ORANGE, NJ — Anyone near the Orange Preparatory Academy on Central Avenue who experienced the earth moving under their feet on Saturday, Sept. 9, could give credit for the feeling to the Youth Gospel Explosion at the school.
“I actually served as the mistress of ceremonies. We had a wonderful time today. God was here. We had an awesome time,” said Rev. Fonda Dortch-Taylor on Saturday, Sept. 9. The minister of New Eden Baptist Church in Newark came to Orange to support the young “gospel warriors” who participated in the event. “What I was so impressed by are the young people. So many young people expressing themselves and their talents in God. We had young musicians. We had a dancer as young as 3 years old. We had another young boy who did a poem by Langston Hughes. It was so successful that the mayor is now saying we’re going to do another one in December, so I look forward to doing another one in December.”
Mayor Dwayne Warren said it would be only natural to schedule another Youth Gospel Explosion event, based on the success of the first one.
“(The) Gospel Explosion (is) going on inside the Orange Preparatory Academy,” said Warren on Saturday, Sept. 9. “It was tremendous. I got a chance to go in and see some of the performers, some of the praise dancers. A tremendous time. Prayed us up. And then we came out here and had good food, good fun and entertainment.”
At-large Orange Councilwoman Adrienne Wooten helped organize the Gospel Explosion and to recruit Dortch-Taylor to host it. She agreed that the event was an unqualified success.
“We had an awesome time today. It really was a ‘Youth Gospel Explosion.’ … It was a good time in the city of Orange Township. We’re going to do this again in December. We’re going to invite everyone out,” said Wooten on Saturday, Sept. 9. “This came to me when I visiting a church in Newark with sister Pam Taylor, brother Godfrey Campanella at his church, and they had a Youth Explosion. And the entire event was put on by the youth, from the master of ceremonies to the people who work with the food to the ushers to everything. It was awesome, so I wanted to bring that here to Orange.”
Despite the use of words and phrases such as “explosion” and “gospel warriors,” Dortch-Taylor, Wooten and Warren said the Youth Gospel Explosion was all about peace.
“It’s about the good battles that we have to fight,” said Dortch-Taylor. “It’s not about anything negative. It’s just all positive stuff.”
Wooten would like to organize an even bigger event in December and hopes it will attract more public participation.
“We want people to come out from all parts of the community for a day of relaxation. Bring your children out, just to let people know that we here in the city of Orange Township are a loving, open-armed group of people,” said Wooten on Saturday, Sept. 9. “We have a lot of good, positive stuff going on in our city. So you have various communities coming together on this day just for peace.”
Youth Gospel Explosion a moving experience in Orange added by Chris Sykes on
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