African choir founded as tool for healing
By Cara Harrison-Ungar
Contributing Writer
The African Children’s Choir was founded in 1984 by humanitarian and Canadian-born Ray Barnett. While serving as an aid volunteer in war-torn Uganda, Barnett was providing transportation to a small boy from the devastation of his own home to the safety of a nearby village. Presumably, as a way to cope, the young boy began to sing. He continued to sing for the remainder of the journey to his new life, bringing the familiar with him to a future of uncertainty.
“[Barnett] was providing humanitarian aid after the civil war in Uganda,” said Daniel Tamale, who is currently serving as a volunteer with the choir. “He saw the need to help the African children,” Tamale told me in an interview.
Upon returning to Canada, Barnett founded the choir as he viewed music as a powerful tool for healing.
Since 1984, the choir has been comprised of children from Uganda, Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria. This year, there are 17 members in the choir, all of whom are from Uganda. The children audition but are also selected on a need-based selection process, with education being the primary gap the organization aims to fill.
“Once a child isn’t able to have a good quality education, then that’s the biggest need because the organization focuses mainly on that. Once a person gets educated, then they are enabled and empowered to get a better life,” said Tamale.
The choir is an entry point for the children to access a fully structured education upon their return home. The tour is a way for members to showcase their talents and raise funds for the education that awaits them upon their return home.
After the tour, the children continue their education at the African Children’s Choir Primary school in Entebbe in south-central Uganda, or at the high school, Empower International Academy, run by Music for Life. Sponsorship from Music for Life continues even through the university level.
Tamale was a member of the choir as a child. Originally from Uganda, Tamale had a need for education and was given access to one due to his membership in the organization. Like the children in the choir today, Tamale auditioned to be a member.
“I had the need. I was in and out of school before joining the choir, and so doing the choir gave me the opportunity to be in school and to now be in a position to fend for myself and for my family,” he said.
The choir is currently in month six of a nine-month tour. Traveling largely in the U.S., the choir has also been to the UK, Australia, and Canada.
Tamale is a shining example of the long-term benefits the choir brings to an individual’s life. When asked how it feels to be a part of the choir as an adult, Tamale reflected on the cyclical nature of the choir.
“I get to see the full circle and what it truly means to be a mentor, but also a chaperone and a leader for the choir, which is a big, big blessing,” he said.
While members of the choir work hard on tour, they also have the opportunity to see the world and share an experience together they may otherwise not have had.
For those who attend the April 8th concert, expect to not only witness a performance, “but of worship,” said Tamale. The choir sings songs that are a blend of traditional hymns as well as African dancing and singing.
Tamale explained that the concert is an “opportunity to be together as a community, so people should come expecting a lot of joy from the children, a lot of energy, and an evening of fun.”
The concert will be held at Chattahoochee Technical College on April 8th, 2026, at 7 p.m. and is sponsored by Pleasant Hill Christian Church.
To learn more about the African Children’s Choir and Music for Life, visit
