The teaching goes on.

As the year comes to a close, I've found myself reflecting on the past twelve months and what they have meant for MTNA. Several things come to mind: partnerships being forged with the Canadian Federation of Music Teacher's Associations and China's Ministry of Culture, broadening MTNA's reach; a successful Summit for MTNA Leadership; and the compilation and distribution of the Assessment Tools for Independent Music Teachers (see the August/September 2004 AMT).

But one thing that really stands out in my mind is that MTNA lost three of its past presidents during the year: Willis Ducrest, Joseph Brye and Margaret Lorince.

Their dedication to music teaching was evident, as was their dedication to MTNA. The collective wisdom of these three former presidents has had an enormous impact on the association. Their invaluable leadership still is felt throughout MTNA.

I never had the honor of meeting Willis, but his reputation preceded him. He was a singer, choral arranger and conductor. I know from others that he was committed to music and music education. Willis was elected MTNA president in 1967 and again in 1969. He will always be remembered as a kind, thoughtful man who shaped the lives of many musicians across the country.

When I first came to MTNA, Joe was the archivist, having a recollection of MTNA's history to rival nearly anyone. He held many positions within MTNA on all levels. Prior to serving as president for the 1981-1983 biennium, Joe was the first president of the Northwest Division, national vice president for local associations and student chapters and national coordinator of the first MTNA Collegiate Competitions--now the Young Artist Competitions. In fact, Joe once had my job; in 1986, he was acting executive director, spending more than three months at the national headquarters in Cincinnati. MTNA recognized Joe in 2001 with the MTNA Achievement Award. When accepting the award he said, "The association has been an important part of my life, and I have enjoyed it very much."

Margaret created MTNA's Pedagogy Saturday, an event that is unique in the world of pedagogy. For the MTNA FOUNDATION FUND, she was a driving force behind the endowment funds. These are the "bookends" of my relationship with Margaret. I met her at the Dallas Conference in 1997, the first Pedagogy Saturday. My last meeting with her was at the Salt Lake City Conference in 2003. She was there to be recognized as a FOUNDATION Fellow, but also because the FOUNDATION was considering a monumental decision for its future. Margaret had a long career with MTNA, including serving as West Virginia MTA president and Eastern Division president. She became national president in 1991 and served on the FOUNDATION Board from 1989-1995.

It has been said that teachers affect eternity, and they can never tell where their influence stops. How true this is of Willis, Joe and Margaret--they affected eternity--and their influence will never stop ... because the teaching goes on.

Gary L. Ingle Executive Director