Illinois Choir Cites Terror Threat, Drops Plans for Europe
The Oregon High School choir will skip a prestigious festival in Vienna this summer rather than risk an encounter with terrorists, choir director Byron McKinstry said Tuesday.
“The decision was not ours to make. It was made for us when the airports were bombed by terrorists overseas. The attack on Libya by the U.S. just reinforced our decision to not go,” McKinstry said.
Eighty-one students, chaperones and parents were scheduled to go to Vienna with the choir in July. The group had raised $120,000 to go to Vienna.
McKinstry said more than 150 people attended the meeting Monday night to make the decision to cancel the trip.
“The decision had to be made so we could withdraw without paying a penalty for canceling. Sixty-one people voted not to go, nine people voted to wait and see, no one voted yes,” he said.
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