Teens lead Bobcats anthem

The chance to sing at a professional sporting event is a lifelong dream for many performers.

And for about 40 local middle schoolers, a chance to live their dreams came early.

Eighth-grade members of Julie Covach’s chorus classes at McDougle Middle School performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” before the Charlotte Bobcats game against the New York Knicks in Charlotte on Saturday.

Chorus member Nicole Graham said performing at the game was a great experience.

“It went very well,” she said. “It was something I’ll always remember.”

The group was chosen to perform as part of the National Anthem Project, a national campaign to spark youth interest in American patriotic traditions.

Covach said that when she received a call in September asking if one of her choral groups would like to perform, the answer was easy.

“How can I not do this?” she asked. “It’s too cool.”

Covach said she asked her eighth-grade students to perform because of their maturity.

“They’re really a singularly nice bunch of kids,” she said Friday before the game. “I’m really proud to be taking them on this trip.”

The McDougle group was originally one of three groups asked to perform, but the two other groups ultimately chose not to come.

Chorus member Abby Lehman said she felt honored to be part of one of the groups asked to sing.

“There were probably a lot of choruses looked at to do this,” she said. “It’s a big game, so it’s cool to be able to sing there.”

Some students said the prospect of being the only group to sing for such a large crowd was nerve-racking. The crowd reached 17,615 for Saturday’s game.

“It’s pretty cool to be able to sing there because I’ve always been a big NBA fan,” chorus member Evan Lewis said Friday. “But once we step on the court, I know I’ll be pretty nervous.”

Other students seemed thrilled with the opportunity.

“I don’t know if there will ever be another chance to do something like this,” Graham said. “It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing.”

Covach said students held a variety of fund-raisers — including selling pizza discount cards, holding bake sales, caroling at local grocery stores for donations and planning a Mardi Gras-themed school dance — in order to cover expenses.

The students also organized a singing Valentine project in which classmates could pay them to sing love songs to other students.

The students’ fund-raising efforts met their $5,000 goal.

Covach said her students’ eagerness to participate in those events showed their determination to making the trip possible.

“It may not seem hard, but looking another person in the eye and singing those songs is difficult when you’re 13,” she said. “These kids were really committed to making it to Charlotte.”

Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.