Jester Hairston was a very dear friend of mine . . . my mentor in American history, American folk music and much more. I met Jester in my 1st year of college when he used my college choir to demonstrate his song/arrangements for music educators and church groups. It would take 100 pages to write about him, but Jester is certainly singing "AMEN" tonight as am I on this momentous night when America has chosen its first African American President, President Elect Barack Obama. My heart has been singing alternately all day "Praise God ...." and "AMEN". Jester brought the richness of spirituals and his hundreds of personal stories to Americans and people all over the world from Sweden to China.

Note: It was Jester's voice singing "AMEN" in "Lilies of the Field", not Sidney Poitier's -- You may find the printed music if you search choral music publishers. I must have sung "AMEN" with Jester hundreds of times and with my choirs over the years even more. Sadly, most music educators of today do not know Jester's music and teach very few spirituals (in some authentic manner) to their students. What a loss!