Officers 2010
White Mountains Arizona Chapter
A chapter of the Far Western District and a Member of the Barbershop Harmony Society
Chapter President
Denny Shankland
Denny Shankland was born in Anderson, IN and grew up in Russell, KS. Music has been a big part of his life and he has a recording of himself made on wire when he was 4 years old. His parents had a major role in getting him involved in music. After 12 years of piano, he played French horn in the High School Band, Pep Band, Brass Choir, French horn quartet and sang in churches and many choral groups over the past 50 years. He graduated from Anderson University with a BA in Accounting and a Minor in Music Theory and Literature. While in college, he traveled with the Sojourners Gospel Quartet for 2 years, from New York to California and Canada to Mexico.
Denny has directed four church choirs and is currently an assistant director for the High Country Chorus. In 1998, Denny was Ordained and received an Honorary Doctor of Divinity from the Universal Life Church, and has married 13 couples. Denny joined the faculty at Harmony University 2009, running sound, a major passion.
Denny is the father of two married sons, and has a granddaughter 3 years old. He is single, a rare thing in the chorus, but was once married for 20 years. Some might say that Denny is picky and hard to please. This of course is true, but with good reason. Denny has a passion to see and hear our chorus “ring” those barbershop chords and with the help of Joe Liles, his mentor, and everyone in the chorus, he knows it will happen. Denny has only been doing barbershop since 2005, but is part of an amazing team of men dedicated to this art.
Immediate Past President
Ron LaMar
A Californian all his life until 2006, Ron received his AB and MA in education at San Jose State College, and an EdD from the University of California at Berkeley. As an elementary and junior high principal he directed school choruses at most of his schools. As Asst. Supt. for Area Administration in Cupertino School District, he supervised principals in thirteen schools. Ron sang with the Peninsulaires chorus in 1974, when they won second place at International. He dropped out of barbershopping for many years until he found the High Country Chorus.
Chapter Chorus Director
'Doc' Dockendorf
'Doc' Dockendorf has been the Director of the High Country Chorus since its inception. He is a 49 year member of the Barbershop Harmony Society and has sung in four previous barbershop choruses, W. Palm Beach, Florida Coastmen, Phoenix Phoenicians (three time International gold medal winners), Scottsdale Copper Statesmen, and the Paradise Valley Cactus Chordsmen.
He was a certified Stage Presence judge for 25 years and was choreographer for the Phoenicians for nearly 20 years. He has sung bass in several quartets, starting in high school with the "Cold Fire Four", later in the "Groomsmen", "Sun Pipers" and currently in "The Pine Tones".
He is an adjunct faculty member and teaches Music 199, "Barbershop Chorus Workshop" at Northland Pioneer College. He retired from Motorola after 33 years, and lives in Linden with his wife Jackie. He has three daughters and six grand children.
Chapter V.P. Membership
James H. Burden
James H. Burden was born in Kentucky a year before WW II ended. He says he is old, but well seasoned. James grew up on Chicago, Illinois, during the '50s and '60s. After serving in the United States Army and serving a short tour in Viet Nam, he returned to Chicago, where jobs were not easy to find. So, it was 'Go west young man, go west' in 1972.
Since James served in the military as a military policeman, it didn't take long to get on with the Casa Grande Police Department, where he worked until his retirement in 2006. While he was serving with the Casa Grande Police Department, he also served with the 162nd Fighter Wing, USANG, in Tucson, until his retirement from the military in 2003.
James and his wife Katie have seven children. The youngest, James-Mark H. Burden, has been a member of the High Country Chorus for two years now.
James said, "I have always loved to listen to barbershop style music since I was a little boy in Kentucky." He has sung in church choirs, high school chorus, and in 2003 he joined the Desert Sounds Chorus in Casa Grande and performed with the Desert Sage quartet. He has been hooked ever since. He joined the High Country Barbershop Chorus in 2006. He is currently singing lead with the Knotty Pines quartet.
James is very excited about bringing new folks into the chorus, especially young adults and junior high, high school and college aged men. As the current V.P. of membership, his plan is to encourage men who are interested and qualified to sing with the High Country Barbershop Chorus to come "Join in the Fun."
V.P. Marketing and Public Relations
Steve Voller
Steve, the section leader in our lead section, was born in Albany , New York, midway during the last century and grew up in the Adirondack Mountains. He is a very talented musician who played trombone and saxophone during his formative school years and moved to percussion in high school. In addition to band, he was active in choral music from grade school through high school and was a stand out in his college glee club. During his college years at Union College, he not only took voice lessons and wrote musical compositions but was very active in sports, mostly tennis and volleyball. How he had time to attend classes and do all these activities is still a mystery, but after enrolling as a pre-med major, he finished with a BS in psychology with math as a double major. After graduation Steve spent a year and a half moving from youth counseling to marketing and fundraising for the Easter Seal Society to insurance adjuster. Today he is a claims manager with Colony Insurance.
Steve enjoys collecting anything Coca Cola and is a member of the Budweiser Stein Club. He is married to a lovely young woman named Buff and because of his love for the small town environment, mountains and the proximity of Buff’s family, Steve and company settled in the White Mountains . He is not only a very talented musician, but was the general contractor for the construction of his home. In addition to Barbershop, Steve enjoys guitar music, classical music and songs from the 60’s and 70’s.
