ROCHESTER AREA HANDBELLS
ABOUT US
Rochester Area Handbells (RAH), formed in 2017, is dedicated to bringing the art of handbell performance out of a church setting and into the greater Rochester community. Directed by Paul Kingsbury, the group performs seasonal, classic and contemporary works for public and private events.
MEET THE RINGERS
PAUL KINGSBURY
Founding Director
Paul Kingsbury began ringing handbells in high school and hasn't stopped yet. He is a 20-year veteran of the Bay View Week of Handbells, where he acts as "Pit Captain" leading a team of ringers covering bells and chimes from G1 to B3. When it comes to bell music, he is especially interested in exploring the tonal colors available in this instrument. Paul has been fortunate enough to work closely with some of the handbell world's great directors including William Griffin, Donald Allured, and Fred Gramann, and strives to incorporate into his own direction the lessons he has learned from these teachers. Paul lives in Rochester with his wife, toddler son, and a mostly-unsuccessful vegetable garden.
CHRIS BOSWELL
Founding Member
Chris Boswell is originally from Midlothian, VA where he grew up playing handbells at Tomahawk Baptist Church, starting around age 10. He continued to play at Davidson College Presbyterian Church in Davidson, NC during his undergraduate studies, and he now plays handbells with RAH! and with Jubilate Deo at First Presbyterian Church (FPC) in Rochester. Chris is a Family Medicine physician at Mayo Clinic. He lives with his wife, Ariel, his daughter, Savannah, and their two golden retrievers, Duke and Earl.
PAUL BYE
Founding Member
Paul began his ringing career at First Presbyterian Church in Plattsmouth, Nebraska, and has been ringing and directing for 31 years. He currently rings at Zumbro Lutheran Church in Rochester. Paul works at IBM as a software engineer and he and his husband Erin have three cats and a dog. He also plays saxophone and piano/keys. Outside of music, he loves Crossfit, the Cornhuskers, animals, playing board games, reading science fiction and Star Trek.
ANNETTE ENGELMANN
Member
Annette has played handbells for 37 years and directs the handbell choir at Concordia University, St. Paul. She is also a member of the handbell choir at Emanuel Lutheran Church (Inver Grove Heights). When not playing handbells, Annette teaches elementary music in Woodbury, MN. A fun fact: "In my free time, I like to read, bake, and spend time with family and friends."
MATT GENDER
Member
Matt has played handbells for 10 years and has been a handbell director for 7 years. He is a full-time music director and concert organist at Trinity Lutheran Church in Mason City, Iowa, where he also directs two handbell choirs. A fun fact," I enjoy singing and making multi-track videos of my singing for YouTube. I was a professional transit bus driver for 4.5 years in grad school and have a Class B CDL to prove it!"
KRISTY GIERE
Founding Member
Kristy began her bell career at Zumbro Lutheran Church in Rochester and has been ringing and directing for 25 years. She currently directs four choirs at Zumbro. Kristy serves as the Music Minister at Zumbro, she’s been married 38 years and has two daughters and one granddaughter. She also plays organ, piano, harpsichord and flute. Outside of music, she likes to spend time at her Wisconsin lake home with family and friends. She also enjoys walking, baking and watching Netflix.
PAM HAMMOND
Founding Member
Pam began ringing at Zumbro Lutheran Church in Rochester 30+ years ago and there she continues to ring. Pam works at Mayo as a research lab tech and has two adult children and three grandchildren. She sings in the Zumbro choir and also plays recorder and a little piano. Outside of music, she is a co-chair of the Worship Arts team at ZLC and enjoys knitting, crocheting and sewing.
ANDY LARSON
Founding Member
Andy comes from a family of bell ringers and got his start at Zumbro Lutheran Church in Rochester, where he continues to ring 22 years later. He is a firmware architect for harddrives at Western Digital. Outside of music, his interests include board games — the longer and more complicated, the better — and anything nerdy, including video games, jigsaw puzzles and movies.
CATHERINE MCCREADIE
Member
Catherine has been ringing bells for 13 years, starting at age 9 at Rochester Covenant Church and going through her time at St. Olaf College. She also plays the flute. Catherine gets the gold star for patience as a middle and high school math teacher. She has a golden retriever, Raya, and in her spare time she likes to read, bake and spend time with family and friends.
ALEXIS OLSON
Member
Alexis has played handbells for 7 years and is a first-year member of RAH. She also plays at Zumbro Lutheran Church and formerly played at Luther College. She is looking forward to graduating from Mayo Clinic's physical therapy program in May. A fun fact: "I love trying unique foods and flavors! An unexpected favorite was eel soup and my least recommended is goat kidney."
JACKIE ROBIE
Member
Jackie has played handbells for 21 years and is a member of the handbell choir at Christ United Methodist Church in Rochester. Jackie is a retired 5th grade teacher and taught at The Blake School in Minneapolis. A fun fact: "I used to play in a steel drum band."
CHRISTINE SCHWARTZ
Member
Christine has been playing handbells for 5 years, formerly at Bethel University in St. Paul and currently at Gloria Dei Lutheran in Rochester. When not playing handbells, she works for the Extension Office of Olmsted County. A fun fact: She almost hiked the Appalachian Trail (#covid) and instead spent the summer of 2020 working at a guest ranch in the North Cascades in Washington state.
KAREN SESSLER
Founding Member
Karen began ringing at First Presbyterian Church in Rochester as a child, and rejoined as an adult three years ago. She also played the clarinet for many years and currently plays in a recorder ensemble as well as singing in the chancel choir at First Presbyterian. Karen is the Operations Administrator for Choral Arts Ensemble. Outside of bells, she enjoys exploring the parks of Minnesota, volunteering, reading and watching the Wild.
ALEX SHEPARD
Member
Alex has played handbells for 2 years. When not playing handbells, he works at the Mayo Clinic as a technologist in the IMPACT laboratory. His work involves culturing mesenchymal stem cells for treatments for patients in phase I/II clinical trials. A fun fact: He just moved back to the area to be closer to family. He and his husband enjoy cooking, working out, and working on word games and crossword puzzles.
JEN WELCH
Founding Member
Jen got her start ringing at St. Olaf Lutheran Church in Austin, Minnesota and has been ringing for 28 years. She currently rings at First Presbyterian Church in Rochester. Jen is a publications editor for Mayo Clinic, and her life is filled with two daughters, two dogs and two cats. She also plays piano, violin and a bit of cello. Outside of music, she enjoys travel, gaming, reading and sleep.