News Release
Contact: Katryn Conlin, 612-547-1459
kconlin@vocalessence.org

VocalEssence welcomes four new members to board of directors: Uri Camarena, Mike McCarthy, Paul Pribbenow and Debra Sit

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (October 30, 2007) — VocalEssence, a choral music non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, is very pleased to welcome four new members to its Board of Directors. They were elected to serve three-year terms beginning in September 2007. They are:

* Uri Camarena (Business Consultant, MEDA)
* Mike McCarthy (Retired CEO, Williams Steel and Hardware)
* Paul Pribbenow (President, Augsburg College)
* Debra Sit (Vice President, Sit Investment Associates).

In addition, the following slate of four board officers was confirmed in June:

* Board President Dorene Werneke (Community Volunteer)
* Vice President David Durenberger (Vice-President Chair & CEO, National Institute of Health Policy)
* Treasurer Kent Eklund (President, Fairview Foundation)
* Secretary Jan McDaniel (CEO, American Red Cross Twin Cities Area Chapter)

“The expertise and enthusiasm of these community leaders is invaluable in helping VocalEssence further its mission of bringing new music to Minnesota audiences and engaging our wider community in the fine arts,” said Philip Brunelle, artistic director and founder of VocalEssence.

See below for biographies of the four new board members. For more information, call Katryn Conlin (612-547-1459) or email kconlin@vocalessence.org.

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Biographies of New VocalEssence Board Members

Business consultant Uri Camarena has 30 years of diversified corporate experience with a strong background in operations, communications, public relations and learning and development. He has participated in multiple international start-up projects in Europe and South America. He holds a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Minnesota (1978) and an MBA from Saint Mary’s University (2001). Besides VocalEssence, he has served on non-profit boards for the Minnesota Center for Book Arts, PACER, Boys and Girls Club, Minnesota Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, the Minnesota International Center and Gray Wolf Press.

Mike McCarthy is the retired CEO of Williams Steel and Hardware in Minneapolis. He is the treasurer of Chorus America, and has previously served as treasurer and chair of the American Composers Forum, treasurer and chair of the Dale Warland Singers, and board chair of the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches. He and his wife Kay have commissioned numerous choral works: most recently “The Day is Done” by Stephen Paulus and The World Beloved: A Bluegrass Mass, by Carol Barnett and Marisha Chamberlain, both for premiere by VocalEssence. Mike returns to the VocalEssence Board after a two-year absence, during which time he continued as a member of the Finance Committee.

Paul Pribbenow became the president of Augsburg College in 2006. He was previously president of Rockford College in Illinois. He also has served as research fellow for the Center of Inquiry in the Liberal Arts at Wabash College (Indiana); Dean for College Advancement and Secretary of the Board of Trustees at Wabash College; Vice President of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago; and Associate Dean of the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. Paul holds a B.A. 1978 from Luther College, in Decorah, Iowa, and an M.A. and Ph.D. in social ethics from the University of Chicago.

Debra Sit is a Senior Vice President and Senior Fixed Income Portfolio Manager at Sit Investment Associates. She has a B.A. in biology from the University of Minnesota and an MBA from the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. She currently serves on the board of the University of Minnesota Foundation, the advisory board of the Carlson School Funds Enterprise and the board of Minneapolis Rotary Club #9. She has served on the boards of the Minnesota International Center, the Library Foundation of Hennepin County and the Minnesota Society of Municipal Analysts. Debra has also been involved with the Junior League of Minneapolis for a number of years and has volunteered with the American Cancer Society as well.

Founded in 1969, VocalEssence explores music for voices and
instruments under the enthusiastic direction of conductor Philip
Brunelle.
VocalEssence | 1900 Nicollet Avenue | Minneapolis, MN 55403 | www.vocalessence.org