Staff

Music Director and Chorus Conductor - Rob Archibald	MusicDirector@SeattleEnsign.org
Symphony Conductor - Kelley Johnson	SymphonyConductor@SeattleEnsign.org
Vocal Coach - Erin Guinup	VocalCoach@SeattleEnsign.org
President - Andrew Pope	President@SeattleEnsign.org
Vice President of Communications - Kim Cooney	VPCommunications@SeattleEnsign.org
Vice President of Production - Andrew Pope	VPProduction@SeattleEnsign.org
Vice President of Missionary Outreach- Levon Johnson	VPMissionaryOutreach@SeattleEnsign.org
Vice President of Chorus - Alison Herron	VPChorus@SeattleEnsign.org
Vice President of Symphony - Lori Shepherd	VPSymphony@SeattleEnsign.org
Executive Secretary - Shannon Hesketh	ExecSec@SeattleEnsign.org
Board Chair - Joseph Gee	BoardChair@SeattleEnsign.org
Secretary Board Member - Sheila Bateman
Treasurer / Board Member - Sue Smith
Board Member - Andy Pope
Board Member - Patty Lee
Board Member - Justin Park

Rob Archibald, Founder, Music Director / Chorus Conductor
Rob Archibald, M.M. believes that music has the power to uplift and inspire musician and audience alike to become better.  Through his efforts founding and conducting Portland Ensign Choir & Orchestra, Westside Community & Youth Orchestra and numerous other church and community musical events, Mr. Archibald finds joy in bringing uplifting, professional quality music to audience members.  He has conducted large ensembles in major works such as Beethoven's 9th, Faure's Requiem and more, as well as smaller groups performing tight harmonies, rich cluster chords and challenging rhythms.  No matter the size of the ensemble, and no matter the music, performers and audience alike love the way Mr. Archibald brings the Spirit to his music.

Mr. Archibald received his Masters in Choral and Orchestral Conducting from Portland State University in 2010. He is an avid student of conducting and has traveled to various parts of the U.S. and Canada to work with Craig Jessop (Mormon Tabernacle Choir), Dumitru Goia (Moldova National Opera and Ballet Theater), Jon Washburn (Vancouver [B.C.] Chamber Choir), Anton Armstrong (St. Olaf College) and others. Most recently, Mr. Archibald studied with Gregory Vajda, Resident Conductor of the Oregon Symphony.  He is a firm believer that there is always more to learn and continually seeks to further develop his conducting skills. 

As a performer, Mr. Archibald excels as both a singer and an instrumentalist.  He has sung from tenor to bass in university, community and church choirs and has been featured as a soloist throughout his musical career.  He is sought after as a choral singer in community and church gigs for his musicianship and professionalism.  As an instrumentalist, Mr. Archibald loves to learn and is having fun developing proficiency in each instrument family in the orchestra.  So far he has learned oboe and percussion (mallets, snare, timpani) and has enjoyed playing each in a community orchestra for several years.  He is now learning to play the cello and is excited to play the horn next.

Mr. Archibald and his wife Jacki are the proud parents of 5 boys.

Kelley Marie Johnson, Symphony Conductor
Kelley Marie Johnson, DMA, started conducting in church for her mother around age 12 and has since held many unofficial roles as conductor for church assignments, community concerts, and academic events.  The Ensign orchestra is her first official post as conductor although she has led large orchestra and choir events in the Seattle area for the past two years and in Dallas for over a decade.  “Being able to celebrate the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the Ensign Choir and Orchestra is particularly special and meaningful to me.  I look forward to our first season.”

Kelley is the director and a private teacher at the Johnson String Performance Studios in Issaquah, WA as well as a coach and private violin teacher at Lakeside School in Seattle.  She has taught strings and chamber music at many summer intensives including the Interlochen summer arts camp and Iowa Summer Music Camp. She is an experienced and certified adjudicator through ASTACAP, and taught award winning public school orchestras in Texas and Iowa for over a decade.  She has worked for and taught at The University of Iowa where she received her doctorate in violin performance and pedagogy and is certified through Music Teachers National Association to teach violin at the college level.  Her research on string performance technique is being published through Alfred, and she is currently serving as American String Teacher’s northwest representative on the National Committee on Studio Instruction.

