Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, June 14, 1994                   TAG: 9407070061
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-6   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: By PAUL DELLINGER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: DUBLIN                                LENGTH: Medium

WELSH WOMAN'S SONGS HAPPY, SAD - AND TRUE

Unfortunately, the stories are true.

The 23-year-old performer and songwriter encountered them during her tours of other countries as a gospel singer. She has been touring and singing for the past seven years, directly out of school.

Nia (she uses only the single name) had been to the New River Valley last year, to bring her talent and message to Heritage Church. She had a return engagement at the church recently and its pastor, Gordon Shinn, learned that her repertoire also included a program for students.

The result was a visit to Pulaski County High School, where she belted out toe-tapping, hand-clapping tunes for students in contrast to the more melodic songs and ballads she had done at the church.

She performed for the school's choir, band, drama and forensics programs. She also talked with choir director Angela Harris' students about their musical goals, and was pleased to learn that some hope to make music part of their future careers.

Nia's visit to the New River Valley came near the end of her seventh U.S. tour in three years. Her tours have also taken her to Western Europe, the former communist bloc nations, East Africa and the Middle East.

She raises money from her tours - and the sale of her videos, CDs and cassettes as well as ``Feeding Hungry Hearts'' T-shirts - to buy items for orphanages throughout the world. The items can range from toothbrushes to antibiotics, depending on the need of the particular institution.

After a stop in England, where she lives when she is home, Nia will make a return visit to Romania and her first trip into Russia.

She recalled her previous visit to a Romanian orphanage which had about 100,000 children living under awful conditions, ``children chained to their beds, living and sitting in their mess with no one changing them.''

In the United States, she said, if people treated their animals the way these children were treated, the animals would be taken away.

In less fortunate parts of the world, there are children who have spent all 16 years of their lives in orphanages. ``Some of these children have never seen balloons or crayons,'' she said, which are among the items she sometimes brings with her.

Nia told of offering one 8-year-old boy candy from a bag of treats she had with her during her Romanian visit. He thanked her profusely but, when she looked into the bag later, she could not see that anything had been eaten.

The boy was concerned he had taken too much. He had taken a single M&M.

It was these accounts that brought home to the students how different circumstances are in some other parts of the world.

Her anti-drug message was short. She told of two young girls in a school where she performed who were ``basically cabbages'' from having taken drugs.

``God has given us a brain,'' she said. ``Say 'no' to drugs.''