Manito Musical Advocates

05/20/2026

Congratulations to Aleta! We are incredibly grateful for her dedication and passion, especially for her outstanding work with the Midwest Central and Forman Community Chorus musical productions. Her commitment and talent continue to make a lasting impact on our students, performers, and community!

To begin our Women’s Recognition Day winner announcement we will begin with our art award.

This year’s Art Award Winner:
Aleta Hoff

The Arts Award is given to a woman who makes a significant contribution in the
field of arts in our community. This could be through their artistic talent or
through teaching and influencing others in their artistic abilities.
This year’s Arts Award goes to Aleta Hoff.
Aleta is very involved in the school music scene. Aleta provides musical
accompaniment for solo and ensemble students in both Dunlap and Pekin
Community High Schools. She also provides accompaniment for several
schools’ musicals each year, including most recently Delavan’s Newsies,
Peoria’s Young Frankenstein, and Midwest Central’s Shrek the Musical. In
addition to providing accompaniment for school band’s solo and ensemble
contests and school musicals, Aleta also plays for the Lincoln K-8 children’s
chorus, and she plays organ, piano, and accordion for Bethel Lutheran Church
in Bartonville and St. Anne’s in Peoria. She is also a member of several social
bands in the area, such as the Mardi Gras Band, Caper Club, Pops Orchestra,
River Valley Big Band, and the Aristocrats.
Her nominator says, “Aleta is a class act. I met her while we were both
volunteering in our children’s primary school; she was in the Learning Center
laminating for teachers and I was reshelving books. She has never stopped
volunteering: from PTA, to classroom volunteering, to chaperoning band events,
and eventually using her musical talent to accompany the many musicians she
encountered.”
If you ask Aleta about her musical talent and how she uses it in her community,
she most enjoys the joy it brings to those who get to hear it. From nursing
home, to park concerts, to school musicals and competitions, she most enjoys
being able to encourage young musicians to play their best by being their
accompanist.
Aleta, because of your musical talent, your teaching and encouraging young
people in music, and the joy you bring in any kind of music you do, the YWCA is
proud to award you the Arts Award for 2026. Congratulations.

05/03/2026

Our board of directors may be a humble bunch who’d rather stay out of the spotlight—but a couple of shout outs are in order! Jordan spent many hours at rehearsals and three performances running sound for Forman Community Chorus’ production of “9 to 5,” while Matt did the same for Midwest Central Middle School’s “High School Musical Jr.,” handling both sound and lights. We’re incredibly lucky to have such passionate, dedicated people on our team!

05/02/2026

We are so proud of all the Midwest Central Middle School students who were part of the cast and crew of “High School Musical, Jr.”! Everyone from the main characters to the students who were working behind the scenes deserves a round of applause! We really enjoyed watching you grow into a team and have fun.

We’re looking forward to following all of your future endeavors. We’re sure you’re going to be successful in anything you do. We hope that future involves participating in the high school musicals and the Forman Community Chorus!

Congratulations on a job well done!!!

In case you missed the show, Brody Bernshausen has posted an excellent video and photos at the links below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljd2s1szT_8

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fphotos.app.goo.gl%2Fcd2oVfGCuwSiMees8%3Ffbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExN2p2eXhJSzJNUmxta3h2T3NydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR5sG3dFVm7SxbvpWhrWSZXCCxEtD_So1tl-8349jjkl2pPbLr3G7hfAz1j6XA_aem_BqBnH1dg4l1TXkOSB6K4ZA&h=AUB6wck8NLaPwqwNjIHy31pwE9G42m93UUcyo_gyuENGkg_txL7Sa1NeWeDTMbBgZWq3GhFLZyENCFNRCIX49BW-lvF8EkA5kB9am7rvuDu3bnKATzNrtJrSwxSGAQ3llap5cg9lDDLg0Tcq&__tn__=-UK-R&c[0]=AUCv5bwQKZ_IL6DwjEZeDFIpSr-ZFn3A72zlo-zZ8neqwJXmYbpHrdyduyzXrQisUYzZp3cEPbMQ9AdhRhbR5sXRtv0IWFjFpTrWzH-lDBc2L97jSbW5DF_5UkVuxs1sQSwwQf9PhHAzNGcQSH6N1bYui6E5UMk-uZjJ9vf5VHzEjiwBPXIG_CSjh3Q2NVwo0UVVwz38h-pi

Thank you, Brody!

Tap to view!

05/01/2026

Please join us for the Middle School’s production of “High School Musical, Jr” tomorrow at 6:00 pm. The cast and crew have been working really hard, and the community should show up to support them! There might be some new lights and mics for the show.

https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=1614649940278521&set=a.592937572449768

Manito Musical Advocates Midwest Central Middle School

04/29/2026

Congratulations to these hardworking students!!

04/27/2026

We would like to extend our warmest congratulations to the cast and crew of the Forman Community Chorus for their wonderful production of “9 to 5”. It was a pleasure to witness the talent, energy, and hard work that clearly went into every aspect of the performance. You brought a fantastic spirit to the stage, and we were so glad to be in the audience.

We were also particularly impressed by the pre-show performance of the Forman Community Chorus Kids’ "Dance Evolution." It was wonderful to see so much talent and enthusiasm from our young performers! We hope you continue to nurture this part of the program; it would be fantastic to see these pre-show segments become a new tradition for your future productions.

Thank you to everyone—both on stage and behind the scenes—for contributing to such an enjoyable evening of music. We are proud to have such a dedicated group of artists in our community.

Congratulations on a successful run!

04/23/2026

04/20/2026

Thanks to the community's support, we were able to make a donation that will help our youngest students stay safe during future performances. We're looking forward to seeing them next Tuesday for the K - 2 Spring Concert - "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?"!

Thanks to everyone for your continued support!

Thank You, Manito Musical Advocates!

A big thank you to the Manito Musical Advocates for purchasing guard rails for the primary school risers. This thoughtful support helps ensure our students can perform safely and confidently.

We appreciate your continued investment in our music program and our students!

04/14/2026

Last call for dinner theater tickets! I have inside information that it’s going to be a great show!

Dinner Theater tickets for our production of "9 to 5" are currently on sale. The dinner will be at 5:30 on Saturday, April 25, at the Forman Center. The ticket includes the show and a meal for $30. Checks should be made payable to Forman Community Chorus.

Tickets are available from these cast members: Haley Nieuwkoop, Sydney and Joy Wilbur, Tina and Sabrina Martin, Chris Wilson, Wilson Hunter, Waylon and Jameson McCamy, Elizabeth, Lilly, Leyla, and Leelinn Danner, Amanda Shaffer, Tami Meyer, Tammy Vogel, Trenity Oertle, Jackson Smith, Eliya and Jacob Sansom, Brooklynn Byrd, Taylor Canada, Susie Friesz, DeEtte and Hayden Garman, Jodan and Remi Kraft, Cozette Marte', Ben and Lainee Nickerson, Megan and Maya Reynolds, Jayla Richter, Diane Scott, Abby Strong, Savannah Tracy, and Tracy Trettin.

You may also contact directors Susan Frank and Heather Burks.

04/14/2026

We're looking forward to watching our middle school students perform this show on May 1st at 6:00 PM. Come check it out!

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