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Sunday, February 15, 2009 Culpeper Star Exponent Feeding the Hungry through music
By Amy Wagner They have a passion for Christ and they have a desire to feed the hungry. The Crosstones are a contemporary Christian band reaching out to share this passion through their music. They have kicked off their 2009 “Will Play for Food Tour” and are currently accepting bookings from churches and other venues all over the area.
In the beginning The Crosstones got their start as a praise band at Forest Grove Baptist Church in Viewtown, where Pastor Mark DeAngelis celebrates his fifth anniversary in October. Several years ago at a church in Front Royal, DeAngelis met Mark Rogers and they began reminiscing about their music histories. They played some songs together, recruited other members for the band and now have been playing together for four years. Food focused
The Crosstones’ mission, displayed on its Web site, is to feed the Lord’s sheep through music, ministry, fellowship and food. Admission to their shows is a non-perishable food product. The food is then distributed to an area food closet to help those who need it. The members
DeAngelis served as Outreach Minister at First Baptist Church in Front Royal prior to becoming Pastor of Forest Grove. He also works at Sodexo in Gaithersburg, Md. And plays drums in the band. His wife, Jeannine, is a full-time mom and plays keyboard.
Bob Hendricks plays bass and sings for the group and works for the postal service. Hendricks and his wife Terry, are members of Riverton United Methodist Church in Front Royal, where she is on staff during the week. Terry plays percussion and flute for the band and performs vocals.
Mark Rogers, lead guitarist, is a cabinet maker. Rogers also sings and writes most of the band’s songs.
Lori Wisdo also is a vocalist for the band. She works for Front Royal Family Practice as a receptionist. She and Rogers are both members of Forest Grove Baptist. Wisdo, Rogers and the DeAngelis are all original members of the band. The band In November the Crosstones released "A Simple Time", a single that quickly climbed to No. 7 on the Soundclick CCM chart in a week. The group also has a CD with 5 songs on it called “This is Only a Test”. They hope to release a full length CD this summer.
Ultimately, the Crosstones want to provide people in the Christian community with a good show and assist them in helping others in need. The band also hopes those who attend will bring someone with them who doesn’t go to church.
“Music is one thing that everyone seems to have in common”, said DeAngelis. “people connect to music. We want to help people get to know Christ. |
