By By Adrienne McKenzie
Throughout the past couple of weeks I've had the opportunity to meet some very fun and interesting people.
On Sept. 2 I enjoyed First Assembly of God's homecoming celebration. I attended the night service at First Assembly and gospel singing group The Martins was the entertainment.
The homecoming service began last Sunday at 6:30 p.m., but I decided to be at the event an hour early to ensure good seats. My sister, Alyssa, is a Martins fanatic so she came from Brewton to hear them sing also. When I say fanatic, I really mean fanatic. Before the service, she wanted to view the different products The Martins brought with them to sell. As we were walking to the product table, we happened to see one of them, Jonathan Martin, and she nearly died from excitement.
I introduced Alyssa and myself to Jonathan and he was incredibly sweet and humble. He was a joy to meet.
We went back into the sanctuary to wait on the concert and the First Assembly choir was practicing. I was actually happy to sit and wait the hour for the concert because the choir was really excellent. I think there were approximately 20 choir members on stage yet it sounded like there were around 50!
When the concert began the First Assembly choir sang a few more beautiful songs. I enjoyed listening to them as much as I did The Martins.
Then, when The Martins came on I had chills from the moment they began singing until the concert was over. It was an amazing concert and I am glad The Martins took the time to come to Atmore and bless the hearts of so many people last weekend.
Last week I also had the opportunity to meet the new preacher at First Presbyterian Church, James Thorpe. I know he felt like he was playing the 20 questions game because I was shooting off questions left and right, but that's my job. He was a pleasure to meet also. He is an extremely friendly man and I hope he enjoys his time in Atmore and I hope Atmore residents are good to him.
Also, Monday I met with Bonnie Latino to discuss her new book 'Your Gift to Me.' She said she has been working on this book for 10 years now with her co-writer, Bob Vale.
Bonnie told me the plot of the book and I have to say that I am very interested in reading it. Also, she told me about the online competition she is in. The result, if she wins, is publication for the novel.
I encourage all Atmore residents to email her at BonLatino@aol.com for instructions on how to register at www.gather.com and vote for the first chapter of her book.
In the newspaper business, there is always something new. Every day I wake up and wonder what I'll be doing throughout the day because I never know. The surprise of each day is fun, but it's the people and events in Atmore that make it even better because I get to meet people such as James Thorpe, Bonnie Latino and even famous singing groups like The Martins!
Adrienne McKenzie is a staff reporter for The Atmore Advance. She can be reached at 368-2123 or via email at lifestyles@atmoreadvance.com