Originally, the Concert Hall was an open air pavilion with a dirt floor. There were Tractor Shows, Flea Markets, and a meat store all placed in the middle of a working farm. While tractors were plowing and cows grazing, Sam Yoder was plotting the future of the farm.
Sam’s dreams were big. He closed-in the Concert Hall, built a stage, a commercial kitchen and added a state of the art sound system all within a few years. His friends would arrive in campers when a Gospel Concert was being held on the weekends. So why not make a Campground also. Eventually the meat store closed, and he turned one of the feedlots into a covered pavilion for outdoor events as well.
Through the years, he developed close friendships with Gospel Singing Groups and booked them annually. After about 15 years of scheduling his own concerts, he became a proud supporter of Delmarva Gospel Music Association (DGMA) no longer booking his own, but hosting many of DGMA’s concerts at his farm.
Sam and Effie have a strong desire to have their farm be a ministry to all those in the community. Whether you are making memories in the Hall or Pavilion at a wedding, graduation, family event/reunion, a church retreat or attending one of the DGMA Gospel Concerts, they hope that the farm will continue to be an inspiration to young and old.
Sam and Effie Yoder, April 2012
