An avid guitar player, I enjoy the opportunity to share music and God's Word through worship at Grace Chapel in Lexington, Massachusetts. As a volunteer in the Worship Arts Ministry at Grace Chapel, I dedicate my music to my brothers and sisters in Christ. In a community of people who live passionately to serve and worship the Lord, I seek to establish an environment that encourages others to build close, vital relationships with God.
The Worship Arts Ministry allows those of us with creative interests to bring attention to Jesus in any way we can. In addition to Grace Choir, Grace Orchestra, contemporary praise bands, and vocal teams, which lead worship for morning services at Grace Chapel, the Worship Arts Ministry includes diverse opportunities for individuals who want to contribute their talents to worshipping God. Those with experience or an interest in running the technical aspects of worship, including sound, light, and video, possess the opportunity to serve in the Technology Ministry. Actors and other stage specialists can contribute to the Drama Ministry, which includes ongoing troupes, as well as seasonal productions. Finally, the Worship Arts Ministry strives to establish the worship of God as not only passionate, but also accessible through the Media Ministry, which produces weekly recordings of services, and the Signing Ministry, which expresses worship through the art of signing for the hearing impaired. In addition to volunteering at Grace Chapel, I played rhythm guitar with a few friends at a weekend retreat in New Hampshire for high school students. I helped lead worship with music from contemporary Christian artists, such as Hillsong United, Matt Redman, and Lincoln Brewster. The experience proved enjoyable for the kids and ourselves.
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A Massachusetts executive with a marketing and advertising background, Anthony Freddura works to deliver sustained business value for Epsilon’s SaaS platform. Anthony Freddura has a passion for music, and enjoys compositions from the perspective of a rhythm guitarist. A recent Boston Globe article drew attention to the book Astral Weeks: A Secret History of 1968, which examines a seminal summer in which Van Morrison “hid out” from the New York music industry in Cambridge and honed a landmark sound that would define an era of blues- and country-tinged rock. Only 22 at the time, Morrison had achieved success with songs such as Brown Eyed Girl, but found himself entangled with a label that had ties to the underworld and was limiting his artistic potential. At a time when the “Bosstown Sound” was emerging, Van Morrison took up residence in Cambridge, playing small jazz clubs while refining a stripped-down acoustic sound that countered his previous R&B blues-rock incarnation. Stand-up bass and flute were present when Van Morrison premiered many of the songs that would be recorded for Astral Weeks a month later at the Catacombs, a Boylston Street basement club in Boston. Business project manager and systems analyst Anthony Freddura has built up 15 years of experience in his field. He has worked since 2013 as a lead systems analyst and product owner at Epsilon, a company based in Wakefield, Massachusetts, near Boston. Anthony Freddura additionally donates a portion of his free time to furthering the needs of his community, including serving as a volunteer to address the needs of people experiencing homelessness. Homelessness is a continuing challenge for the Boston area. In 2014, a survey released by the United States Conference of Mayors reported that Boston had the largest number of people residing in temporary shelters among the 25 larger cities surveyed. The city has shown its commitment to ending chronic homelessness. Its annual Homeless Census helps officials and the public understand the scope and size of the problem, which is one of the first steps toward providing creative solutions. The Census also helps by providing much-needed information about where the gaps lie in the city’s provision of services to people currently experiencing homelessness. Through its Boston’s Way Home Fund, the city has set its sights on raising $10 million in order to construct hundreds of new housing units to provide safe, secure places to live for chronically homeless people. Anthony Freddura serves as product owner and lead business systems analyst for Epsilon, an innovative global marketing firm based in Wakefield, Massachusetts. Beyond his obligations at the company, Anthony Freddura enjoys playing the guitar for worship at World Vision Grace Chapel. The following tips may help guitar players improve their skill: 1. Choose a practice focus. An efficient practice session involves a warm up, chord exercises, and focused work to address specific goals and strengthen personal weaknesses. Determine a particular skill you’d like to improve, and dedicate each practice to that skill until you achieve your goal. 2. Prioritize technique over speed. Before you can play fast, you need a solid grasp of the fundamentals of guitar playing. This means mastering technique, a thorough understanding of scales and chords, and the effort to put in the necessary time and dedication. Prioritizing technique over speed also can help improve accuracy for hitting the intended chords. 3. Learn something new daily. Learning new pieces of music tests your skills and provides the opportunity to incorporate new concepts into your muscle memory. You don’t need to commit to learning a full song: You can choose a melody, strum pattern, or even an individual riff, chord, or scale. 