Comox Valley military wives choir may be small but 'for us it's fabulous'

A group of military wives based at CFB Comox on Vancouver Island have banded together to start a choir as a way to support one another when their husbands are deployed.

"This choir is really working towards getting women, who wouldn't normally meet up with another, to connect and make friendships and hopefully support one another in a military environment," said Brenda Dunne, Founder and President of the Canadian Military Wives Choir of Comox.

Dunne was inspired to start the choir after spending time in Ottawa, where Canada's first military wives choir was founded. She views it as a way for members to take their minds off more serious matters and shift their focus, if only for a couple of hours each week.

There is no musical requirement to join, but you do need to be female and have some connection to the military community.

"A lot of the women in our choir have never sung in any kind of choral group before, so they are going way out of their comfort zone," said Dunne.

Right now there are 15 members, but Dunne says attendance fluctuates.

"We've lost a few and gained a few. Just because of the nature of military lifestyle, we have people coming and going all of the time. It's a small choir but for us it's fabulous."

Dunne says the choir is currently preparing for a couple of summer performances, including Canada Day and the Comox Air Show.

"Our goal is not perfection. Our goal is beautiful sounds together that we are happy with and at the end of the day, we go home feeling like we did something special."

To hear our full interview with Brenda Dunne, listen to the audio labelled Canadian Military Wives Choir of Comox.