As we finish up our events for the year and prepare for summer, I hope you can breathe a sigh of relief, while at the same time feel a sense of exhilaration that, even in the midst of a pandemic, we have all learned innovative ways to do what we love: teach young minds and provide opportunities for growth and musical expression. Resilience at its best!
It’s been a wonderful year for DVMTA thanks to those of you who organized and who volunteered at events. I can’t thank you enough for helping to make these events successful. I’m so proud of our chairmen and their willingness to think outside the box to come up with new ways to provide similar experiences for our students.
I want to thank Wendi Heslop and Amy King for organizing our recent April Brunch, and Toni Tetreau for opening up her beautiful home and backyard. The delicious food, great conversations, and time together were enjoyed by all those who were able to attend. I also want to thank Tammy Shorts, our Vice President, who has organized the speakers for our General Meetings. The topics have been so helpful and fun, and she has put in so much time and energy to bring us relevant topics presented by amazing guests and friends.
The greatest DVMTA moments for me this past year have been being able to associate with and learn from so many talented and amazing friends and peers, who give so much to DVMTA. This organization doesn’t happen without the dedication and service of so many, and I truly appreciate all you do.
I wish everyone a wonderful, safe and blessed summer, and look forward to seeing you again at our August Brunch, Friday, August 20th to begin a new year!
Lori Weidemann, DVMTA President

Read the full May 2021 DVMTA Newsletter

What a wonderful, busy, exciting time of the year it is! The final weeks of the school year still hold Awards in Excellence Winners Recitals, April Brunch, Achievement Day, and the Awards Plus recognition ceremony. I hope that you will find a few moments to recognize and congratulate each of your students for their efforts and accomplishments, great or small. I have challenged myself to find new ways to do just that. Instead of saying “good job”, I say:

• “Listen to that! I can tell you put a lot of work into this piece.”
  
• “You didn’t give up. What made you keep going?”
  
• “Congratulations! That took a lot of time and effort, and you really improved.”
  
• “Wow! How did you do that?”
  
• “Look at that! You spent a lot of time focusing on the trouble spots and your piece really shows it!”
  
• “You really challenged yourself and your hard work and effort has paid off!“
  

There is no end to the ways in which we can encourage, motivate and inspire our students --- and they will be noticeably affected and glad you did!
I invite you to join us at the April Brunch on April 30th! It is our last General Meeting of the school year and will not have a Zoom option, given the nature of the event. Details are in this newsletter and on the DVMTA website. The brunch is a great time for members to take some moments to relax, connect and share ideas, and celebrate our successes ---which have been many! I can’t thank enough those who have served and volunteered and helped in any way to make our events and organization run so smoothly. You make DVMTA what it is, and every moment of time you give is greatly appreciated! Thank you!
Lori Weidemann, DVMTA President

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No matter where you're from, there's always a sense of optimism when spring arrives! I grew up in Nebraska on a farm and as a child was amazed when entire fields that lay dormant all winter would show signs of new life as little green plants pushed their way up. I've learned the subtle ways to look for spring in the desert. Flowers here bloom year 'round, but now I look for the flower buds to start showing up on my orange trees in March. Other green plants that have gone dormant are now starting to send out new leaves and you can almost hear them sigh as they stretch to meet the sun.

Certain areas of our lives have had to lie dormant, stay in, and be careful during this pandemic. Fortunately, we are beginning to see signs of life returning to normal. I am so proud of our DVMTA Committee Chairmen who have embraced new ideas that have burst forth from the difficult challenges of hosting our annual events. Some events have had slight changes, while others have had drastic revamps! My heart is full of gratitude for our amazing event chairs: Charles Newton-Music Marathon, Claire Westlake-Original Composition, Sara Pratt-Cavalcade, Lorri McHardy- Awards in Excellence, Toni Tetreau-Achievement Day, and Wendi Heslop-Awards Plus. These events have been tremendously successful, and have provided all our students opportunities to keep growing and blooming!
Lori Weidemann, DVMTA President

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It’s February, and signs of LOVE are all around us! I’m pretty confident you echo my sentiments when I say, “I love teaching, and think we piano teachers have an incredibly rewarding job!”
I decided a long time ago that the day I dreaded waking up to a day of teaching lessons, I would quit and find something else to do. Well, I’ve been at it since 1986 – 35 years – and I still look forward to my piano lesson days! I love sharing my passion for music, introducing young minds to new possibilities, beauty, creativity, enjoyment, and a sense of accomplishment. I also love instilling discipline of practice, diligence to work at a piece methodically and the perseverance to keep at it until it’s right, and the stretching process that happens when I push my students beyond what they think they are capable of. I love when they experience a huge sense of accomplishment, or develop more self-confidence. It takes effort, lots of it, but I love the challenge to inspire and encourage them, to keep it fun and fresh, and to give them the experiences and tools they will need to be lifelong lovers of music. I hope you’re doing what you love, too!

Lori Weidemann, DVMTA President

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