The Music Suite at MAHS will be named for long-time Choir Director Gordy Moeller

By Tim Douglass, tdouglass@pctribune.com

The Music Suite at Minnewaska Area High School will soon carry the name of long-time choir director Gordy Moeller, thanks to an anonymous donation to the Minnewaska Laker Foundation Endowment Fund.

The announcement of the donation came on the heels of another major gift to the endowment fund naming the art suite after two retired art teachers, Susan Fossen and Ivie Cooley.

The donation came from a couple that wanted the music suite to be named the Gordy Moeller Music Suite at Minnewaska Area High School because of the impact he has had on many students over the past 41 years. Moeller has been the local choir director since 1981. 

“If anyone has ever been to a Gordy Moeller directed choir concert over his 41 years at MAHS, you have witnessed his passion.  His kids’ performances, whether at the high school or in Florida, exude that same passion.” said Greg Uhde, who chairs the Minnewaska Laker Foundation’s Endowment committee.  

“He has been able to get the most out of those students year in and year out.  I can’t think of a better name that embodies the music program at MAHS than Gordy Moeller!”

Greg Uhde, vice-president and chair 
of the Minnewaska Laker Foundation committee  

“Having had the opportunity to share the wonderful naming rights news with Gordy, I could feel his pride and love for the music program.  It just felt right and reminded me of why our mission is so important,” Uhde added.

Gordy came to Glenwood right after graduating from Moorhead State University.  “The day the job was posted at Moorhead, it took me about 20 minutes to get the application out,” Gordy said last week.  It was actually his second offer, but he turned the first one down to take the job in Glenwood.

  He had traveled through Glenwood a few times when he was still living in New York Mills.  He and his brother would meet in Glenwood and sometimes have a picnic in town. “When I saw the job at Glenwood High School, I knew that’s where I wanted to be,” he said.  “I’ve had a couple of offers at other schools, but Glenwood is always where I wanted to be and where I wanted to stay.”

He said there was something about Glenwood that pulled at him even at a young age.  A few years ago, he was going through some of his high school things and found a house he had designed for a housing class and, as a high school senior, he had placed the house on the north shore of Lake Minnewaska.

 Moeller, who taught and directed the choir for 10 years at Glenwood High School moved in the same position to the new Minnewaska Area High School when it opened in 1991.  He jokes that he is the best high school choir director in the history of Minnewaska Area High School because he’s been the only one. He is still teaching and directing choir at MAHS. Although he may consider retiring in the next couple of years, he said he really loves what he does.

“I say I really don’t have a job; I have a hobby that I love,” he said.  I get to come in everyday and work with kids, so I’ve never really had to ‘work’ a day in my life.  I really love every aspect of working with the kids,” he said.  

When he learned that the music suite was being named for him, he said he was humbled and very surprised.  “When I got the call about this, I just, well, I usually have a lot to say, but I was just speechless,” he said.  “The only words I could say was “thank you.”

“I want to thank the donor and the Laker Foundation for this honor,” Gordy said.  “My hope is that music education continues to remain important for this district. A strong music program is a very positive reflection on the school and the overall community,” he said.  

Although his name will be on the music suite, the music department is really all about the students, he added.  “It’s the choir students over the years that really made the department what it is. I’m really honored to have my name associated with it, but the department is really about the kids,” Gordy added.

And when asked what he is most proud of, he again talks about the students.  “I’m most proud of the number of students who came through the choir program.”  He said he is very proud of the fact that about a dozen of his former students are now working in music professionally, some teaching music and some performing.   He pointed to current MAS music teachers Jen Germundson and Heidi Polzin, who were both students of his.  And, of course, David Ask was one of Gordy’s students who is a well-known professional musician.  

“The kids are the ones with the God-given talent and I’m just glad that something happened here that sparked their interest in music,” Gordy said.  “I’ve been blessed with some very, very talented students over the years.”

He is also proud of the students’ interest in choir, saying he has always had good numbers of students willing to be in high school choir.  He remembers talking with other choir directors from other schools who complained that they just could not get participation.  “I would say, well, I have 36 bass singers in my choir and they’d ask why 36?  “Because that’s all I had room for,” he would reply.  

Gordy always tried to get as many kids as possible to participate in regional solo or ensemble competition over the years.  “I’ve been blessed with many kids  named “All-State” for their solo or ensemble work, he added.  The highlight of the program was in the early 2000s when he had 200 entries in the subsection competition.  There were times when his program had to have its own contest with “our own judges because there were too many kids who wanted to participate,” Gordy explained.  

