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I am grateful
By Linda Brehaut, International President
NOTE: I write to you today from my hospital bed while I await my OR surgery time. All is well. By the time you read this, I should be home and “on-the-go”, again.
Today my attitude is one of gratitude!
Recently, Harmony Inc. received a generous financial donation from a Lifetime Affiliate Member. I know I speak for all of you when I say how grateful we are for the many ways our affiliate members support our organization.
To say that Harmony is alive and well in Area 6 would be an understatement. Thank you to the Area 6 AC&C team for such a successful event – the joy was contagious and spread across our countries! Thank you to the members for their compliance with the safety precautions that were put in place.
I know I’ve heard from a few members who saw the fun and the joy as seen in posted Facebook photos (often on the faces of “unmasked” members) that questioned “compliance”. Please know that the Area Directors and I have met to share questions with Area 6 Director Angie Beatty. It is our understanding that all Harmony, Inc. designated convention spaces complied with HI’s COVID -19 policy. Many of the “fun” photos were taken at the banquet, in public places (i.e. lobbies, etc) or after the convention was declared as over.
I am excited and looking forward to hearing/seeing our members reconnect over the next eight weeks at the Area conventions. Please respect the safety measures your Area has put in place for you.
Thank you, to the over 1,000 members who responded to the Bylaws vote. Now can I invite each of you to complete the Annual Membership survey that is coming your way? This information we collect will set baselines as well as provide guidelines for moving forward with initiatives within the organization. Please help us out by taking a few minutes to complete the survey when it comes in your email!
Take care of yourselves and reach out to each other.
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| Convention Corner: IC&C in Verona, NY |
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Together again in Verona!
By Allison Thompson, Convention Manager
The convention team is thrilled to be working with Turning Stone in this year’s ICC! We have so many sweet treats planned for you this year.
There’s excitement building in the air…can you feel it? Area contests have begun! As you start thinking about the contest season ahead, you can find important information about this year’s IC&C -- including forms, hotel information, schedules and more -- on the Harmony, Inc. website.
And International Contest & Judging Chair Kathy Greason reminds us:
All AC&C entrants eligible for IC&C, regardless of scores.
Given that the sole criterion for entering the International contests this year is participation in Area contests, will a chorus or quartet that sings songs that are penalized – maybe down to a zero score in some categories – be considered a participant for purposes of November contests? The short answer is yes.
The slightly longer answer is that any chorus or registered quartet that is made up of members in good standing and that completes a legally acquired and learned two-song package on stage (again, mic tester or chorus of less than 12 is fine) is eligible to compete at IC&C in Verona this year. Phew!
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| Upcoming Elections - Last Chance! |
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Last Chance!
Nominations for Area Directors and Board Directors due
By Debbie Parmerter, International Parliamentarian
The deadline for nominations for Area Directors 1, 3 and 5, and four Board Directors is fast approaching.
Forms HAR-034, Part 1 - Nomination form to be completed by the member nominating a candidate and HAR-034, Part 2 - Application for the nominee to complete MUST be submitted by May 1.
Harmony, Inc. needs you! Encourage qualified friends or family to run. Or allow your name to stand for election. Become a part of our beloved organization.
In harmony,
Debbie Parmerter
Sandra Dunlop, Chair
Stacy Hugman, Canada Teller
Lindsay Chartier, U.S. Teller
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| Quartet Corner: Introducing TWO new quartets |
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Harmony welcomes two new quartets!
By Jess Jones, Quartet Development Coordinator
Buzzing into Area 4, it’s Bee’s Knees Quartet!
Please welcome Bee’s Knees to our Harmony, Inc. “hive!” All four members, Mary Campbell, MJ Mortillaro, Cricky Dietrich, and Ellie Pipkorn, have been Sweet Adelines for years and sang in Region 3’s Crosstown Harmony Chorus. Throughout the years, they have all enjoyed singing in quartets but never together – possibly because there are three baritones and one bass in this combination!
FROM LEFT - MJ Mortillary, Cricky Dietrich,
Mary Campbell, and Ellie Pipkorn
They have, however, become terrific friends and travel partners. Every year during International Competition, they designed a trip around the contest that included a second week of adventure. For instance, the contest in Houston was by way of St. Louis, Missouri, to see a Brewers playoff game; Natchez, Mississippi; New Orleans, Louisiana; and Hot Spring, Arizona. The quartet has continued their trips even when International was cancelled.
During the pandemic, when there was plenty of time to consider things, they all missed singing, so decided to give it a try – together! Over the years, they have followed Harmony, Inc. and now it seems right to join our organization and meet more Harmony-driven women.
- Lead Bee, Mary, is a physical therapist. When Mary is not stretching someone back to physical health, you will find her on a hiking adventure or enjoying her up-north cabin and Biergarten.
- Bass Bee, MJ, is a wedding officiant. On the weekends when MJ is not sending couples into nuptial bliss, you might find her hiking or playing her ukulele with 50 other women in the Ukuladies.
- Baritone Bee, Cricky, is trying hard to retire! It seems her skills are needed even if it’s only two days a week. When she is not straightening out the books as an accountant, you will find Cricky enjoying her spa backyard, complete with a swimming pool, hot tub, gazebo, and waterfalls. And, the Bees are happy to enjoy her back yard with her!
