of male, female and co-ed groups.
“Each of our groups has its own fan base,” Cook said. “There’s a greater appeal with different groups, because the audience knows it’s supporting Make-a-Wish and also seeing nine a capella groups on one night.”
Vital Signs is in the process of finalizing schedules, publicity materials and song lists for this upcoming show. More than anything, they are ready to debut what they hope is a long-running event the entire Elon community can enjoy.
“Benefit concerts are some of my favorite events to attend,” Asimos said. “Not only do you get to see an amazing show but you leave knowing that it was all for such a great cause.”
Vital Signs will be selling tickets throughout the week for $5. The concert will be at 7:30 p.m., Feb. 15 in Whitley Auditorium.