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Member Information
AHCB Hall of Fame
René Sanders
- Flute & Bassoon
- Member 1986-2022
- Hall of Fame Class of 2023
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René Sanders was the Band Secretary for 23 years. And, as performance committee chair for much longer than that, she was instrumental in establishing relationships across the community, defining, and doing the behind-the-scenes work needed to successfully put on 20+ concerts a year.
René was an organizer, by nature and by trade, and she was key to making sure the band was part of the community. She was always working behind the scenes to solve problems or just get things done. She dedicated many hours to making sure the Band was running smoothly.
René joined the band in 1986, sometime after that initial adult band class, as a member of the flute section. But she quickly took on leadership roles beyond that. René’s leadership was quiet but is very evident in her history on the Band Board of Directors. She served on the board in various capacities for 28 of the 37 years we have been in existence. She was Band President, Treasurer and Member-at-large at various times from 1989 through 1997. But her longest stint was as the Band Secretary from 1999 through 2022. Just think of 23 years of monthly meetings and minutes. That’s over 250 sets of minutes to keep, not to mention all of the other actions she took and completed over that time.
But René’s most enduring legacy is probably as chair of our Performance Committee, which she led from its beginning. René was the one that contacted venues like retirement homes about us coming to play, made sure we had chairs and lights, made sure the band members knew the what /when /where /how to get there of each performance. She was the one there early to help set up, and made sure someone from the committee was the last one to leave, to make one final sweep of the room for any stray equipment. She was the voice of the Band on the phone to schedule concerts, and made sure the venues understood our needs, and we understood their limitations. She set the standard that allows us to successfully perform 20+ concerts each year, at 20+ different venues. And those 20+ concerts make us not just a community band but a band IN the community.
René was very active in organizing the Ensemble Concerts, where she was always found with the flutes and often with other ensembles. She even bought an alto flute to play in the ensembles, to add that low sound. Over the years, she bought many flute ensemble pieces that were used at that concert, and those pieces have now been donated to the Band for use by future ensembles.
René started in the flute section, but in the late 90s she took on a new musical challenge – learning to play the bassoon to fill a need in the band. By Christmas 1999, she was playing bassoon in the band, and she WAS the bassoon section for many years after that. One of her favorites was being the featured soloist on “The Old Grumbly Bear”.
For the many years of service, for her quiet leadership and her continual willingness to do whatever was needed for the band, we welcome René, in memoriam, to this inaugural Hall of Fame class. Sadly, we lost René in 2022, after a bout with cancer. But her husband Bill, who she met as part of the Band social activities, is still very active. Bill’s thoughts included these:
“Other than her family, I can’t think of much anything René enjoyed more than this band. She loved that we let anyone join, and even learn new instruments, as she did. She had many roles, but I think that, to the band, René always seemed to be that helping hand, with the smile to go along with it.”
