Area 5 Board Members

The Area 5 board members are here to serve you. If you have any Area 5 business, ideas for festivals or workshops, or questions about handbells in general, please reach out to us. We are happy to help in any way we can.

The Area 5 Board has a history of service dating back to 1960. We’re grateful to our previous Chairs for their service.

Executive Committee

Chair

Shannon Hardiek was introduced to handbells in 1985 and has been ringing or directing ever since. Currently, Shannon serves as director of the Trinity Ringers handbell choir at Trinity English Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, alongside Bob Hobby. In 2017, Shannon shared her love of handbell ringing with band students at Homestead High School and started their first handbell choir. The next year, a second choir was added as interest grew. A number of students from this program have been selected for the Indiana Music Educators Association All-State Handbell Choir. Shannon is a founding partner of Phillips Financial where, for more than 20 years, she has been providing financial planning and investment management services to clients. Additionally, Shannon is past board chair for the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne, currently serves as treasurer for the board of trustees at Canterbury School, is golf activities director for the LPGA Amateur Golf Association’s Fort Wayne chapter, and is a member of P.E.O. Chapter BD.

Chair-Elect

Ann Wood has served as director of music at First Presbyterian Church in Escanaba, Michigan, where she conducts vocal and handbell choirs, since 1989. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s in speech/theatre and from Concordia University Wisconsin with a master of church music/choral conducting/handbell degree. Ann is accredited to teach Level 1 Music Theory Handbell Certification classes at the national level and has completed all three levels of handbell certification. She maintains a large private music studio in the Escanaba area, teaching music theory, piano, voice, and Suzuki and traditional strings. She has two handbell compositions in print. Ann lives in Escanaba with her husband, Brian, who shares her love of music, and has three grown children, one of whom is a professional classical singer.

Secretary

Jane Hicks Snow‘s handbell adventure began 47 years ago when she was introduced to handbells at Aldersgate UMC in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The following year she attended a weeklong workshop for handbell directors and became director of middle and high school bell choirs while continuing to ring in an adult choir. She began the Three Rivers Handbell Festival in Fort Wayne under Don Allured’s tutelage, and saw the festival grow from 13 to 49 choirs in just three years.

Contemporaneously, Jane began elementary handbell and chime choirs at Haverhill School. Her adventure continued when hired as director of music at Forest Park UMC, where she had a multi-choir program in addition to teaching handbell pedagogy and conducting the handbell ensemble at the former Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne, now PFW.

Jane served as interim handbell director at First Wayne Street UMC while serving as handbell director at Trinity English Lutheran Church, both in Fort Wayne. After a move to Augusta, Georgia, she rang with and substitute directed for the Ringers of the Church at Resurrection Lutheran Church. Upon her return to Indiana, Jane continued ringing at Trinity English and directed the adult bell choir at Waynedale UMC. Currently, Jane rings with Trinity English and substitute directs for colleagues.

Treasurer

Sherri Stoffer has been involved in music all her life. She began playing violin, piano, and handbells in kindergarten and later moved to oboe as her instrument of choice. She received her bachelor of music degree from Kent State University and her master’s degree from the Ithaca College Conservatory of Music. She learned handbells under the tutelage of Marilyn Hines in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania,, and through her time there, was introduced to the wonderful events of HMA. After college, she settled in the Akron, Ohio, area with her husband, Mark, and was brought back into handbell ringing by the late Dorothy Sarver, through a venture to start a community handbell ensemble in the northeast Ohio area. In 2000, Sherri was promoted to artistic director of Stow Heritage Ringers, Inc. and has been serving in that capacity ever since. She is a regular participant in the Bay View Week of Handbells and serves on the Donald E. Allured Original Composition Committee, promoting the creation of original music for our instrument. She has also served as a clinician and festival conductor at local and area HMA events. Professionally, Sherri is a corporate branding specialist at Proforma Solution Ventures in Akron, Ohio.

Appointed Board Members

Communications Chair

Jonathan Martz began his journey with handbells in 2019 as a member of Purdue Bells during his time as an undergraduate and graduate student at Purdue University, and now rings with Joyful Sound in Indianapolis. After completing his master’s degree in organizational communication, he became an academic advisor for Purdue’s School of Mechanical Engineering. He is a member of Purdue’s chapter of the National Academic Advising Association. Outside of bell rehearsals and work, Jonathan sings with Purdue’s All-Campus & Community Chorale and enjoys photography. He serves on the media team of Calvary Church in West Lafayette and has participated in mission trips to Mexico, Honduras, and New Orleans.

Education Chair

Kim Almandmoss discovered handbells on her third Coast Guard tour to Alaska’s Emerald Isle. She began ringing with Kodiak’s Isle Bells and went on to ring with community ensembles Charlotte Bronze, Queen City Ringers, Joyful Sound, and Circle City Ringers. Kim has also performed in auditioned events with Zenith, Bay View Week of Handbells, National Seminar All-Star Choir, and Distinctly Bronze East and West. She regularly spends time helping churches and educators grow their handbell ensembles.

A Coast Guard Academy graduate, she earned a B.S. in Operations Research and served as an officer in the Coast Guard for 14 years including tours on America’s Tallship, USCGC EAGLE (WIX 327) and graduate school where she earned two Master of Business Administration degrees from the University of Tampa. She and her husband, also a USCGA graduate, and their son have been stationed throughout the coastal United States. They currently reside in Indiana where they are enjoying the lovely Midwestern hospitality.

