To mark the tenth anniversary of 9/11, the Lake Zurich choir is hosting a concert to honor all of the people affected by the events of September 11, 2001.

            “I hope the concert is a way to bring the community together because there’s just something that music can do to bring people together that sometimes people on their own can’t do,” Nick Juknelis, director of vocal music, said.

Besides honoring those who died on 9/11, Juknelis hopes the concert will be a learning experience for students.

“The thing I realized is that a lot of the students were so young then that they know what happened but they don’t really grasp the magnitude of it, so I think there’s an educational part for the students as well,” Juknelis said.

Kayla Stavnes, junior and Concert Choir member, agrees the concert will affect not only the audience but the students as well.

            “I think the 9/11 concert will emotionally touch us as students who are singing the patriotic songs as well as the audience because it was such a traumatic event and it changed the U.S. in many ways,” Stavnes said.

The concert, organized by Juknelis, will be in the PAC and two shows will be held at 1pm and 3:30pm on Sunday, September 11. The concert will not only feature all five Lake Zurich choirs, but also Jan Horvath, a Broadway singer who has starred in The Phantom of the Opera, The Threepenny Opera, Sweet Charity, and Oliver.

            “I think having a Broadway singer is going to be very inspirational,” Dan Euker, sophomore and Concert Choir member, said. “I really like Broadway and it really inspires me, so having someone coming to sing from there is going to be a really cool experience.”

            In addition to Horvath singing at the concert, Juknelis is also having speakers share their experiences from September 11. The three speakers are Juknelis, Horvath, and Kim Kolze, principal.

            There is no charge for admission, but donations will be taken for the Michael Lynch Memorial Foundation, a foundation which provides educational scholarships for students who lost parents on 9/11.

            According to the foundation’s website, since 2002 The Micheal Lynch Memorial Foundation has given over 75 scholarships totaling over $1,600,000. The foundation was started in memory of Micheal Lynch, a firefighter who died in The South Tower when it collapsed.

According to Euker, the importance of the concert goes beyond the music.

            “I feel like this concert is important to so many people,” Euker said. “I think the concert will show people that they need to think more about 9/11 and how it impacted America and even impacted Lake Zurich, too.”