David Waddell led his barbershop quartet into Longmont’s Callahan House carriage house, to the delighted screams of his wife Maryann and her sewing group.
Waddell is part of the Longs Peak Chorus, which raises money by selling $40 singing valentines on Feb. 13 and the big day itself, Feb. 14.
Waddell caught his wife of 55 years by complete surprise Tuesday as she sat with the Callahan House Sewciety working on patchwork quilts and embroidery work.
“My face is probably as red as their ties. I was just saying that I never see him on Valentine’s Day. I see him the other 364 days of the year, but I was saying that today he goes out and makes the other ladies happy,” Maryann Waddell said as the others joked about her wording.
Waddell played a note on a harmonica and the quartet started in on their two standards, “Let Me Call You Sweetheart” and “Heart of My Heart.” Waddell handed Maryanne a red rose and she joked with the quartet.
James Curts, a member of the quartet, said the group regularly practices at the Waddell house.
“She knows the songs better than I do,” David Waddell said.
Jim Hopper, vice president of marketing and public relations for the Longs Peak Chorus, said singing for people is fun and every recipient has similar reactions.
“Almost everyone, at first they’re embarrassed and then they love it. I used to work at Seagate in Longmont and we (delivered) to a lot of the guys I worked with and some of the guys you’d think would be the least appreciative of it just loved every minute,” Hopper said.
Hopper has been delivering singing valentines for 38 years, first with the Boulder Chorus and switching to the Longs Peak Chorus in 2000.
He said over those 38 years, he’s only seen one valentine recipient get slightly angry.
“About 20 years ago I was delivering to a Boulder hotel and a guy had ordered one for his date. And when she saw us coming, she looked at him, and if looks could kill, he would have been dead,” Hopper said. “That’s the only time I remember. I think he thought the relationship was more serious than she did.”
Hopper said that the chorus will deliver valentines to someone’s sweetheart no matter their gender.
“Last year we were delivering one to the Dushanbe Teahouse in Boulder and we delivered one and as we were going out this waitress runs out and she said, ‘Can you guys deliver one to my girlfriend?'” Hopper said. “And we said, ‘Sure.’ and we went over there to her apartment later that night and delivered one. Her partner did what everyone does at first, like, ‘Oh my god, what’s happening?’ and then they realize how much their partner loves them.”
The Longs Peak Chorus had a total of 18 singing valentines to deliver on Feb. 13 and Feb. 14.
As Waddell and the rest of the quartet left the Callahan House to go deliver another singing valentine in Windsor, David Waddell told his wife with a smile, “I’ll see you tonight.”
Laughing, Maryann Waddell replied “Yes, probably sometime around midnight.”
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