by J.R. Smith
Hello, handbell friends. I hope everyone is staying safe, well, and sane out there. Things certainly have changed in the world since our last issue. We hope you’ll excuse this issue’s lateness as we ended up in a position of having to research possibilities for National Seminar at the same time as making a transition in our staff leadership.
J.R. Smith
Publications Director
Always Looking for New Content
Instructional Articles
- Rehearsal & Teaching Techniques
- Programming
- Building and Organizing a Program
- Marketing & Communication
- Building/Using Equipment
Music
- Processionals & Fanfares
- Hymn Accompaniments
- Arrangements for Less than a Full Choir
- Learning Pieces
Educational Materials
- Music Lesson Plans
- Rehearsal Exercises
Features
- Human interest stories about the people who make handbells special
- Articles about especially unique handbell events or programs from which someone else could gain ideas
The board, planning committee, and staff have been working very hard to come up with possible solutions, and an announcement is coming June 1. See page 7 for more.
The world is now a much different place than it was just a few months ago. Nearly 300,000 people have died worldwide, and many more have suffered and continue to suffer while recovering. My heart goes out to all them and to their families who couldn’t be with them and are mourning their loss.
Countless people have lost their jobs and businesses. We are all experiencing the effects of not being able to see our loved ones, having dinner with friends, singing, and playing bells. But as humans do so well, we have found ways to make do despite it all. I have been impressed, entertained, and amused by some of the ways people have found to stay connected. I’ve been entertained by theater performances via clever multi-location live streams. I have been amazed by handbell performances by one or a few people playing individual parts and mixing them into one video. I’ve laughed at many lockdown parodies. And I’ve been inspired by the way churches and schools continue to operate over the airwaves. In the face of all this disaster and under the restrictions that keep us safe, it is so important to keep going and not to lose our positivity and sense of humor.
Congratulations, Jenny
I also want to take a moment to pay tribute to my good friend Jenny Cauhorn and congratulate her on her new job. For the last 13½ years, it’s been my privilege and joy to work for her. I have grown both professionally and personally in the time we have worked together.
Jenny is always there for her staff when workloads get heavy (as they often do with a small team) or when any of them are experiencing a troubling time. And she is always among the first to congratulate when something great happens.
She was there for my family and me in many ways after my car accident in which I lost my partner, Randy. When I was cast in the barbershop quartet for The Music Man at our community theater (something I was excited about), she surprised me by bringing a group of friends up to Findlay from Cincinnati to see it.
While we all work from home and only see each other face-to-face occasionally, we (the staff and volunteer committees) always include some fun time together. In this picture, she and I took a side trip after the College Ring-In in New Jersey to go into NYC to see Wicked and walk around Times Square on a particularly cold evening.
I’ll miss having her here as our team leader, but I’m glad she will still be around for a while working on the next couple of events and forever as a good friend.
Congratulations, Jenny, and good luck in everything you do. Thank you for being an outstanding employer and a phenomenal friend.
J.R. Smith
[email protected]
The board, planning committee, and staff have been working very hard to come up with possible solutions, and an announcement is coming June 1. See page 7 for more.
The world is now a much different place than it was just a few months ago. Nearly 300,000 people have died worldwide, and many more have suffered and continue to suffer while recovering. My heart goes out to all them and to their families who couldn’t be with them and are mourning their loss.
Countless people have lost their jobs and businesses. We are all experiencing the effects of not being able to see our loved ones, having dinner with friends, singing, and playing bells. But as humans do so well, we have found ways to make do despite it all. I have been impressed, entertained, and amused by some of the ways people have found to stay connected. I’ve been entertained by theater performances via clever multi-location live streams. I have been amazed by handbell performances by one or a few people playing individual parts and mixing them into one video. I’ve laughed at many lockdown parodies. And I’ve been inspired by the way churches and schools continue to operate over the airwaves. In the face of all this disaster and under the restrictions that keep us safe, it is so important to keep going and not to lose our positivity and sense of humor.
Congratulations, Jenny
I also want to take a moment to pay tribute to my good friend Jenny Cauhorn and congratulate her on her new job. For the last 13½ years, it’s been my privilege and joy to work for her. I have grown both professionally and personally in the time we have worked together.
Jenny is always there for her staff when workloads get heavy (as they often do with a small team) or when any of them are experiencing a troubling time. And she is always among the first to congratulate when something great happens.
She was there for my family and me in many ways after my car accident in which I lost my partner, Randy. When I was cast in the barbershop quartet for The Music Man at our community theater (something I was excited about), she surprised me by bringing a group of friends up to Findlay from Cincinnati to see it.
While we all work from home and only see each other face-to-face occasionally, we (the staff and volunteer committees) always include some fun time together. In this picture, she and I took a side trip after the College Ring-In in New Jersey to go into NYC to see Wicked and walk around Times Square on a particularly cold evening.
I’ll miss having her here as our team leader, but I’m glad she will still be around for a while working on the next couple of events and forever as a good friend.
Congratulations, Jenny, and good luck in everything you do. Thank you for being an outstanding employer and a phenomenal friend.
J.R. Smith
[email protected]
J.R. Smith
Publications Director
Always Looking for New Content
Instructional Articles
- Rehearsal & Teaching Techniques
- Programming
- Building and Organizing a Program
- Marketing & Communication
- Building/Using Equipment
Music
- Processionals & Fanfares
- Hymn Accompaniments
- Arrangements for Less than a Full Choir
- Learning Pieces
Educational Materials
- Music Lesson Plans
- Rehearsal Exercises
Features
- Human interest stories about the people who make handbells special
- Articles about especially unique handbell events or programs from which someone else could gain ideas