As a performer, Kelley is an active chamber musician and soloist and performs both solo and collaborative recitals throughout the US.  She has been playing in orchestras since she was eight, was the concertmaster of the Utah All-state orchestra, and has since held symphony contracts with many orchestras including the Tacoma Symphony, Flagstaff Symphony, Orchestra Iowa and Quad-Cities Symphony.  Kelley has recorded with Jennifer Thomas in the new Emmy nominated album “Illumination”, for Albany records with the Center for New Music at The University of Iowa, toured with the folk band “Tin Roof Tango” from Texas, and recorded several of her own albums as an independent artist. 

Erin Guinup, Vocal Coach
Soprano Erin Guinup has performed a wide range of operatic and musical theatre roles with Tacoma Opera, Puget Sound Concert Opera, Rainier Family Opera, Capital Playhouse, Northwest Repertory Singers, Tacoma Concert Band and Shakespeare in the Parking Lot.  Roles include Gretel in Hansel and Gretel, Musetta in La Boheme, Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro, Pamina in The Magic Flute, Dido in Dido and Aeneas, and Mrs. Nordstrom in Sondheim's A Little Night Music. She has also portrayed Mary and Mary Magdalene in productions of Savior of the World, sung the Soprano solos of Handel's Messiah, Bach's Christmas Oratorio and Mozart's Mass in C, conducted multi-stake Easter choir productions including Rob Gardner's Lamb of God, and directed secular and sacred stage productions. 

Erin maintains an active private voice studio and her students have been recognized with the Presidential Fine Arts Award, multiple winners of NATS, MTNA and State Solo/Ensemble Contests and have performed with community and regional theatre companies, national Broadway musical tours, European opera stages and television. Erin earned her degree in Vocal Performance and Music Education from the University of Puget Sound.  Erin also freelances as a music director, conductor, composer, pianist and has worked with the education department of the 5th Avenue Theatre.

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Andrew Pope, President
Andrew has had a great love for live performing arts since a very young age. The foundations of this love were laid while he was attending an elementary school in a suburb of New York City. There he became heavily involved in the drama program and attended numerous field trips to enjoy the very diverse live performance opportunities that the Big Apple had to offer. To this day, Andy still has the playbill from the earliest show he can still remember; the opera 'Billy Budd' performed in Italian at the Metropolitan Opera House.  Early on, Virginia Wilke, the first drama influence in his life, put a follow spot in his hands. This would frame his life for years to come. Throughout the remainder of his education, live performance came first, all other subjects came a distant second.

In the many years since college, Andy has filled just about every role there is behind the scenes. He has toured the world with Grammy award winning musical acts as a sound system engineer or light board operator. He has been a stage hand for Las Vegas extravaganzas. He has designed and built scenery for community theater as well as filled roles such as Stage Manager, Lighting Designer and even Assistant Director. He is very excited to work with the Ensign Symphony & Chorus.

Shannon Hesketh, Executive Secretary
Shannon was born and raised in the greater Seattle area and developed a love for music at an early age.  As an adult she has sung with church choirs and most recently with Rainier Chorale where she served on the Board of Directors for ten years.  When the opportunity arose to help develop a youth choir program, Shannon took on the position of Executive Director and has since played a large part in helping to evolve Rainier Youth Choirs into a very successful program.  Shannon and three of her best friends formed a quartet, affectionately known as ‘Three Divas and an Alto’.  They have performed at stake and ward meetings as well as many informal settings.  She served a mission in the then, Utah - Salt Lake City North mission and spent a lot of her service working with stake leadership in their missionary endeavors.  Shannon enjoys life with her husband, Joe, and their two cats, Max and Oscar.

Kim Cooney, Vice President of Communications
Certified Business Communicator Kim Cooney has more than 30 years of experience in corporate, sales-and-marketing, technical, and media communications. He has won regional, national and international awards in strategy, design, writing, and sales-and-marketing management. He has worked for Fortune 500 clients and helped position small business start-ups to be purchased for millions of dollars within 24 months of retaining his services.

