Our People

Creative staff

Who makes the music happen

Director

Stacie Court

Stacie has a deep love of learning and a great respect for lifelong learners, which has led her to a career focused on older beginner and intermediate singers. Her background is varied: separate degrees in German Literature and Language and in Vocal Performance, plus a diploma in Accounting. She has maintained a private voice studio since 1996, teaching in Savannah and Athens, and has directed church choirs and community choruses for most of that time.

She believes strongly in meeting each singer where they are, and considers herself a facilitator — someone whose job is to help another person sing better and more regularly across the course of their life. She has sung in choruses ranging from the Virginia Opera Chorus to a Hispanic Women’s Quintet, and currently sings with Joe Napoli’s concert series, the Athens Chamber Singers, and the choir at St. Gregory the Great Episcopal Church. Stacie has worked with many well-known composers and directors, and is always ready for the next chance to learn more as a director, a singer, and a supporter of other singers.

Accompanist

Amanda Mazzaferro

Amanda received a Bachelor of Arts in Music, Latin, and Classical Culture from the University of Georgia in 2009, and a Master of Music Performance with a focus on Piano Pedagogy from UGA in 2011. She has taught independently since 2008 and enjoys sharing her love of piano and music with all ages.

She was president of the UGA Collegiate Music Teachers National Association chapter from 2009 to 2011, secretary of the Athens Music Teachers Association from 2019 to 2021, and has served as its vice president of programs since 2021. She is a member of the Music Teachers National Association and the Georgia Music Teachers Association. In 2010 she founded K.E.Y.S., a music camp for young students. Amanda has been music director at Holy Cross Lutheran Church since 2017 and has accompanied Meridian Women’s Chorus since 2019. She has performed and taught in Georgia, New York, and Missouri.

Executive committee

Our officers

Every one of them also sings.

President

Betsy Vonk

I started singing with Meridian in January of 2023 after a nearly 30 year hiatus from choral singing. Choral singing brings me great joy, challenges me to keep learning, and provides a lovely community of people who are passionate about bringing joy to others through music. When I’m not singing, you will most likely find me quilting or cooking.

Vice-President

Kate McClain

Treasurer

Vicki Connell

I have been blessed to sing in many groups led by excellent choral directors since I was a small child in a small church in a small northwestern Nebraska town. My best friend in childhood had perfect pitch and taught her friends to sing in harmony while riding horses across the open prairies. Those humble beginnings have led to many fun choral adventures.

Vicki moved to Athens in 1981 to spend a year in graduate school studying Gifted and Creative Education, and found she could never leave. She has sung with as many as five groups at one time in recent years, often singing tenor — because she can, and because most groups need more. She has been exploring women’s music with Meridian since 2017.

Secretary

Ellen Ritchey

I started singing with Meridian in September 2022. Having retired earlier that year, I was happy to finally have the time to join. I have sung all my life, as both a soloist and a choir member. I have had many experiences of awe and wonder as voices unite to create something that none of us could reach alone. I find singing with other women to be uniquely empowering and meaningful.

Librarian

Janet Rodekohr

I have been singing since school days in Nebraska and have looked for choirs to join throughout my life, whether school, church, or community groups. I have been a member of Meridian for about ten years.

Janet also sings with the Athens Chamber Singers and has traveled abroad to international music festivals, as well as performing at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston with the Friendship Community Choir. Her professional career involved writing news and creating marketing plans for the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Since retiring she has taken up watercolor; her work has been accepted into several shows and has won a few awards. She also handled publicity for the chorus prior to July 2023.

Publicity

Corinne Wilkinson

I joined Meridian in August of 2024, and I like that I have a set time every week to use my voice to make music. Even though I play woodwind instruments pretty frequently, vocal music is something I’m not as familiar with. I like that Meridian is welcoming to all levels of singers and gives me the opportunity to practice good vocal technique in a low-stress setting.

Corinne teaches music privately. Her fun time is spent contra dancing, leading dances, playing her instruments, and playing video games.

At-large members

Also on the committee

Linda Dodson
Lisa Kohler
Roberta Merkle
Pauline Rakich
Linda Tiller

Roberta Merkle

Since I was always in the band in high school and college, I never had the opportunity to sing in chorus. Music has always been a passion, and as an adult I started singing in my synagogue choir. About twenty years ago I decided to sing with the Athens Choral Society, and since then I have become a choir geek. I have been a member of Meridian since 2009, through five directors and a pandemic.

Her other passions are reading, science — she is a retired biochemist — and Zumba. They keep her young.

Linda Tiller

Linda has sung in church choirs since her childhood in Iowa. Through 37 professional years as a teacher and media specialist she kept singing in church and community groups, including more than 30 years in the Douglas County area with the West Atlanta Douglas County Singers and the Douglas County Chamber Singers. Those groups took her to the Georgia Capitol, Château Élan, several performances with the Army Ground Forces Band in Atlanta, and two performances at Carnegie Hall.

Since moving to the Athens area in 2018 and joining Meridian, I have enjoyed the music, the rehearsals, the performances, and especially the friendships. We sing varied programs and discover cultural bridges that music provides.

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