Say it with a song Say it with a song (February 07, 2003)

Pot O' Gold quartets croon Valentines for sweethearts
by Teresa C. Brown

For Valentine's Day, some people settle on the routine, giving cards and flowers or heart-shaped boxes full of chocolates to their sweethearts. But other romantics choose a special way to show their love: a barbershop quartet serenade by the Pot O' Gold chorus.

Dave Tibbetts, president of the local chorus, said the nonprofit organization has been delivering the lyrical greetings throughout the Tri-Valley Area annually for 12 years. Formally dressed in tuxedoes and cummerbunds, a quartet sings two love songs and presents the recipient with a long-stemmed red rose and a personalized card.

"There are barbershop choruses that have quartets that do singing Valentines all across the country," Tibbetts explained. "We try to cover the Tri-Valley area primarily, but sometimes we get requests in the Bay Area."

The delivery date can be flexible, he added. Special arrangements were made this year to deliver a Valentine's greeting a week early because the person will not be available on Feb. 14.

"It is a wonderful experience for both those in the quartet and the person getting the Valentine," said Tibbitts. "Sometimes it's embarrassing, and sometimes it's surprising."

Throughout the day Feb. 14, four or five Pot O' Gold quartets will make the deliveries, beginning at 9 a.m. and continuing throughout the day to about 9 p.m. "It's an all-day affair," Tibbitts said.

Each quartet will have between a dozen and 20 appointments, with the average being about 15. "We move from house to apartment to business to office," Tibbetts said.

The reaction varies. "It depends on whether or not the person knows in advance," he said. "If they don't know, it's combination of surprise, shock, wonder and tears of happiness."

If the quartet presents the Valentine in an office setting, the group has the added bonus of applause from the gathering crowd, he noted.

Delivering the Valentine also offers tender moments for the 45-member group. "It's most meaningful watching people receiving the Valentines," Tibbetts said. The response can be priceless.

Tibbetts recalled the time his quartet delivered a Valentine to an elderly couple who were celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary on that day. A third party had ordered the Valentine for the couple, he said. "It was wonderful to watch the two of them hold hands and kiss each other after the song."

The $45 singing Valentine is one of the chorus' major fund-raisers of the year. Considered one of the Bay Area's premiere choruses, the group also annually performs a spring show and a Christmas cabaret dinner show, as well as other community performances.

Although orders are accepted up to Valentine's Day, doing it early helps the Pot O' Gold schedule deliveries. Orders are taken by telephone and through the organization's Web site. By telephone, call Earl Walker, 820-8086, or visit www.potogoldchorus.org.