A lyric tenor of baritonal warmth, Mr. Cooney has sung as a special guest soloist and duetist at some 700 venues from Vancouver B.C. to Mexico, San Francisco to St. Louis, Atlanta to Washington D.C., and New Zealand. He has soloed in concert with Metropolitan Opera leading tenor Eduardo Villa, Pavarotti Competition-winning soprano Pamela Casella, international dramatic soprano Cecilia Angell, and been accompanied by the late international keyboardist George Shangrow, pianist Dr. Charles Enlow, Mormon Tabernacle guest organist Larry Blackburn, Canadian Royal Conservatory’s Clifford Robinson, and sacred composer Crawford Gates. He has sung with the Bellevue Philharmonic, Orchestra Seattle, and the Sammamish Symphony and as oratorio soloist in Handel’s Messiah, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, and Haydn’s Creation.

Andrew Pope, Vice President of Production, Board Member 
Andrew has had a great love for live performing arts since a very young age. The foundations of this love were laid while he was attending an elementary school in a suburb of New York City. There he became heavily involved in the drama program and attended numerous field trips to enjoy the very diverse live performance opportunities that the Big Apple had to offer. To this day, Andy still has the playbill from the earliest show he can still remember; the opera 'Billy Budd' performed in Italian at the Metropolitan Opera House.  Early on, Virginia Wilke, the first drama influence in his life, put a follow spot in his hands. This would frame his life for years to come. Throughout the remainder of his education, live performance came first, all other subjects came a distant second.

In the many years since college, Andy has filled just about every role there is behind the scenes. He has toured the world with Grammy award winning musical acts as a sound system engineer or light board operator. He has been a stage hand for Las Vegas extravaganzas. He has designed and built scenery for community theater as well as filled roles such as Stage Manager, Lighting Designer and even Assistant Director. He is very excited to work with the Ensign Symphony & Chorus.

Alison Herron, Vice President of Chorus
Alison M. Young-Herron has been actively involved in music, dance, entertainment, & special events her entire life. She has directed countless ward & stake choral groups & stage productions, and served as choreography director for her region’s Dance Festival 2000. She was the organizing & creative force behind “Heaven’s Sounds,” and the Heaven’s Sounds Choir (1993-1997), bringing dozens of LDS recording artists & entertainers to Puget Sound area audiences. Her “Party of Eight” vocal ensemble performed frequently at church & community events in the area for seven years.

Alison is co-owner of Applause Studio in Mill Creek, where she has been teaching dance & musical theatre for 10 years. She is the rehearsal director for the Forgotten Carols Choir when Michael McLean brings his beloved production to Seattle, and has been involved with his local productions of that show for over 20 years. Recently she created and co-produced “Making a Joyful Noise – 101,” an instructional DVD for LDS choristers. Sister Herron is a member of the Lynnwood Stake, and currently serves as one of her ward’s Gospel Doctrine teachers. She is employed by RED Services as fire safety and disaster preparedness specialist. She is a published writer, and she and her talented husband Sid have entertained together for almost 30 years. Together they have 5 children, 7 grandchildren, 2 dogs & 2 cats. She enjoys photography, video editing, writing, reading, camping & hiking.

Lori Shepherd, Vice President of Symphony 
Prior to moving to the Seattle area with her husband Ryan (trombonist) in early 2012, Lori lived and worked as a freelance musician and teacher in Utah. She holds a Masters degree in Clarinet performance from the University of Utah, and is a versatile musician with interests in classical and chamber music, jazz, musical theater, and salsa. After finishing graduate studies, she brought her dream of creating a professional wind ensemble filled with Utah’s top musicians to life. She was the founder and president of the Utah Wind Symphony, one of the nation’s few premier professional wind ensembles, until her recent move to Washington.

