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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (11/03)
Contact: Dr. Will K. Andress, 318-869-5200, or Lynn Stewart, Centenary News Service, 318-869-5120
See local news coverage at http://www.shreveporttimes.com/html/2E5D442F-C274-47A6-9D03-C370DA256C77.shtml

Memorial Service for Centenary Choir Founder Dr. A.C. "Cheesy" Voran Set for 11 a.m. Nov. 15 in Centenary's Brown Chapel

SHREVEPORT, LA—A memorial service for Dr. A.C. "Cheesy" Voran, the founder of the Centenary College Choir, will be held Saturday, Nov. 15, at 11 a.m. in Centenary's Brown Memorial Chapel.

Dr. Voran, a graduate of McPherson College in Kansas, started the choir in 1941 at the request of Ralph Squires, the head of the Centenary Music Department at the time. The choir grew from a simple campus activity with fewer than 40 singers to an impressive organizaiton with a worldwide reputation for its high quality of sound, style, and character of the young people.

During his Centenary years, Dr. Voran was also the director of music at Noel United Methodist Church in Shreveport. He retired from both positions in 1972.

He was very important in the lives of the hundreds of students who sang with him in the choir from 1941-1972. To show their affection, the alumni established a choir scholarship fund in his honor at the time of his retirement.

When Dr. Voran died this past May, the Centenary Choir was on a concert tour to Brazil and South Africa and was unable to participate in the funeral service. This memorial service will include not only the current choir, under the direction of Dr. Will Andress, a protege of Voran, but also alumni of the choir singing together seven choral works sung throughout the Voran years.

Dr. William Peeples, district superintendent of the United Methodist Church, also a choir alumnus, will lead the liturgy of the worship. Dr. Kenneth L. Schwab, Centenary president, will also participate.

Dr. Voran will also be remembered during the Centenary Choir's Rhapsody in View concerts that will be held Nov. 15 and 16 in the Shreveport Civic Theater.

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