About Us

Ron Lester, President, has been a member of the Chorale since 2002 and has previously served on the Board as Treasurer and President. His degree is in Accounting from Louisiana Tech University but he has been actively involved in vocal performance since high school. He has performed in a variety of choral and musical theater groups, with Gilbert and Sullivan being one of his favorites (other than Cherry Creek Chorale, of course). Ron has worked in public and corporate accounting, internal audit and human resources. He is currently VP of Internal Audit, Risk and Compliance at CoreSite, an owner, developer and operator of data centers. Ron is also Treasurer of the Rocky Mountain HR People and Strategy organization. His wife, Ann, doesn't sing with the Chorale but has helped in a variety of volunteer roles.

Mike Mosier, Past President, has been a Construction Manager and Builder for over 20 years. He is a leader in the multifamily housing industry with over 1400 homes to his credit. He is an active member of St. Andrew United Methodist Church and has served as Vice President of the Board of Directors for the Douglas County Children's Chorus for the past four years. He is also the past Vice President of Bridges Music Ministry where he produced their concert events for ten years and helped to raise over $30,000 for children's charities across the Denver Metro area. Michael recently led members of this Chorale on a tour of Europe. Michael is husband to Gretchen and father of two wonderful girls, Nicole and Megan.

Elaine Gilley, President Elect, has been singing with the Chorale since 1983. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education from the University of Colorado, Boulder with a major in piano and minors in voice and speech. In addition to her music studies at Boulder, she was active with the University Theater doing both costuming and performing. She was a member of the music honorary, Sigma Alpha Iota and the Players Club. After teaching public school general music and various other subjects for 18 years, she recycled at Metropolitan State College in accounting and business, sat for the CPA exam and now has her own CPA firm. She has been active in the American Society of Women Accountants since the early 1980a and has served as President of the Denver Chapter and assistant to the President of the National Organization. After leaving music teaching she missed the sounds of "joyful noise" so much that she became a member of Cherry Creek Chorale in 1983. She has served on the board previously as Treasurer, Publicity Chair and Member at Large. She is widowed with three grown children and four grandchildren.

Debbie Enck, Vice President, has been singing with the Cherry Creek Chorale since the fall of 2009. Music was Debbie's first love, and she has been singing and playing the piano for most of her life. Debbie grew up in Colorado, and returned shortly after receiving her degree in Psychology and Political Science from the University of Arizona. She is currently a psychiatric rehabilitation counselor at the Mental Health Center of Denver. Debbie and her husband, Nathan, have one beautiful daughter named Grace.

Bryana Grzybowski, secretary, settled in Denver 5 years ago, and has been a member of the Cherry Creek Chorale since January of 2010. She grew up participating in various community and church choirs, and was given the prestigious opportunity to sing Durufle's Requiem at Carnegie Hall in NYC in 2000. Prior to joining the CCC, she sang with various choral groups at the University of Wisconsin - La Crosse where she received her degree in Recreation Therapy and a minor in music. Throughout college she also participated in various music theatre productions such as The Secret Garden, Jesus Christ Superstar, Once Upon a Mattress, and Big River. She is currently employed as an Ongoing Support Consultant for Pearson eCollege, providing customer support through account & project management for a variety of K-12 districts across the US. When she's not singing, you will most likely find her cheering on her favorite football team, the World Champion Green Bay Packers!

John Chamberlin, Development Committee Chair, is a retired Foreign Service Officer and former university professor. He has a B.A. from Dartmouth College and a Ph.D. from Columbia University. He is married to Marty Chamberlin, with whom he has two grown daughters. He has sung in a variety of settings around the world, including the first amateur production of "The Fantasticks" in college, a multi-ethnic "Pirates of Penzance" in Beijing, and the choir of the European Center for Nuclear Research (CERN) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Mert Nason, Treasurer and Finance Committee Chair, a graduate in history and musicology from the University of Arizona, retired as the Rocky Mountain area sales executive for Trans World Airlines after 30 years in airline operations and marketing. He is a retired navy captain, having served, primarily on destroyers in the Atlantic and Mediterranean and on senior command staff in the Pacific. He was most recently executive director of the Arapahoe Philharmonic before retiring entirely. Mert is married with two sons and 3 grandchildren.

