NANCY CLARIDGE
Nancy Claridge was raised in Orangeville and is a partner at the law firm Carters Professional Corporation, a firm that focuses on charity and not-for-profit organizations, in addition to serving the local community. She tries to make a positive impact on the community, serving on the board of the Festival, as well as serving on the boards of two local social housing corporations, as the former President of the Orangeville Concert Association, the past President of the Dufferin County Law Association, a board member of the Greater Dufferin Area Estate Planning Council, a former member of the Rights Advisory Committee for Community Living Dufferin and a former member of the Compliance Audit Committee for the Upper Grand District School Board. Nancy is a mezzo-soprano and frequently performs locally and abroad.
Donna Henderson
Donna spent much of her teaching career presenting and performing in student musical and dramatic productions. She has performed in local and dramatic productions herself. As a classroom teacher, she taught Art on rotary to all classes from Kindergarten to Grade 12 as well as instructing adult learning classes. Her volunteer committee work has included many local community groups. Presently, she is Vice-President of Bruce, Grey, Dufferin Retired Teachers. She also is the President of the Dufferin Retired Teachers Unit. She is the Secretary for the Upper Grand Occasional Teachers and the Orangeville District Labour Council. She volunteers at the Blues and Jazz Festival weekend in Orangeville and currently sits on the Blues and Jazz Board of Directors. She wants to give back to her community in as many ways as possible. Her time is spent gardening, tutoring reluctant students, dabbling in acrylic painting and playing with Ciel Gentille, her Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever.
Larry Kurtz
Long-time musician and lead singer of the award-winning Trouble and Strife Blues Band, Larry’s passion for the Blues is so profound he wanted to celebrate it with his community. As Founder of the Orangeville Blues & Jazz Festival, Larry’s name is synonymous with the Festival. Over the years Larry has participated in all aspects of the Festival and remains the Artistic Director and driving force 20 years later. In 2016 Larry was named Blues Booster of The Year by the Toronto Blues Society. Larry studied Media Arts at Sheridan College and along with his talent as a musician and artist, he is a fine craftsman and the owner of Kurtz Architectural Millworks in Orangeville for the past 30 years. Larry’s commitment to high-quality craftsmanship is well known and he is just as committed to securing high-quality programming at each and every Festival.
Randy Hunter
JD Dinsdale
JD was born and raised in London Ontario before moving to Arthur in 1990 where he and his family currently reside. In his professional life JD is a, now semi-retired, Certified Project Manager who spent much of his career in Technical and Operational Management positions in the automotive manufacturing sector. JD’s love of music began with accordion and trumpet lessons at eight & nine years old. But by the time he was 13 he was already on the path to being a serious vinyl record collector. His involvement in the arts was first realized when he made an 8mm short film for a grade seven class project. He later became a member of the Audio/Video club at his high school where he provided technical support for their theatre stage productions, including set construction and lighting. He also produced original lunchtime radio programming for the school’s cafeteria. By graduation he had added photography to his resume and began providing local musicians band photos, poster and album cover design services. JD became a Front of House and In Studio Sound Engineer in the late 70’s, where he worked with such bands as the Symphonic Rock Duo BUSKER, Network (Featuring Ocean’s Janice Morgan), Soma, Vehicle and McLean & McLean, to name a few. JD has been a volunteer with the Orangeville Blues and Jazz festival since 2012, currently in the capacity of Sound and Stage Team leader, with a focus on the Main Stage venue. As much as studio recording is a great artistic collaboration, JD lives for live music and can’t wait for the first weekend in June each year.
Alison Scheel
As General Manager of the Orangeville BIA & Farmers’ Market, Alison’s strength is in building relationships and fostering small, independent businesses. As a strong supporter of the Festival both personally & professionally, Alison volunteers her time because she believes in the importance of the Festival to Downtown Orangeville and the community as a whole. Moving to the area the same year the Festival debuted, Alison & her family have made the Festival an annual family event, with friends and family coming from all over the province to enjoy warm Blues & cool Jazz in the park. “The Blues & Jazz Festival made us fall head over heels for our new community – the atmosphere is warm and welcoming, and the music is high quality – a fabulous weekend for visitors, and small-town living at its very best for residents”. A Board member since 2013, Alison hopes to make a positive contribution to the Festival for many years to come. Alison studied Political Science at York University.
Kasandra Rudder
NOTE: None of the individual directors hold elective office or are appointed by any municipal body.