Virginia, an assistant professor of music at Simpson College, is a soprano who has performed with numerous orchestras across North America, including Cincinnati, Detroit, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Winnipeg, Houston and Utah as well as the St. Louis Symphony under the direction of Leonard Slatkin. Carnegie Hall audiences have heard her in Fauré’s Requiem with the New Jersey Symphony. Equally at home on the opera stage, Croskery Lauridsen has received critical acclaim in such works as Cosí fan Tutte (Dorabella).

Dick attained a B.A. from Cornell College and an M.A. from the University of Iowa. Though not a musician himself, he has throughout his life loved all kinds of music and attended and supported music events and organizations. He returned to Des Moines from Iowa City in the summer of 2012 after spending 11 years of retirement enjoying country living and community/area culture in Iowa City. The desire to downsize from a country home to a condominium within walking access to cultural venues, outdoor recreational activities and lifelong friends brought him to downtown Des Moines.

Karen recently retired from Wells Fargo, after a 30-year career as a banking attorney. She is enjoying retirement by biking, cooking, reading, traveling, volunteering and music.

Todd is the Research Director for the Crop Genome Engineering group at DuPont Pioneer, leading teams located in Johnston, IA and Hayward, CA. The Crop Genome Engineering (CGE) group provides genetic modification services in support of all Pioneer biotech trait programs. Todd joined Pioneer in December 2010 after 7 years with BASF Plant Science in Research Triangle Park, NC, as the Tech Center Leader for Cell Biology.

Jeff has over 20 years of experience in sales and relationship management and is currently Client Development Manager for Live Nation/Ticketmaster for the Central U.S. Region. He grew up listening to old jazz albums his grandfather would play when he lived with him. By the age of 11, Jeff was fronting his own New Orleans Band. He continued leading jazz groups in high school, and as a music student at the University of Northern Iowa, where he performed with a national award-winning group New Orleans combo.

Amy is the Executive Director of Development in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Iowa State University Foundation, where she leads the fundraising efforts for the college. She has worked in development at the Iowa State University Foundation since 2006.

Chuck is the president and owner of Iowa Diamond in Des Moines. Prior to entering the diamond business, Chuck was employed as an account executive with a major Midwest advertising agency, as publisher of Performing Arts magazine, general director of the Lyric Opera of Dallas, director of marketing and communications of The Dallas Opera, assistant executive director for institutional advancement of the Asolo Center for Performing Arts, and as director of marketing for the Florida Philharmonic Orchestra.

Anthony has been a CMA subscriber since 2006 and one of its biggest fans. His passion for jazz music began at an early age as he grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Anthony’s cousin was part of a group of investors that opened one of the pre-eminent jazz clubs (All That Jazz) in the 80s.

James is the owner of Bottles and Botega, a wine and painting studio located in downtown Des Moines. Before launching Bottles and Botega, James worked at John Deere in a number of key technology roles, delivering effective IT solutions to help John Deere achieve its business goals. Prior to joining John Deere in 2004, James was an IT Analyst at Principal Residential Mortgage.

Clarence is a Professor of Music (clarinet) at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, where he also has served as past Music Department Chair. He has been a regular member of the Des Moines Symphony since 2000, and served as the Acting Principal Clarinet for the 2010-11 Concert Season. Mr. Padilla has performed with a highly varied group of artists, including Yo-Yo Ma, Itzhak Perlman, Joshua Bell, Sarah Chang, Midori, Ray Charles, and Kristin Chenoweth.

A Des Moines native, Stephen returned one year ago to live in a locally-famed brick roundhouse and is Director of Implementation at Proving Ground, an architecture consulting company based in Omaha. In his work, Stephen has focused on Early Childhood Development Centers and higher education projects across the nation, including the Stevanovich Institute on the Formation of Knowledge at the University of Chicago. His desires for environmentally-regenerating and aesthetically pleasing designs are thoughtfully present in the work he does.

For over twenty-five years, Käri has been an active member of the Des Moines community supporting entrepreneurism, arts, culture and community development by helping organizations and individuals design and implement strategies to creatively and sustainably engage audiences. As a Sustainable Workplace Solutions specialist at Baker Group, one of the nation’s premier specialty contractors, she helps organizational leaders preserve and renew building assets. Käri is also Vice President of LW Advisors, an investment management boutique and former owner of Schaffer’s Bridal.

Sarah Sullivan grew up in Pella where marching band and jazz were as important to the culture of the high school and community as the football team. Sarah has always had a love of music and while she dabbled in instruments, she has been singing all her life. She and her husband, Nick Bigelow, are church musicians at St. Augustin and enjoy helping the younger students become comfortable cantoring.

Andy works as the Chief Strategic Communications Officer for United Way of Central Iowa. As the head of marketing and communications, and a member of the senior leadership team, Andy works to ensure central Iowans understand and relate to the work United Way does leading the fight for the health, education, and financial stability of all central Iowans. As a professional musician, TeBockhorst has performed in central Iowa since 1991 on keyboards and vocals in the bands The Flying Marsupials and Monkey Monkey Monkey. In 2016 he was inducted into the Iowa Rock N Roll Hall of Fame.

Brooke was born and raised in Beijing, China. She obtained her Bachelor’s degree in English from the University in Shanghai and went on to pursue her Master’s degree in Education at Purdue University, Indiana. Having always been fascinated by the law, she decided to pursue a Juris Doctor degree from Drake University and will graduate in May 2016.