John Wollan, Artistic Committee Chair, is a retired physicist who spent his career working in technology development in the areas of medical diagnostic imaging, fusion energy and natural gas liquefaction. His lifelong avocation, for over sixty years, has been singing. He has sung in church choirs and community choruses in various parts of the country and was a member of the St. Olaf College Choir in his undergraduate days. He joined the Cherry Creek Chorale in 1991. His wife, Barb, a voice teacher, is also a member. They enjoy singing and performing together.

Paul Beasly, Marketing Committee Chair, grew up in Sydney, Australia where he learned to play violin and sang with local community choirs. He worked as a semiconductor chip designer for three years before moving to Houston, Texas where he worked as a product manager. Paul met his wife-to-be in Houston and after marrying they moved to Colorado 2 years ago where he now works as a sales engineer in the semiconductor industry which requires travel across America. Paul has been singing with the Chorale for the past two years as a second bass. He is husband to his wife, Wendy, and father to their daughter, Sayde.

Steve Runkel, Outreach Committee Chair, is the National Business Development Director for Satori Solutions, a technology company specializing in high volume fax solutions and document and image management involving automated workflow solutions. A licensed Real Estate Broker in CO and FL, Steve also has extensive experience in corporate, commercial, industrial and residential real estate and has been involved with business transactions and facilities management functions in 23 US states and internationally. He has consulted on financial management at the "C" level with numerous Fortune 500 corporations, has performed extensive national and international business development initiatives and holds numerous training certifications for team building, partnering and financial and operational performance optimization. Steve holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Miami University (OH) and has completed graduate studies at the University of Denver, the University of Phoenix and the Carland College of Entrepreneurship. He enjoys flying, music, mountain hiking and exploring new places 'off the beaten path'.

Marji Adelstein, Membership Committee Chair, sang with the Hartford Chorale in Connecticut for 12 years, prior to joining the Cherry Creek Chorale 4 years ago. Her musical background includes singing through her school years, playing the violin from elementary school through college, and as a member of various church choirs throughout most of her adult life. Marji is a Human Resources Consultant for Mountain States Employers Council. She provides interim Human Resources work for MSEC member companies in the Denver Metro region. Marji graduated from Stetson University with a Bachelor's degree in French and obtained a Master's degree in Public Administration from the University of Colorado.

Michael (Mike) Freeland, Production Committee Chair and Artistic Committee member, with degrees in Geology from Lafayette College and Syracuse University, spent nearly 15 years in the engineering/environmental consulting industry before forming his own company, EnviroBase Systems LLC. Here, he began developing computer data management systems primarily for tracking and compliance with EPA toxic releases regulations. He has recently expanded the company's services to include video production services including event videos and montages, and the conversion of old films to digital formats. Mike's music started at age 2 1/2, when he was heard improvising harmony to "Home on the Range". He has sung in numerous large and small groups, including his own folk trio and several barbershop quartettes through high school and college and beyond, in addition to playing trombone in small bands and brass ensembles. He has been with the Chorale since January 2008. Mike is an enthusiastic motorcycle rider.

Jenee Stewart, Showcase Committee Chair, joined the Chorale in the fall of 2008. Jenee has sung and performed with Opera Colorado, The Black Box Opera Company, Opera Colorado Outreach, Loveland Opera Theater, Encore Classics, and Empire Lyric Players. Her awards include the Regional Met Auditions, Denver Lyric Opera Guild Competition, High Plains Singing Competition, and NATS Regional and District Competitions. Additionally, Jenee has worked as a soloist at various local churches, including weddings, benefit functions and private parties. More recently, Jenee performed as a featured artist with Arias at Avos, sponsored by the Opera Ft Collins Opera Guild in 2010, and was the featured guest soloist for a benefit reception in support of the New Orleans Opera during the spring of 2009. Jenee is thankful for the experience to sing with the chorale and for the various solo opportunities during the last three years to include the role of Eve in the Chorale's presentation of Haydn's Creation and Vaughan Williams' Dona Nobis Pacem. Jenee enjoys spending time with her family, including her long-time companion Bob and raising her 4-year old niece, Katy. Jenee has a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Colorado at Denver. Since 2010, Jenee has been working as an independent contractor in the roles of Communications Specialist and Business Analyst in the Discovery and Development Department at Newmont Mining Corporation in Denver.

Brian Patrick Leatherman, Artistic Director - see Artistic Staff page

Jeff Brothers, Business Manager