A Holiday Carol in Six Languages

LIA Students and Teachers Singing Silent Night in their Own Languages SimultaneouslyIt could have been held at the United Nations on the eastside of Manhattan.

But it wasn’t.

It actually happened in the sanctuary of the Hitchcock Presbyterian Church on Greenacres Avenue in Scarsdale. During the singing of the classical Silent Night Christmas Carol at the church’s Living in America (LIA) 2024 Christmas event last Thursday morning, December 19, the students and the teachers sang in their native tongues during the second time around after all had sung the first verse only in English.
Remarkable: All at the same time in English, Chinese, Farsi, Japanese, Spanish, and Russian. Some exciting sight to behold and hear.

Confusing, no.

Spectacular? Unusual? Amazing? Only in America?

LIA Students Accompanying O Little Town of Bethlehem on the Handchimes.
For sure, yes, all of the above, and certainly something to write home about to the students’ relatives in their home countries.
LIA at Hitchcock is indeed one of the best-kept secrets in Scarsdale. It has been highly successful for more than 49 years, filing a bunch of rooms at the church on Thursday mornings for very professional give-and-take classes during the school year.

According to Church Member Diane Gismond, the LIA lead coordinator at Hitchcock, “Many of the students describe Thursday mornings as the highlight of their week and are extremely sad to leave us when they move back to their home countries.” Gismond also is one of the 13 volunteer teachers in the program.

Students Singing Gift Wrapped.
Hitchcock offers LIA as a courteous and warm place for the students to learn about American culture, make friends, and study English as a second language. There are currently 80 students from China, Colombia, Georgia, Iran, Japan, Peru, Russia, Spain and Taiwan. Fifty-six percent of those students have attended the program for at least two program years and several for many more.

Watching the classes in action and viewing the smiles all around, it is obvious that there’s no question LIA is a win-win for everybody.

Photos by Diane Gismond.