06/17/2026
Dear friends,
Of course I want to write to remind you of the Holland Chorale concert coming up this Saturday night at the Holland Armory. We call it our Summer Sing and I think you will really enjoy the concert. It’s free, but of course we urge you to sign up for free tickets and while doing that please make a donation so our work of bringing excellent choral music to our community can continue. The Chorale sings, not for money or fame, but to enrich our common cultural experience in our community and to bring beauty, joy, and hope to our world.
But today I want to point out a somewhat hidden aspect about this concert and a big part of what makes our local community great. When you come to the Armory for our Chorale concert, you might also view some historical signage from the days of Holland past - due to the fact that a very unusual collection gathered by Art Tolsma is being transferred from his current place of business to the Holland Museum (https://www.fox17online.com/news/local-news/holland-zeeland/holland-roofer-donates-massive-artifact-collection-to-preserve-local-history). Art, besides being a roofing contractor, is a collector of signage and historical memorabilia. Why did he do this? Besides the typical urge to collect and remember the past, I believe that Art has a deep love for this town and community. Below are a couple of pictures I took at an event he held this past winter to spotlight local non-profit groups.
I have lived here for 33 years and gotten acquainted with Art through his children attending the school where I was principal. Art’s long flowing hair, usually in a ponytail, works well for not only for his many years of work as a local town crier, but makes a statement that he is his own person and is comfortable in his own skin. If you have met Art you can see that his gentleness and kindness is evident to all. I deeply admire how he seeks the flourishing and welfare of the community. A recent example of his large heart was his stopping by Maple Avenue Ministries to give an appraisal of the condition of their clubhouse roof and then sending over a worker for an entire morning to make needed repairs to the roof - donating time for the good of the community.
Art, through TNT Roofing, is also a sponsor of our Summer Sing concert - making it possible for our entire community to share in the joy of music. Art is leaving a legacy in several ways for the Holland community and blessing others in the process. His daughter, Nola, has taken up that mantle of service and love for our community as she has served admirably as our Chorale President this past year. It is people like Art who make this community a great place to live. Now you know a bit of the rest of the story.
Please come and join us this Saturday! You can reserve tickets here: https://app.arts-people.com/?show=289174.
Thanks,
Dan Beerens
