Jack was born and raised in Spokane, Washington. After receiving his Bachelor and Master degrees in Music from Washington State University, he taught music for 37 years in the Enumclaw School District, which included directing bands at the elementary, junior, and senior high levels. Besides directing our group since its inception, Jack has directed pit orchestras for local musical theater productions and the choirs, soloists, and orchestras of the local Messiah festivals. He is also active as a performer on trumpet, cornet and flugelhorn, playing with bands, orchestras and pit orchestras in the area on a guest basis. Lately, he’s also been playing percussion (primarily timpani) with the Pierce College Concert Band and the Renton City Concert Band. Since retiring from teaching, he has also been serving as a bugler at Tahoma National Cemetery, playing for military honors committal services.
Jack has two grown sons, two wonderful daughters-in-law, and four fantastic grandchildren (two girls and two boys). Music is a big thing in his family. Among the eight people listed above, there are three trumpet players, a clarinet player, a French horn player, a euphonium player and a string bass player. Jack’s younger son is a band director at Schreiber High School in Port Washington, New York and directs a community band there in July. The older of his two granddaughters is a sophomore in Music Education at Western Washington University.
In his spare time, Jack enjoys trailer camping and driving around town in his 1924 Model T Ford (“Big Mike”). He also enjoys flying maneuverable kites on the ocean beach and riding his E-bike.