He credits his wife, Diane, with a lot of the success of the choir’s soloists and ensembles.  “She spends a lot of time working with the kids because she’s not only the accompanist, but also has taught voice at the University of Minnesota-Morris.”

My hope is that music education continues to remain important for this district. A strong music program is a very positive reflection on the school and the overall community.”

Gordy Moeller, MAHS Choir Director

He said he was also very proud of the culture created by the students over the years.  “They are the ones who wanted to do good music and perform it well.  It’s their commitment that continued through the years.  It’s not about me, it’s about all the students year after year who helped create this culture,” he explained.  “I’m most proud of the number of students who have come through this choir program and the retention level of the program.”  

Gordy has reached the point in his teaching career where is now teaching a lot of the children of his former students. He is now teaching his first grandchild of a former student.  

He has been taking the choir to Florida to perform every other year since 1993. He has taken the choirs on that trip 17 times, three with Glenwood High School choirs and 14 times with Minnewaska choirs. 

In addition to his teaching duties, Gordy has been a coach at MAHS since 1991, including boys’ and girls’ track coach and assistant football coach.  “I love coaching because it allows the students to see me in a different light and creates a new connection with them,” he said.  

Although high school choir is his passion, Gordy has also been very involved in Showstoppers, a community theater production group, and has served as choir director of Glenwood Lutheran Church off and on, but consistently over the past 13 years.  

About the Minnewaska Laker Foundation’s endowment program 

The Minnewaska Laker Foundation’s endowment program kicked off in July of last year, when the Minnewaska Laker Foundation began accepting new donor Endowment contract proposals.

In the fall of 2020, the Laker Foundation board began a Vision and Mission process, bringing on several new members to the board, many of whom had graduated from MAHS and had moved back to the community, said Karna Peters, president of the Laker Foundation.  

“It was a happy circumstance that our Vision/Mission process was already underway, and we had new board members with children in the school system who were excited about this direction and stepped forward to revitalize our foundation and expand its focus,” Peters said.   

What is the Endowment fund?

The purpose of the Minnewaska Laker Foundation Endowment Fund is to:

• Raise a significant amount of money.

• Invest and preserve the principal.

• Use the earnings generated by the principal to enhance and support school district programs and facilities.  

The fund earnings would be used for items “above and beyond” the items that are typically funded in the school budget (for example, classroom textbooks, furniture, maintenance expenses, consumable items and staff development are paid for by the school and not through the fund). The fund will provide lasting financial support for the Laker Foundation’s mission to support student excellence.  The initial goal of the Minnewaska Laker Foundation is to raise $3,000,000 by January 1, 2024.

Minnewaska Laker Foundation Board

The board members added to the Minnewaska Laker Foundation board last year were:  Chad Barsness:  School Board representative; Chris Bennes:  High School representative; Jennifer Erickson:  Elementary School representative; Karna Palmer, Junior High representative; and Heidi Polzin:  Fine Arts/Music representative. Other Minnewaska Laker Foundation board members are Bill Mills, (Athletic/activities representative), Bob Hendrickson (Vice President), Donna Braaten (Secretary), Sheila Pfeninger (Treasurer), Karna Peters as President, Rick Ekstrand (Past President), Carrie Janu, Greg Uhde, Brianna Zuber Beckwith (Chair of our Vision/Mission Committee), Breanna Sherlin, Keshia Solem, Bridget Gallagher, Kathy Jacobs, Bobbi Matt, and Neil Nelson.  Chip Rankin as Superintendent will be an ex-officio member.

“When I joined the Laker Foundation in 2020,” said Uhde, “we expanded our mission beyond athletics to include students in the arts and education.  When we introduced the Endowment Program, we have enabled the community to assist the student body while leaving a legacy.  What a wonderful pairing!”

“Thank you, Gordy, for your years of service and allowing the Laker Foundation to be a small part of your MAHS journey!” Uhde said last week.

If anyone has any questions about the Endowment Program, please reach out to Greg Uhde at 320-424-1880 or guhde@nextgen.com.  The donor proposals can be found on Minnewaska Laker Foundation website at www.minnewaska.k12.mn.us/foundation.  Once filled out, they can be delivered to the MAS Superintendent’s office, c/o Angie VanZee, email avanzee@isd2149.org.