History
our History of the Village Voices Chorus
In February of 1994, a choir was organized in The Villages by Dolly Haraburda. This was the formation of the choir currently known as the Village Voices. The choir was known then as the Pennsylvania Chorus due to its members all moving from Pennsylvania. The first chorus performance was for the Pennsylvania Club Picnic at Eaton’s Beach. Twenty five people performed. Dolly Haraburda was the director and Annette Geiger the accompanist.
The choir was eventually opened to members from other states. Billy Weiss directed and accompanied. Yvonne LeMere was the substitute director.
In 1996, Jack Wimmer joined as the director and his wife JoAnn Wimmer became the accompanist. As the choir was growing, rehearsals were moved to St. Timothy’s Catholic Church. Later the choir moved to the Church on the Square. Their first concert there was held on May 28, 1997. The choir’s name changed to ‘The Village Voices.’ After three successful seasons, Jack and JoAnn retired in 1999 .
Brad Cummings succeeded as the director and Loretta Cummings as the accompanist. Many dedicated volunteers such as Nancy Lyon and Art Schwartz deserve to be mentioned in the choir’s history. Volunteers are needed for groups to grow and function. Nancy dedicated her time for fourteen years to the Village Voices choir, eventually retiring in 2012. Art gave faithfully of his time for nine years.
In June of 2001, the Cummings retired and Dr. Robert Perinchief accepted the directors role. Peggy Morton became the accompanist. The choir continued to grow and flourish. Fundraisers were held and grants were secured so music and supplies could be purchased and the director and accompanist could be paid.
Sadly, the accompanist and director decided to retire in 2003. As the choir was growing quickly and the Church on the Square was closing for renovations, the choir moved to North Lake Presbyterian Church for their weekly rehearsals and three annual concerts.
Dr. Sandra Willetts was hired as the new Village Voices director. JoAnn Wimmer became her accompanist for two years before she decided to sing fulltime and become the assistant accompanist. At that point, Bill Allen accepted the accompanist position and served the choir for three years. He was succeeded by Dr. John Lowe, who worked together with Sandra Willets until her retirement in 2014. At this point John Lowe took over as director of Village Voices and worked with accompanist Tom Pizzi for the 2014-15 season. Tom resigned and moved to Tampa to teach and accompany there. Sean Pollack took over as the accompanist in 2016 and played for the choir until 2022, when Paul Hoffman became our new VV accompanist. He is our current accompanist.
Dr. John Lowe served as our Village Voice conductor for ten years, then left to pursue his career in Alabama. Dr. Will Kesling has been hired as our new conductor. We are looking forward to an exciting year with him.
The Village Voices board was formed in 1992. Wayne Cunkelman served on the board for 13 years and became the chairman in May of 2005 for three years. Cindy Poet joined the board and served as the new chairperson for nine years before she stepped down.
The Chairman title was eventually changed to President with Jack Bange becoming our first president in 2017. Donna Kagan took over in 2020. Several concerts were missed at the time due to COVID-19. Donna passed the baton over to our current president Tom Meloy in 2022.
In February of 1994, a choir was organized in The Villages by Dolly Haraburda. This was the formation of the choir currently known as the Village Voices. The choir was known then as the Pennsylvania Chorus due to its members all moving from Pennsylvania. The first chorus performance was for the Pennsylvania Club Picnic at Eaton’s Beach. Twenty five people performed. Dolly Haraburda was the director and Annette Geiger the accompanist.
The choir was eventually opened to members from other states. Billy Weiss directed and accompanied. Yvonne LeMere was the substitute director.
In 1996, Jack Wimmer joined as the director and his wife JoAnn Wimmer became the accompanist. As the choir was growing, rehearsals were moved to St. Timothy’s Catholic Church. Later the choir moved to the Church on the Square. Their first concert there was held on May 28, 1997. The choir’s name changed to ‘The Village Voices.’ After three successful seasons, Jack and JoAnn retired in 1999 .
Brad Cummings succeeded as the director and Loretta Cummings as the accompanist. Many dedicated volunteers such as Nancy Lyon and Art Schwartz deserve to be mentioned in the choir’s history. Volunteers are needed for groups to grow and function. Nancy dedicated her time for fourteen years to the Village Voices choir, eventually retiring in 2012. Art gave faithfully of his time for nine years.
In June of 2001, the Cummings retired and Dr. Robert Perinchief accepted the directors role. Peggy Morton became the accompanist. The choir continued to grow and flourish. Fundraisers were held and grants were secured so music and supplies could be purchased and the director and accompanist could be paid.
Sadly, the accompanist and director decided to retire in 2003. As the choir was growing quickly and the Church on the Square was closing for renovations, the choir moved to North Lake Presbyterian Church for their weekly rehearsals and three annual concerts.
Dr. Sandra Willetts was hired as the new Village Voices director. JoAnn Wimmer became her accompanist for two years before she decided to sing fulltime and become the assistant accompanist. At that point, Bill Allen accepted the accompanist position and served the choir for three years. He was succeeded by Dr. John Lowe, who worked together with Sandra Willets until her retirement in 2014. At this point John Lowe took over as director of Village Voices and worked with accompanist Tom Pizzi for the 2014-15 season. Tom resigned and moved to Tampa to teach and accompany there. Sean Pollack took over as the accompanist in 2016 and played for the choir until 2022, when Paul Hoffman became our new VV accompanist. He is our current accompanist.
Dr. John Lowe served as our Village Voice conductor for ten years, then left to pursue his career in Alabama. Dr. Will Kesling has been hired as our new conductor. We are looking forward to an exciting year with him.
The Village Voices board was formed in 1992. Wayne Cunkelman served on the board for 13 years and became the chairman in May of 2005 for three years. Cindy Poet joined the board and served as the new chairperson for nine years before she stepped down.
The Chairman title was eventually changed to President with Jack Bange becoming our first president in 2017. Donna Kagan took over in 2020. Several concerts were missed at the time due to COVID-19. Donna passed the baton over to our current president Tom Meloy in 2022.
