WS Chronicle

Tonya Turner Jackson to headline gospel concert

Calvary Hill Church of Greater Deliverance Inc. will hold a free concert on April 20 that will feature singer Tonya Turner Jackson. The concert will also serve as a birthday celebration for Jackson, as she will turn 50 years of age on April 14.

The concert will be free for the public, but organizers ask for donations to go toward the three organizations that Jackson will donate the funds to. 

Jackson got her start in the world of singing at Calvary Hill. Her father, Bishop Claude C. Turner, is the senior pastor of the church. She has been on Broadway and performed with the N.C. Black Repertory Company here in Winston-Salem.

Jackson is now an educator in Maryland and decided to hold this concert in her hometown to raise funds for several summer enrichment programs, both here and in the state of Maryland.

“During my time here in the city, I had a host of family and friends that performed with me, so in this concert I have several local artists that will perform with me,” said Jackson. 

T.U.R.N., which is a summer program at Calvary Hill, the local YMCA, and Leap Forward, which is a program in Maryland, are the organizations that will benefit from the concert. 

“I am an educator and an adjunct professor for Southern New Hampshire University, but the thing about the summer programs for me is the summer lag, so these funds will allow for students to participate in summer programs,” she said.  “All three of these programs provide summer enrichment and academic enrichment for students that I wanted to give back to.”

Jackson said she was drawn to these programs because they are focused on providing their services for the underprivileged. The programs also provide enrichment programs for parents as well, so the entire family gets to benefit from their services.

“We can reach the children, but to be effective, we need to reach the parents as well,” she continued.

To have the opportunity to give back to these programs is a blessing, Jackson said.  “This may sound like a cliché, but I believe the children are our future, but I believe it is an investment into our future,” Jackson said.  “If we are really looking to make a change in the world, we need to invest in our children and provide resources and support, because I want the children to be well educated to take care of our community in the future.”