V.P. Music and Performance
Everett Peterson
Chapter Treasurer
John Welker
John started singing in the 7th grade when his voice changed and he was given a lead part in the 7th and 8th grade production of "Aida." He then sang with the "Manufacturers Chorus" in Connecticut for 18 years; a men's chorus that sang standard 4 part harmony. He and his wife Jane moved to Arizona in 1970 and joined the "Phoenix Opera Company." He and Jane sang with them until Tucson took over all future Operas.
John also sang with the "Masterworks Chorus," which was the Phoenix Symphony Chorus. An interesting sidelight was his bringing together 4 major choruses, "The Phoenicians," "The Masterworks Chorus," "The Scottsdale Sweet Adelines Chorus," and "The Orpheus Men's Chorus" to do a combined show called "The Chocolate Chordials" with 440 voices doing music from each genre.
After the Opera stints, he and his wife joined the "Scottish Singers" for a few years. His introduction into Barbershop music was at a "Phoenicians" show in the Sundome in 1982. He joined the chorus in 1983 and went to Seattle where they won the International Society gold medal under director Lou Laurel. He sang with them until he retired in 1999, when he and Jane moved to Taylor, Arizona. John reunited with Doc Dockendorf and others to form the "High Country Chorus." Over all those years, he has sung with church choirs and still does solos at various churches.
John teaches a class in "Vocal Production" at Northland Pioneer College.
Chapter Secretary
Jim Dye
Jim was born and raised in El Paso , Texas , attended Texas Western College and The University of Texas. After completing his Master’s in Geology, he spent the next 40 years working in oil and gas exploration and interstate natural gas transportation working for several companies as a reservoir geologist, reservoir engineer and science specialist in New Orleans, Shreveport and Houston. Jim's wife of 42 years, Noni, currently serves as a Methodist pastor in Overgaard and they have 3 children. Their oldest daughter lives in Flagstaff and works as a claims specialist for Farmer’s Insurance. Their son David lives in Houston , where he is manager of corporate finance for BMC software and has twin sons aged 8. Nancy , their youngest, lives in Scottsdale and is an advance practice nurse and psychiatric nurse practitioner at the Meadows. Prior to Jim's retirement, he sang for 35 years in chancel choir, rang hand bells for 30 years and for 20 years acted and sang in their church’s summer musical theater presentations. In addition to Barbershop, Jim loves classical, semi-classical and music from the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s. His main hobbies are landscape photography, gardening and copper foiled stained glass.
Board Member at Large
Ron Monette
Board Member at Large
Steve Pansulla
Board Member at Large
Joe Stone
Joe was born in Mississippi and lived there on a farm until 9 years old. The family moved to Wichita Falls , Texas . From the radio in Joe's cars at the time he learned to sing every detail of every popular song. In junior high, he was in a singing glee club for a while. Although the technology has changed Joe has always keep up by singing along with a music player. Through high school and on through today - and into the future - singing in his car continues.
Joe obtained a degree of BS in Biology and Math at Midwestern University . There was a period of Army Reserves. Joe worked as a research assistant for ten years as a crop physiologist, in agronomy and crop breeding at the U of A, Tucson, where he took a number of personal interest classes. After a resignation from The U of A, Joe worked almost another ten years as a sweat equity partner managing a crew of employees to cut, rake, bale, stack and deliver alfalfa, oats, sudan grass, small grain straw and bermuda grass over a thousand plus acres. It was here, in December 1988, that Joe and Barbara were married. The last anniversary was the twenty first.
Joe earned a second degree of MS in Forestry at Northern AZ University in Flagstaff . Another ten years were spent there as a research technician for three professors at the Forestry School studying forest physiology, forest soils, and forest insects. A plethora of other jobs, colleges and universities will go un-listed.
Barbara had been a MS in Social Work and other subjects. Barbara obtained her BS in Nursing in Flagstaff. Next Barbara earned a MS as a Nurse Practitioner. Then Barbara found a rewarding position as a medical provider in Show Low at the Community Counseling Centers and Pineview Hospital . In a short time Joe was sponsored by Pastor Jim Porter to sing with the White Mountains AZ Chapter of the Barbershop Harmony Society.
Joe sings Bass, and also serves as the Music Librarian.
Northland Pioneer College Representative on the Board
Everett Robinson
A resident of the White Mountains for 25 years, Everett Robinson is the Media Relations Coordinator for Northland Pioneer College, a position he has filled since 1994. He previously worked for the White Mountain Independent, Pinetop-Lakeside News, Lake Powell Chronicle, Navajo-Hopi Observer, Sierra Vista Herald-Dispatch, University of New Mexico Daily Lobo, Phoenix College Bear Tracks, Gateway Times and Huachuca Scout. He utilizes his 42 years of community journalism, printing and publishing experience to prepare the promotional materials for the HCBC, including the concert programs, and for the White Mountain Symphony Orchestra. He served on the WMSO Board of Directors for seven years.
While not a musician or performer, Everett can generally be found behind-the-scenes, operating audio-visual services at church services, or assisting with stage preparations.
His wife, Debbie, is a church pianist and has sung with the White Mountain Chorale. They have two grown children and five grandchildren.
All formal photos on this page except Everett Robinson - © by Chorus Photographer Conrad Monroe, 2009, 2010 |