- Tenor Bee, Ellie, is very busy with cattle, cats, goats, and their horse. When she is not feeding her cows, you will find her volunteering at her church historical society or at a riding stable for kids and adults with special needs. They look to Ellie to find the next hiking adventure and new hiking trails.
Great friends + wonderful travel adventures + barbershop harmony
= The Bee’s Knees!
BACK L to R: Karen Trotter, Sherie Carroll,
Jean Falter; FRONT: Olivia Englehart
MetaFour Joins Area 3!
Welcome, MetaFour quartet, born out of Harmony Falls Chorus!
This group hails from the New York Finger Lakes region and recently formed when two barbershop newbies, Sherie and Olivia, joined veterans Jean and Karen. All four members were eager to join a quartet to extend their love of barbershop beyond the large group environment and they have found great joy in making music together. They rehearse weekly in preparation for competition and look forward to sharing their music with some human listeners (although the animals who listen in on practice are a great audience!).
MetaFour is an eclectic bunch with a variety of hobbies, interests, and special talents. Their love of music brings them together, though, and they can’t wait to see where their barbershop journey takes them!
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 Barbara Combs (a baritone) and Janet Dunham (a lead) in the Maine-ly Harmony Chorus directed by Kathy Greason have worked as a team to get us through the pandemic. Both ladies stepped up to the challenge of learning the technology to:
- keep the chorus together through Zoom rehearsals;
- create virtual chorus presentations to send out to the public during the holidays;
- present educational videos for the chorus; and
- assist in any way to help others with the virtual world.
Janet monitored and set up music tracks to facilitate members' practice sessions and Barbara stepped in to support the members and director whenever there was a need. Both have served and/or are serving presently on the Maine-ly Harmony Executive Board.
Janet and Barbara, We appreciate what you have done to keep us going in these trying times. Congratulations on a job well done!
- Candace J. Pepin
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| Registration Open for Harmony College East |
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Harmony College East
Hello, friends! It’s time to register for Harmony College East 2022. We are so excited to be offering this terrific event in person again! Get your calendars out and reserve June 16-19, 2022, for the best barbershop school ANYWHERE! Briefly, here are the particulars:
WHAT: Harmony College East 2022
WHERE: The beautiful campus of McDaniel College, Westminster, MD
WHEN: Thursday, June 16 through Sunday, June 19, 2022
COURSES: We are excited to report that, in addition to our standard amazing course offerings, we have added many NEW courses and instructors this year, including (but not limited to):
- Yoga for Singers (Sally Galloway)
- BIPOC Youth Engagement (Julian LeFlore)
- Bring it On!—Better Singing and More Members (Paul Ellinger)
- Barbershop in Our Changing World (Chris Rimple)
- The Singing Actor (Theresa Weatherbee)
- Song Writing (Steve Delehanty and Tom Gentry)
…..and MORE! All new courses are highlighted on the registration website. And we are thrilled to offer a new track of courses exclusively for music educators. Please feel free to pass this information on to any music teachers you may know for their consideration.
COVID MITIGATION POLICY: Consistent with the Mid-Atlantic District’s current policy for all in-person events, all registrants must provide proof of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (two Pfizer/Moderna shots or one J&J shot). All registrants will be provided with a link to upload their proof of vaccination on or about May 15, with a deadline to submit by June 1. McDaniel College’s on-campus protocols currently require masking in limited areas on campus, with masking “optional” in residence and common areas. We will provide registrants with any updated information regarding these policies should they be revised. We appreciate your cooperation with these protocols in the interest of safety for all participants.
“EVERYONE IN HARMONY!”: We heartily welcome all barbershoppers to attend HCE! Please consider passing this great news on to your friends and family members who are members of Harmony, Inc. or Sweet Adelines International. We’d love to have them join us and experience this fun educational event.
REGISTRATION LINK: Please go to www.midatlanticdistrict.com/HCE and follow the links to the registration page. You will receive an email confirmation upon completion of your registration.
We, your Deans, hope that you, your quartet, and your chorus will consider coming to Harmony College-East this year to take advantage of the best faculty and coaches the Society has to offer!
Sincerely,
Sheryl Berlin & Bill Colosimo
Deans, Harmony College-East
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For Love of Harmony
Your donations to the For Love of Harmony program enable you to identify individuals or groups to receive special recognition, while at the same time providing a monetary gift to Harmony, Inc.
- From Area 6 in grateful appreciation of all the judging panel did to make this year's AC&C a huge success.
- From Kathy Greason in memory of Vohnny Weyrick.
Condolences from the Membership
- to the family and friends of Gloria Dubeau, baritone of 1984 Harmony Queens, Black Magic. Gloria passed away peacefully on April 4, 2022.
Hot off the virtual presses...
The newest edition of The Key-Note is now available. Check out this double edition of The Key-Note by clicking the title or visiting www.HarmonyInc.org.
Happy Reading!
Deadlines approaching!
APRIL 30: Deadline for Guaranteed Reserved Seating at IC&C contest sessions.
MAY 1: Applications/nominations for International Board of Directors due.
IBOD MID-YEAR 2022 MEETING (Zoom)
May 13: 6:30pm - 9:30 pm EST
May 14: 9:00am - 5:00 pm EST
May 15: 1:00pm - 4:00 pm EST (if needed)
JULY 15: IC&C room reservations open.
Copyright © 2022 Harmony, Inc., All rights reserved.
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