Off to Africa

The student-run and directed ensemble has toured nationally and internationally — performing contemporary Christian pop, rock and traditional hymns and releasing 11 albums — since 1993. Chi Rho’s award-winning vocalists have been featured on “Voices Only,” a compilation of the best college a cappella groups in the nation.

This year, to celebrate their 20th anniversary, the group of 12 men are traveling to Lusaka, Zambia, to spend a week with local orphans at Family Legacy. The organization connects American students with children whose parents were victims of extreme poverty or HIV/AIDS.

In Family Legacy’s Tree of Life Children’s Village, a ministry that provides a safe haven and a place to live for the city’s most needy orphans, Chi Rho members will lead a cappella singing workshops, play with the children and serve at a community resource center. They will also perform at local churches.

“The group wanted to do something special,” said senior Ryan Youngerman, who is graduating May 21 with a degree in business and enterprise management. “This is an exciting opportunity to step out of our comfort zone and in doing so, further the ministry of Chi Rho.”

Sam Smartt, an MFA student in Wake Forest’s Documentary Film Program, will travel with Chi Rho to document the trip.