The Results Are In
The Handbell Musicians of America membership has selected new board members to take office in October.
This year’s new online voting system was very successful with its ease of use, the ability to provide immediate results, and increase in voter participation. The number of members who voted increased by 23% over the previous election.
Handbell Musicians of America selected Pamela “P.L.” Grove as president-elect and Derek Nance and Jennifer Vangolen as at-large members.
Join us in congratulating and welcoming our new board members.
Pamela “P.L.” Grove – President-Elect
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For nearly 39 years, Pamela “P.L.” Grove has been at the forefront of handbell artistry in America. As a founding ringer with the critically acclaimed Sonos Handbell Ensemble, her more notable performances included those with the San Francisco Girls Chorus, the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, the Kronos Quartet, Frederica von Stade, and twice on Garrison Keillor’s A Prairie Home Companion. She is currently artistic director for Velocity Handbell Ensemble, and she has directed several church handbell choirs over the years. She continues as a pioneer in the art of handbell musicianship, and she is one of only a few people ever to receive a degree in handbell performance. While P.L. makes her living working for the government, she prefers to spend her time playing piano, singing, composing music, and ringing handbells. |
Derek Nance – At-Large Member
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After playing bells all through high school and college, Derek Nance now rings bells with two groups, Tintabulations in Reno, Nevada, and Sonos in San Francisco, California. He also runs the Handbell Brothers’ Blog with the help of his brother, Bryce. In the world outside of handbells, Derek’s undergraduate degree is in business management, his master’s degree is in education administration, and he has a decade’s worth of experience running Boy Scout camps. |
Jennifer Vangolen – At-Large Member
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Jennifer was introduced to handbells over 34 years ago in Hackettstown, New Jersey, and has been fortunate enough to ring in the White House, perform in French cathedrals, and represent the United States in front of ringers from around the world. She is the current Washington state chair for Area 10, and she also serves as president of Bells of the Sound, an auditioned Seattle community handbell ensemble, in which she has been a ringing member since 2000. Recently Jennifer began to develop a handbell program for youth and adults at Fairwood Community United Methodist Church in Renton, Washington. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in chemistry from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, and works as a business analyst in software development at Ellucian Company LP, designing degree auditing and advising software for colleges and universities. |