John R. DeYoung, an FMEA past president, the first FMEA 50-Year Award recipient, and the 2015 FMEA Hall of Fame inductee, passed away on October 7, 2025.

John was born in Ludington, Mich., in 1927. In 1930, his family moved 16 miles south to Pentwater, where he spent his childhood and graduated from Pentwater High School in 1945. Two weeks after graduation, he joined the U.S. Army and served in the Army of Occupation in Germany until November 1946. Upon discharge from the Army, he returned to Pentwater to continue with his chosen career of commercial fishing on Lake Michigan. During his high school years, John was actively involved in the high school band as a trumpeter.

In 1947, he was one of a group of six who created a band to play concerts in the park. This became the Pentwater Civic Band, which has performed weekly park concerts from June through August continuously for the past 78 years. Mr. DeYoung was the band’s musical leader during the summers of 1947 through 1950. During the winter of 1947–48, when he played in a dance band, Mr. DeYoung decided to attend Stetson University to become a school band director/music educator.

In January 1952, after earning a BME, Mr. DeYoung accepted the position of band, chorus, and general music teacher at St. Cloud High School for grades 6–12. During the summers of 1954 through 1957, he attended Florida State University, where he earned an MME and graduated in 1957. Mr. DeYoung taught in St. Cloud for more than eight years.

During that time, he met and married Jo Stephens, who also was a teacher. They had two sons, and in the summer of 1960, the family moved to Bartow, where Mr. DeYoung became the band director at Bartow High School and Bartow Junior High School, again teaching grades 6–12. An additional band director was hired the following year, and Mr. DeYoung continued as the high school’s band director and assisted with beginning sixth-grade band students until he retired in 1984. From 1976 to 1984, he was conductor of the pit orchestra for the Bartow Performing Arts Council’s musicals.

After retiring from Polk County Public Schools, Mr. DeYoung served as the convention manager for FMEA. He also taught band classes at St. Paul’s and St. Joseph’s church schools in Winter Haven, served as the interim band director at Lake Wales High School (1986–87), served as the assistant band director at McLaughlin Middle School in Lake Wales (1996–98) and taught private band instrument lessons in Arcadia, Wauchula, and Bartow for several years. In 1990, he was encouraged by several musicians to start an adult band, and so Mr. and Mrs. DeYoung organized the Bartow Adult Concert Band.

The Bartow Adult Concert Band has performed seven concerts each year since 1990. The musicians come from all parts of Polk County. The band rehearses weekly, October through April and in June to prepare for the July 4^th concert. All performances are free and attract audiences of 800 to 1,000. On July 24, 2014, the DeYoungs announced they were retiring after 24 years, but the Bartow Adult Concert Band plays on under new leadership.

Mr. DeYoung served two terms as a district chairperson and was president of the Florida Bandmasters Association (1980–81). He is a past president of FMEA (1983–85). He was a 2004 inductee into the Florida Bandmasters Association Hall of Fame. In 2013, Mr. DeYoung was the first recipient of the 50-Year Music Education Service Award presented by FMEA.

Mr. DeYoung served as an adjudicator at district events of the Florida Bandmasters Association for 40 years. His other distinctions include: 1976 Bartow Lions Club Outstanding Citizen Award; FBA Award for 35 Years of Distinguished Service (1952–1987); 1994 Spirit of Bartow Award from the Bartow Chamber of Commerce; 1999 Phi Beta Mu Outstanding Bandmaster Award; and 2004 Rotarian of the Year.

In 2025, Mr. and Mrs. DeYoung celebrated their 71st wedding anniversary.

We celebrate a life well lived and offer our sincere condolences to John R. DeYoung’s family and friends.

FMEA Past President and Nova Singers’ founding musical director and long-time mentor, Peggy Joyce Barber, 94, passed away peacefully at her John Knox Village home on Sunday, August 4. She has remained an honorary director emeritus since turning over the conducting reigns to Chuck Stanley in the fall of 2010. Peggy was a nationally recognized choral director and clinician. She served as director of music for the First Presbyterian Church in Pompano Beach and the First Christian Church of Fort Lauderdale. She was a past state president of the American Choral Directors Association and the Florida Music Education Association, where she was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 1988 (the youngest person at the time).She began her choral career in South Florida as director of the Stranahan High School music program. During her 18 years at Stranahan High School in southwest Fort Lauderdale, Barber nurtured the choral program from a handful of students up to 500 singers, winning numerous accolades and honors. Peggy and her life partner of more than 50 years, Janie Ann Hooks, moved to their beautiful waterfront villa in John Knox Village in 2002 and were very active in the community until Janie passed away in March of 2017. Both Peggy and Janie will be interred in a columbarium at the First Presbyterian Church of Pompano Beach (The Pink Church).

If you would like to honor Peggy’s memory, donations to the Nova University Community Singers would be welcome. You can either donate online through the Nova University website giving.nova.edu and make sure you select Nova Singers under the Select Gift area drop-down or by mailing a check payable to:

Nova University Community Singers
c/o John List
971 SW Pepperidge Terr.
Boca Raton, FL 33486

Barbara Smith (Bobbie), 75, from Apopka, passed away on August 7, 2020. She was followed in death by her beloved husband of 55 years, Audie Byron Smith, 76, a Tallahassee native, who passed away September 5, 2020. Byron is a Past President of FMEA, and both Bobbie and Byron managed the FMEA Conference Exhibit Hall for many years after their retirement. 

Bobbie graduated from Apopka High School and Byron graduated from Leon High School. They both attended Florida State University where they received Bachelors Degrees in Music Education. Byron went on to complete both his Masters and Doctorate degrees at FSU. They both retired from the Leon County School district where they served at Rickards and primarily Lincoln High School for four decades. They also mentored numerous FSU music education students who interned in their programs. Even in retirement they volunteered at Deerlake Middle School where their grandchildren were in chorus. They also devoted countless hours to the Florida Vocal Association (FVA) and Florida Music Education Association (FMEA). As highly respected music educators, they received many awards and commendations including the top honors of: FMEA Hall of Fame (2010, Byron); FVA Hall of Fame (2012, Byron); FVA Roll of Distinction (2012, Bobbie); Leon County Schools Outstanding Senior Volunteer (2018, Bobbie).

The Florida Music Education Association is saddened to announce the passing of our longest living Past President, Dr. Al G. Wright (1916-2020) on September 5, 2020 at his home in West Lafayette, Indiana. Dr. Wright served as President of the FBA from 1946-47 and President of the FMEA from 1952-53.  He grew up in Michigan and attended the University of Miami, where he earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music.  He taught band and orchestra at Miami Senior High School from 1937-1954, after which he became the second director of the Purdue All-American Marching Band in the summer of 1954, where he served for 27 years until his retirement in 1981. 

In 1954, Wright was one of the founding members of the Florida chapter of the American School Band Directors Association (ASBDA), and in 1961 founded the National Band Association (NBA), serving as its founding president, secretary-treasurer, and then honorary life president (2000).  Wright was president of numerous band organizations and served on many Boards of Directors throughout his career.  You can see his FBA Legacy Project interview on the FBA Legacy Project page.  Dr. Wright was 104 years old.