Lori’s varied interests in music started early, beginning with piano lessons in elementary school and culminating in a music career that has included performances with Trio de Bois at the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival in New York, an engagement to perform at the World Expo in Shanghai, China as saxophonist with the University of Utah Jazz Ensemble, countless pit orchestra engagements as a multiple woodwind player (saxophones, clarinets, and flute), tours across the country with Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps on mellophone, and most recently in local gigs as saxophonist in Salsa Rosa and bass clarinetist with the Seattle Wind Symphony. When not practicing or performing, she enjoys exploring the beauty of the Northwest through daily adventures on the area’s walking and hiking trails with her faithful companion, a 7 pound toy poodle named Peanut

Levon Johnson, Vice President of Missionary Outreach
Named after an Elton John song, music has been an integral part of Levon’s life since birth. The earliest video recording of his childhood shows his impromptu singing of “Somewhere Out There” at his aunt’s wedding at the age of 3—learning the song by heart by listening to his older siblings. He has attended musical events, concerts, and shows all his life. With some instrumental training in clarinet and piano, Levon especially enjoys singing. He has previously participated in elementary to collegiate choirs, small ensembles, and solo performances of styles from a capella to jazz. Levon’s true passion centers on musical theatre and he has participated in various productions, including starring as Joseph in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.”


Educated in international relations, economics, and statistics, Levon attended school at BYU and is fluent in Spanish. Levon was born and raised in the Seattle area, where he met and later married his high school sweetheart. Together they take care of young foster children from all over the Seattle area and love every minute of it.

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Joseph Gee, Board Chair Music has always been a passion for Joseph. Classical piano won his heart first, but he was also involved in singing from an early age. Good experiences in ward, school, State, and All-Northwest choirs encouraged him to sing in the BYU Men’s Chorus as a freshman. There, under the direction of Dr. Mack Wilberg, he learned how amazing and powerful a choir could be. In addition to singing in the Men’s Chorus and Concert Choir, Joseph studied voice from Barry Bounous and Dr. Clayne Robison and piano from Dr. Douglas Humpherys.

After earning his B.A. in Music at BYU, Joseph decided he wanted to be able to support a family, so he went on to complete a JD/MBA, focusing on Finance. Joseph has worked in Finance at two Fortune 50 companies on two continents. He has continued performing in various choirs, small ensembles, and as a soloist. Among his performance highlights he includes accompanying his wife on her senior vocal recital, singing the bass solos for the Messiah, singing in a quartet for the prophet (twice), and singing in church with his children. He expects that performances with the Ensign Symphony and Chorus will compete for a spot on this list.

Sheila Bateman, Board Member
Sheila Bateman has been involved in music her entire life.  She is active in teaching private violin, directing church choirs, and running and directing her local youth orchestra, Snoqualmie Strings, which she founded in 2008.  She has studied violin performance, vocal performance, and conducting at BYU and USU. She has directed several oratorios for Bellevue South Stake, including Handel’s Messiah, Crawford Gates’ Visions of Eternity, Mack Wilberg’s Requiem, and David Zabriskie’s Savior of the World and Testament of Paul. She has also served as a music director and coach for stake musicals such as Li’l Abner and a Broadway Revue.  Sheila currently directs her stake choir and orchestra, and plays with the Snoqualmie Strings Faculty Quartet.

Patty Lee, Board Member
Soprano Patty Lee has been singing all of her life. She began singing solos in church and school at an early age and has loved music and performance both vocal and instrumental ever since. With leading roles from sacred to opera to musical theater and more, she is a versatile and enthusiastic performer in any role or venue. While studying vocal performance, she has sung as a guest soloist with various colleges and universities. She has also sung with many church and community groups, including several years with the Seattle Symphony Chorale. Patty also played the violin through college and beyond, performing with various community symphonies.  Patty is a landscape designer and small business owner with her husband Mark. Because music is of such great importance to her, she has worked for many years to produce concerts and community theater events that will bring joy to both the performers and audience. She is delighted to now be part of this new venture of the Ensign Symphony and Chorus.

Justin Park, Board Member
Justin is a partner in the law firm of Romero Park P.S., and manages the firm’s office in Bellevue, Washington where his practice focuses mostly on the Real Estate, Energy, Land Use and Construction sectors.  Justin is the current Chair of the Seattle Chapter of the BYU Alumni Association, and a Board Member with the Seattle Chapter of the BYU Management Society. He serves on the Board of the LDS Scholarships Northwest, helping award scholarships to Western Washington LDS students.  Justin is involved with Ensign because he loves music and wants to bring uplifting and inspiring music to the Puget Sound.