You could feel the magic in the air as the families and guests arrived in the MPR at JFS for the annual Winter Festival and the show did not disappoint.  It was a potpourri of talent that seems to just get more impressive every year.  Each grade performed a song or dance that showed the hours of practice they put in.  From the kinders with their adorable rendition of the Hokey Pokey  through sixth grade and all the grades in between, it was non-stop entertainment.  The fifth and sixth graders stole the show with their Hip Hop version of Santa Claus song.   The slide show that showed some of the incognito moments of the performers and parent volunteers was the perfect transition into the impressive finale, Believe, sung by all the children together.
 
This show is a culmination of hundreds of hours of volunteer work and there are many people to thank - we had parents whose children were not even in the show helping out - moms and dads alike.   Without these people it wouldn't have come together so well so a special thanks to:  Katie (kinder), Uyen (1st), David (stage coordination), Sangita (1st), Kajal (1st),  Devashree (2nd), Lily (3rd), Teresa (4th), Gina (5th and 6th  and co-chair and program), Cecille (co-chair), Sulaxa (sound), Priya, Akila, Mohan, Juliana (refreshments), and all the other people that touched the show.   And, of course, our super-human chair of the event who single-handedly brought this show back from the brink of being cancelled - Vicky Pascual!!  She ran an amazing show, truly loves the children and seeing them perform, and was a natural MC for the evening.  When we told her we were writing an article she said "please relay my heartfelt appreciation for all the wonderful volunteers, the participants and, of course, their families.  Without them, my ideas won't go anywhere, but my head."