4. Learn intervals of the major scale. The building blocks for many chords and scales, the major scale consists of seven intervals. Understanding their structure allows guitarists to form extended chords, seventh chords, and triads through harmonization. 5. Practice chords every day. Learning the chords helps guide your fingers to the right spot each time you play a song. The more you practice chords, the easier your fingers can assume the correct position. With more than 10 years of experience in software project implementation, Anthony Freddura serves as a senior business systems analyst at MultiPlan, Inc., in Waltham, Massachusetts. Anthony Freddura also supports philanthropic work and sponsors World Vision, a Christian nonprofit that provides assistance to national and international communities. World Vision recently observed the UN’s World Water Day in March of 2016 by highlighting the progress that’s been made in Rwanda, where less than a third of the rural population had clean water after the 1994 genocide. Over the last 15 years, World Vision has helped double the number of people in Rwanda who have access to clean water and the organization provided almost 250,000 people with clean water in just the past five years. Last year, World Vision established 1,000 water points that helped almost 100,000 people, while also working with other nonprofits to supply clean water to more than 43,000 people who fled to Rwanda from Burundi. According to World Vision, the progress in Rwanda supports the feasibility of ending the global water crisis by 2030 in accordance with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Anthony Freddura serves as a product owner/lead business systems analyst for Epsilon, a marketing firm in Wakefield, Massachusetts. In his spare time, Anthony Freddura enjoys playing the guitar. Several factors go into the purchase of a guitar. Whether you are looking for an acoustic or electric model, go shopping when you have several hours free. First, settle on a price range, and then ask a salesperson to demonstrate a few models for you. Many will be glad to help, since often they are guitar players themselves. After you mention the kind of music you like, turn your back and listen to how each guitar sounds. (If you are auditioning an electric guitar, try using several amplifiers.) One clue to finding a good-sounding guitar is to pluck one of the strings without putting your finger on a fret. The string should ring. That is, it should sustain a note for several seconds. Watch out for buzzing strings. This problem has many causes, such as a string vibrating against a fret that you are not touching, and results in a host of noises not under your control. When you play each guitar, consider whether the angle of the frets feel comfortable and how the neck feels to your hand. Be sure to see if you can extend your fingers around each string and reach most of the frets. As a senior business systems analyst with MultiPlan, Inc., in Waltham, Massachusetts, Anthony Freddura draws on more than a decade of relevant experience. Anthony Freddura has served in systems analytics with technology, financial, and medical care companies in both Massachusetts and California.
The business systems analyst leverages his knowledge of data systems to optimize a company's organizational efficiency. The analyst draws on an in-depth knowledge of each element of a data system and its function. He or she must know the capabilities of networks, servers, software, and hardware and uses this knowledge to assess benefits and costs compared to industry standards. This information enables the analyst to develop a system design, either new or altered, that best serves the company's needs and budget. The business systems analyst must also be able to present his or her insights to company management or directors. The analysis in question must present any inefficiencies in the company's current or proposed system, as well as suggestions for improvement. A skilled analyst is also able to anticipate any questions the company may have regarding systems changes and should be ready to explain the value and cost savings of proposed changes. A selective Catholic college fully funded by the Congregation of Holy Cross, Stone Hill College is located just east of Boston in the city of Easton. The college was founded as an all-men's catholic college in 1948, and the first class had 134 students. Originally, the college had just two buildings: a gym and a mansion, which housed seminarian students and priests. In 1949, a building was erected replete with classrooms and science labs. This was also the year in which The Summit newspaper published its first issue.
By 1951, Stone Hill College had fallen into debt, and this played a role in the administration’s decision to start allowing women to enroll. Further, many young men were fighting in the Korean War. Luice Moncey was the first woman to graduate from Stone Hill College. About the Author: Anthony Freddura attended Stone Hill College, where he received a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Marketing. |
AuthorServing as an Information Systems Quality Analyst, Anthony Freddura held responsibility for testing and supporting a client/server transaction processing system. Archives
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