Lynn Arwady

If you hear humming or singing in the halls at Country Day, it's probably my voice. My name is Lynn Arwady, and music has always been a big part of my life. My marching band days as a majorette are over, but I still play the piano and sing.

I am a native of Michigan, but I have traveled the world. Being the hula-hoop champion of Hamilton, Michigan, was a BIG thrill back in the '60s; yes, I'm old enough to remember seeing the Beatles on Ed Sullivan!

I have attended symphony concerts since childhood and have sung in many choirs. A Hope College graduate, I received my M.A. from Northwestern University and completed all but the dissertation for a doctorate in education at Western Michigan University.

I taught in Portage for five years and then became a full-time mom and chauffeur for our four children, Allison, Meredith, Rand, and Abbey (who were involved in more organized teams and activities than seems humanly possible). We all love Broadway musicals, and we sang them at the top of our lungs. The music room at my home still echoes from the thousands of hours the children spent practicing instruments and singing.

As a volunteer, I led our children in church choirs; all four sang with the Kalamazoo Children's Chorus, and I served on the board. They all were in the Loy Norrix High School musicals, and I worked on costumes for every show. My community involvement also included being a docent at the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts, volunteering with the Gilmore Keyboard Festival, and serving on the boards of KAMSC, Crescendo Academy of Music, and the Kalamazoo Bach Festival.

I taught expository writing in the ATYP progam at Kalamazoo College and WMU for nine years and taught in the music and gifted programs in Kalamazoo Public Schools.  I enjoy reading, doing interior decorating, and writing poetry. I'm known as a "hat lady;" my collection fills an entire room!

In the past decade I have studied African hand drumming, learned to tap dance, made my Civic Theatre debut in "The Music Man," sung alto in my church choir, and rung in a handbell choir. A major thrill was singing John Rutter's "Requiem" with a huge choir at Carnegie Hall, while the composer, himself, conducted.

My "claim to fame" is being the mother of Meredith, a professional opera singer who made her Metropolitan Opera debut in Dr. Atomic in 2008. I've followed her, literally, to watch her perform in cities including New Orleans, San Francisco, Philadelphia, Toronto, Chicago, and Santa Fe.

My time at Country Day is filled with the joy of sharing music, which I love, with delightful, enthusiastic students. It's my dream job!