Joyful Sound members

June is the founder and director of Joyful Sound. She has a music education degree and has directed youth, adult and intergenerational handbell choirs for the past 36+ years. June has served in many positions for Area 5 and served on the national board for Handbell Musicians of America. She has taught classes for local, state, area and national events and has been a mass conductor for several local events. June retired in Dec. 2019 from Old Bethel United Methodist Church in Indianapolis, where she served for 21 years as organist and director of traditional worship. Prior to that, she served at Christ United Methodist Church for 15 years. June has a daughter and twin grandsons.

Sharon, a founding member of Joyful Sound, began ringing in the 1980s at Christ Indianapolis UMC, where she still rings, sings, and teaches Sunday school. She has two children and four grandchildren, and shares her home with one spoiled cat. She is a retired St. Francis hospice nurse.

Eleanor joined Joyful Sound in fall 2021, but has been playing bells since middle school and rang with Purdue Bells during college. She studied multidisciplinary engineering at Purdue and now works as a design engineer at Catalyst Product Development Group. Eleanor likes to spend her free time hiking, exploring new places, or hanging out with her cat. She also serves as webmaster on the HMA Area 5 board.

Lora Lee is a founding member of Joyful Sound. She began ringing when she and her husband, Tom, started dating, and their wedding was the first official gig of Joyful Sound in 1999. Lora Lee has loved and been involved with music for as long as she can remember. She rings handbells at her church and sings in the choir and is also part of the praise team. She is also active with the Indiana Extension Homemakers in Johnson County. In her spare time, she enjoys knitting, crocheting, reading and traveling. Lora Lee retired from AT&T at the end of 2022, but decided she needed something else to do, so she went back to work as an investigator with PHENIX Investigations. She also serves as the Area 5 membership chair.

Tom first started ringing handbells at Arsenal Technical High School in Indianapolis. He and his wife, Lora Lee, are founding members of Joyful Sound, and their wedding was our first gig. Tom is employed by DFAS as an IT specialist and enjoys cruising, exploring the hills of Kentucky, and homebrewing.

Erin learned to play handbells in the 6th grade. Erin directed her college handbell choirs and enjoys both solo and ensemble ringing. She has played with various handbell choirs in central Indiana over the years. Erin is a science writer at the Indianapolis Zoo and an advocate for science education and science communication. She spends her non-working/non-handbell hours taking care of her family, being active outdoors, reading books, playing games, and eating chocolate.

Curt has been playing handbells since 1990 and is a founding member of Joyful Sound. He is also a percussionist, and plays with a concert band in the summer when he’s not playing bells. He is a mechanical engineer from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, and tests aircraft engines at Rolls-Royce. In his spare time, he enjoys bicycle and motorcycle riding, reading, home improvement, and nature.

Brian joined the Grace Notes handbell choir at Resurrection Lutheran Church in 2001 and has been ringing ever since. He joined Joyful Sound in spring 2023. Brian attended Case Western Reserve University and is employed as an automation engineer at Eli Lilly. As a father of two, he enjoys attending their sporting events and music performances. In his spare time, he assembles Metal Earth and LEGO models.

Darrell has more than 30 years of handbell-ringing experience, having rung and directed choirs at Wesley, Beech Grove, and Christ (Westfield) United Methodist Churches. Before joining Joyful Sound in 2004, he rang for three years in the former Indianapolis Handbell Ensemble. Darrell also enjoys ringing solos and is a retired postal worker.

Kim has been playing bells since 2001. She originally joined Joyful Sound in 2014 and is now back as a member of the group after living in Georgia for the last two and a half years. Kim is employed as a senior statistician for B2S Life Sciences and enjoys spending her free time hanging out with her three cats, playing games, and reading.

Beth has been ringing handbells since the age of 8. She is a member of the Chancel Bells at Meridian Street UMC and the director of the children's bell choir there. Beth enjoys ringing bell solos as well. She is a math support teacher at The Orchard School. She enjoys spending time with her husband, Craig, as well as sewing, baking, and gardening.

Lois began her handbell journey with the Hong Kong Youth Handbell Ensemble at age 12 and is the founding chairperson of Bellaholics, a community handbell group in Hong Kong. She is a master’s student at Indiana University, working on her degree in organ performance and sacred music with Dr. Janette Fishell. Lois also works for St. Mark's United Methodist Church in Bloomington, serving as organist and handbell director.

Jonathan joined Joyful Sound in fall 2023 after beginning his handbell journey as a member of Purdue Bells during his time at university. After completing his master’s degree in organizational communication, he now works as an academic advisor for Purdue’s School of Mechanical Engineering. Outside of rehearsals, Jonathan enjoys photography, volunteering with his church, and serving HMA Area 5 as communications chair.

Karen has been ringing bells since the 1990s and joined Joyful Sound in 2010. She also enjoys ringing solos and in small ensembles. Karen recently retired from American Family Insurance, where she worked as an applications systems developer.

Betsy learned to ring at age 12 in Lawrence, Kansas, and in high school spent her summers touring the Midwest, England, Scotland, and Wales with the Plymouth Church Festival Ringers. After a long hiatus, Betsy attended a handbell festival, rediscovered her passion, and joined Joyful Sound in 2022. Betsy is a CPA for Heritage Environmental Services and a board member at Ascent 121. She loves team crosswords, books, games, and family fun both in person and on Zoom.