New HOA president, board installed for 2025

With not exactly military precision, the new Heart of America Chorus Board members were lined up for their installation Jan. 11, 2025, by Colonel Michael Kopp, German liaison officer to the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center of Ft. Leavenworth.

Kopp was on hand to swear in the 13 new board members at the HOA Installation and Awards Banquet at Joe's KC Barbecue's 180 Room in Olathe. He called the newly elected 2025 officers forward and tasked them with their specific responsibilities.


More than 50 Kansas City Chapter members and family attended the ceremony, annual awards presentation, Joe's barbecue feed and a bit of singing.

Board members inaugurated were:

President Danny Anderson
Immediate Past President Mike Schumacher
Secretary Tom Hadley
Treasurer Harvey Shapiro
Public Relations VP Chris Walker
Chapter Development VP Don Fuson
Music & Performance VP John Braden
Operations VP Steve Keisker
Program VP Tom Riedel
Members at Large Tony O'Brien, Vince Perry IV, Carl Turlin, Michael Heath.

A big thank you went to departing Program VP Jerry Meier for his program work, as well as direction of the Harmony Explosion! youth singing program and his flawless organization and hosting of the installation banquet itself. Jerry remains the impresario of Harmony Explosion, which is coming Feb. 22.

Colonel Kopp and his wife Violetta were presented a certificate of appreciation from HOA for inviting the chorus several times to perform at the annual German Unification Celebration and dinner for international military officers and spouses at Ft. Leavenworth. Mrs. Kopp was included in gratitude for coaching the chorus' German pronunciation of the German National Anthem. Colonel Kopp is being reassigned, completing his term as German liaison.

Newly elected President Danny Anderson thanked his predecessor Mike Schumacher for five years of steady leadership and hard work and expressed gratitude to Director Carter Combs, other board members and the chorus itself. Anderson said as president he will be a delegator and coach and that he would be approaching many members to ask for their help. He encouraged members to step up and volunteer before that happens. He also challenged board members, saying, "Find someone to shadow you and learn what you are doing. Work is easier in teams to share the load."

HOA Director Carter Combs recalled his remarks at the 2024 banquet in which he noted live singers have had to compete with electronic entertainment starting with Thomas Edison in 1877 and that HOA must strive to attract audiences or take the singing to them. He said that had proven successful in the past year with the chorus participating in about 15 performance opportunities, ranging from festivals to stage shows to barbershop contests.

Combs thanked Schumacher for his work and noted Schumacher recently restored the Kansas City Chapter's charter, which was presented in 1938 to the No. 2 chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America by society founder O.C. Cash. The charter was on display at the banquet.

John Braden acknowledged the passing of the seven HOA members who joined the "Chapter Eternal" in 2024: Dave Marti, Michael Owen, Gordon Coleman, Frank Lasta, Chris Kinghorn, Bob Murphy and Tony Strub. Added to the list was E. Nile Abbott, whose death in 2022 was discovered during pre-banquet review of living former chapter presidents. Nile was president in 1963.

The Kansas City Chapter's most prestigious award, the Joe Stern Lifetime Achievement Award, was presented to Mike Schumacher, who completed his fifth year as HOA president in two stints separated by only one year. That is more than any other man in chapter history. Runner-up was Barbershop legend Joe Stern himself, with four years in three separate stints.

Mike Schumacher shall be remembered as HOA's COVID President – striving to keep the chorus functioning through the worst national calamity since World War II. Every time something needs to be done, Mike Schumacher is already doing it. In addition to five years as president and four years as a board member before that, Mike stepped in to assume the chorus manager job. In the fall of 2017, he became an associate director. He has won the chapter's other three major awards for his service.

John Braden was named the 2024 Barbershopper of the Year. John is a 42-year society member, has sung lead in four quartets and currently is Music and Performance Vice President. When the chorus could not meet in person during 400 days of COVID pandemic, John e-mailed at least one barbershop video or recording to all HOA members every day, helping keep hope alive that HOA would ring chords again someday. In presenting the award, Mike Schumacher said, "He is dependable, knows his music, knows when this piece of music was written, why it was written this way and why we should sing it with the heart, enthusiasm and love that the Heart of America Chorus is known for."

The John Cross Award is presented annually to the HOA member with the best attendance record and who is always on hand to take on the job no one else wants. The first award was presented in 1989 to John Cross himself, a full 33 years after he was named Barbershopper of the Year. Since then, there have been 34 John Cross Awards made. Like all HOA awards, it has never been awarded twice to the same person.

The 2024 winner, Danny Anderson, meets the award’s attendance requirement with a 95 percent-plus attendance record – the most for any guy who has not won before. He has been a Barbershop Society member for 18 years and he came to HOA in 2021 from the Mad Hatter Chorus of Danbury, Conn. Despite his relatively short time with the chapter, he agreed to serve on the HOA Board in 2022. Danny served as executive vice president until his new installation as chapter president.

The Homeward Bound very large quartet performed altogether and in separate foursomes, comprising Don Fuson, Tom Hadley, Michael Heath, Tony O'Brien, Ted Simon, Alex Tate, Carl Turlin and Chris Walker.