Ken Fleet Choral Conducting Scholarship Fund
Ken Fleet Choral Conducting Scholarship Fund
The late Ken Fleet
by Janet Fleet
Music touches us all, from lullabies in infancy to individual preferences as we grow up, to comforting melodies as we die. Ken had a gift, as a high school music teacher, positively influencing his students through music education. As a conductor, he brought different genres of music alive through his children’s, youth and adult choirs.
But what defined Ken most was his humility, how he stepped back to let the music come alive and allow the choirs to communicate with their audiences. As a teacher, he used music to help students learn and accept who they were and to encourage them to be the best people they could be.
Shortly before Ken was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, he won the Leslie Bell Prize for Choral Conducting. He wanted to use this scholarship money to help current and upcoming choral educators and conductors grow through professional development. Sadly, because of his illness, he wasn’t able to see this happen.
His vision, however, has been met through the Ken Fleet Choral Conducting Scholarship Fund. Thanks to the generosity of those who knew Ken, and have since come to know him through his music, a $2,000 scholarship is awarded yearly to a recipient for professional development in choral conducting.