The Tacoma AGO scholarship committee has awarded the 2017-2018 scholarship to Collin Whitfield.  Collin is a student of Paul Tegels, and the organist at Mason United Methodist Church.

Collin has sent the following message to our chapter:

I am grateful to the Tacoma AGO scholarship committee for awarding me a grant to help further my organ studies.  Most of my experience and training has been in composition and piano.  I have been studying piano for 18 years (since I was 7) and hold a Bachelor of Music in Composition degree from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, where I studied with David Conte and Mason Bates.  For the last year, I have been working as music director and organist for Mason Church in Tacoma.  I have been blessed with the opportunity to learn organ “on the job” at the church.  This scholarship will pay off every week at our church services as I work to incorporate what I learn from lessons.  In the near future, I hope to pursue a Master of Music degree in either Organ or Composition.

Many thanks to the scholarship committee, consisting of David Dahl, Betsy Buck, and Cheryl Drewes, for formalizing our application process, developing award criteria, and for awarding the grant.