Ian Walton joined the Board in 2017. He became President in November 2023. He grew up in Scotland and first participated in Celtic music in the back of a bus with the St Andrews University Mountaineering Club. He moved to Santa Cruz in 1973 and has been enjoying Celtic Society concerts since the late 90s. He enjoys playing depressing Celtic ballads from all over the world and can be heard at Open Mics around Santa Cruz. A retired community college mathematics instructor, he was President of the statewide Academic Senate for California Community Colleges and Chair of the Commission that accredits two-year colleges in California, Hawaii and the Pacific. Post COVID, he hopes to help bring back the Celtic Society’s wonderful selection of traditional bands as well as to encourage young performers from Scotland, Ireland and Cape Breton to visit Santa Cruz.

Recent retiree Kathy Fieberling became a big fan of Celtic and traditional music in the early 60s as a young teenager, and has attended festivals and concerts ever since. She studied sean nós singing with Irish singer/songwriter Mary McLaughlin and was a member of Mary’s Irish Gaelic choir, Cor Aingli. With years of experience working for a local non-profit, Kathy hopes to lend her skills to the Celtic Society doing PR, development, and event and volunteer coordination. She is most enthusiastic about helping to bring the best of Celtic performers to the Monterey Bay area. Kathy spreads the word about our concerts by sending press releases to the local newspapers and radio stations and is also a member of our Volunteers and Housing Subcommittee.

Peter Schwarz got interested in folk music in the 80’s, during his graduate studies in Pittsburgh, PA. Through concerts hosted by George Balderose at Calliope House, he became a fan of Celtic music, as well as old-time string bands and other forms of acoustic roots music. He also got involved in radio, hosting a folk music program (and a punk music program!) on the Carnegie-Mellon station, WRCT. Upon moving to San Jose in 1985, Peter joined the staff of listener-sponsored radio station KKUP, where he has hosted a program featuring Celtic music and a variety of other forms of folk music ever since, and also serves as Music Director. When not listening to music, Peter works as a Research Staff Member at IBM’s Almaden Research Center. Peter believes we live in a musical “ecosystem”: a synergistic community of performers, audiences, venues, promoters and media that combine to give the Bay Area its vibrant musical scene. By serving on the Board of the Celtic Society of the Monterey Bay, he hopes to help keep this ecosystem thriving for many years to come.

Pete Haworth was a founding member of the 501(c)(3) non-profit version of the Celtic Society. Pete has been a music fan most of his life, playing guitar in teenage rock bands in England in the 70's and graduatingto folk muisc in general and Celtic music in particular in the 80's. Along with bagpiper David Brewer, he was a founding member of local Celtic band Molly's Revenge. Pete is now retired and feels busierthan he ever did when he was in full time employment.

I first became interested in Celtic music after listening to the Dubliners in the 1960’s and was a regular at local folk clubs in the North of England. I have attended many of the Celtic Society shows when Pete and I lived in Sunnyvale. When we moved over to Soquel in 2000 we started hosting house concerts. We also offer home stays for many of the visiting musicians and have made many good friends over the years. I am a founding member of the Celtic Society Board, as Secretary and now Membership Secretary. Our membership has almost doubled since we took the Society into a non profit organization. I am an avid gardener and volunteer at the UCSC Arboretum and Botanical Gardens.

Gloria has been with the Celtic Society of Monterey Bay since the organization was formed. An avid lover of all music Celtic, she has also served on the Board of Directors for the Folk Alliance and has been a member of Folk Alliance since 2000. She spends her free time traveling to Scotland, Ireland and folk festivals from here to there. Ms. Rosson works as an Attorney in San Jose, and has performed many hours of pro bono work for musicians throughout her career. She aspires to keep the Celtic Society flourishing, so that the best in traditional music will always find ahome in the Santa Cruz area. In November 2023 Gloria passed on the President position to Ian Walton and the Concert Director position to Jackie Pierce. Thanks to Gloria for all her work on the Society's behalf.

Welcome to our newest Board member. Andy writes: Born in New York, raised in New Jersey moved to Santa Cruz in 1988 to attend UCSC. Met my Wife in college and stayed on in Santa Cruz ever since. I was a science and math teacher in Watsonville for 10 Years and A firefighter in Santa Cruz city for the past 20 until recently retiring. A life long lover of all types of music ( I dabble on the acoustic guitar) My Love for Celtic music began in the 1980's listening to Clannad, Pentangle, Chieftains, The Pouges, The Dubliners and The Battlefield Band. Since the 1990's I have been attending local Celtic shows and festivals in the bay area. All time favorites include- Old Blind Dogs, John Doyle, Solas, Dick Gaughan, Jim Malcom and many others. Celtic music resonates for me on a deep level and I look forward to continuing the mission of the Celtic society in bringing the best Celtic music from around the world to our area. Hopefully, we can expose a new generation of listener's who also hear the magic!