#BecauseOfHandbells, Kim rediscovered her childhood joy of making beautiful music with friends. She brings 20 years of competition drumline, classical piano, and concert clarinet experience to her handbell practice and appreciates the teamwork atmosphere of the instrument most. She enjoys traveling, cooking, and following sports with her husband and son.

Financial Administrator

Lisa Huston first met a handbell in college when she subbed in a church choir almost 40 years ago. She is a charter member of the Hallelujah Handbells of Perry UMC, and she also rings with the Collins’ Bells and Carol’s Bells at Painesville UMC, where she is a member. Lisa has participated in HMA’s Into the Forest, a three-day intensive bell tree workshop. When she is not at a bell rehearsal or reading a book, she works as a district administrator for the East Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church. Lisa is married to Michael, and they have two adult children.

Membership Chair

As with many musical adults, Susan Haight learned to read music and play an instrument (trumpet) in her youth. Along the way she also taught herself how to play a few string instruments, and remains an unwavering member of numerous vocal choirs, singing and performing with symphony orchestras and small ensembles.

Her handbell venture began in northeastern Michigan in 2016, when she joined a 3-octave community choir that welcomed anyone willing to give ringing a try and performed semi-annual concerts for the sheer joy of sharing music and fellowship. After relocating, she rang for several seasons with a church choir before finding her way to the broader handbell community. A fun fact is that, aside from the rare stray coverage strike, she has never played above C6.

Susan finds joy in attending HMA massed ring events — she loves geeking out with fellow ringers under the direction of some of the titans of handbell composers/clinicians and fueling her passion to be “one part among many aspiring to become a perfect whole.” Crescendo and Distinctly Bronze are her next targets.

Susan was introduced to bell trees at National Seminar in 2024, and now serves as a committee member for HMA’s Into the Forest event. She looks forward to developing her bell tree skills further.

Webmaster

Eleanor Coffin has been ringing handbells since fourth grade, and rang with Purdue Bells while earning a degree in multidisciplinary engineering from Purdue University. She joined Joyful Sound, an Indianapolis-based community choir, in 2021, was recruited as the group’s webmaster shortly thereafter, and served on its board of directors from 2022-2025. Eleanor lives in the greater Indianapolis area and is a product design engineer at Catalyst Product Development Group. She likes to spend her non-bells time hiking, exploring new places, or hanging out with her cat. Eleanor joined the Area 5 board in 2023.

Indiana State Chair

Linda Haddix is a johnny-come-lately to the music world, but she fell in love with handbells in 1996. She had never heard bells before attending the church, but the handbell director was leaving the area and no one wanted to take over the handbells, so they were about to be retired. Linda and a friend felt that was wrong, so they agreed to take it on. As is normal for Linda, she threw at least 110% of herself into the project. She is very thankful for the trainers at the Area 5 festivals, conferences, and workshops who helped her learn how to ring and how to teach.

Since then, she has taught multiple youth choirs and encouraged many adults. If you have ever taught anything, you know the awesome feeling when your students get what you are teaching. That is Linda’s special joy with handbells. Currently, she directs Harmony Handbells, an adult community handbell choir in northwest Indiana that welcomes anyone who would like to ring. She also has two wonderful youth choirs and is working to start a third. Even though she is not a trained musician, she loves to use her enthusiasm to encourage others!

Kentucky State Chair

This position is currently vacant.

Michigan State Chair

Hannah Wheaton has been ringing handbells since she was 9. She started ringing at First United Methodist Church of Eaton Rapids, Michigan, under her mom, Brenda Austin’s baton. In 2018 she began ringing with Embellish Community Handbell Ensemble in Grand Rapids while earning a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Grand Valley State University. She has enjoyed attending handbell events in the past decade, in Area 5, nationally, and internationally. When not making music or nursing, Hannah enjoys crocheting with her cats.

Ohio State Chair

Martha DiLorenzo has been involved in theatre and music, as a cellist, performer, writer and director, since childhood. In 1993 handbells became part of her life when she founded Hallelujah Handbells of Perry United Methodist Church and continues to ring with the group 34 years later. In 2022, following an Area 5 festival in Cleveland, she founded Decibells, a community choir in Lake County, Ohio. She directs Decibells, who perform full performances and community service. She is eager to assist anyone wishing to start a community ensemble. Martha is retired and enjoys bowling, fantasy football, feeding the birds and squirrels, and activities with her family. She loves the arts, sports, and nature the Cleveland area offers.

West Virginia State Chair

Joyce Armentrout developed an interest in instrumental music through playing the clarinet in her junior high and high school bands. She continued to play through college, in the orchestra and wind ensemble, and beyond, at church and in a local community band. Joyce was first introduced to handbells in 1986 and has been ringing ever since. She has played in a variety of church and community handbell groups and participated in an international virtual handbell choir during the COVID-19 pandemic. These experiences served to transform handbell ringing from a fun little side activity into a full-fledged passion, which inspired her seek to expand her knowledge of the art and explore different forms of ringing. Joyce has a particular interest in 4-in-hand ringing; she enjoys learning and performing 4-in-hand duets with a friend and ringing partner based in Indianapolis.

Joyce has worked as a developmental specialist since 1991, providing services and support to infants and toddlers with developmental delays and disabilities through WV Birth to Three, the state’s early intervention program under IDEA.