VEVEY, Switzerland Caren (Gentry) Whitehouse cant wait to be conducted in song again by her North High School choral teacher Jerry Hoover. Whitehouse hopes it will be The Battle Hymn of the Republic.

A 1975 North graduate, Whitehouse said this may be possible due to the efforts of herself and a group of North alumni that are working toward raising $75,000 to fund the name change for the high schools performing arts center to place Hoovers name to the beginning by fall.

The Hoover Hall Committee, made up of loyal North alumni and local residents from graduating classes going back to 1962, is leading fundraising efforts for the permanent name change and dedication of the Jerry Hoover Performing Arts Center. The committee is chaired by Whitehouse, and includes members Rev. Rick VanHoose, class of 1962; Steve Fritz, class of 1964, Don Bernhardt, class of 1974, and Ned and Marilyn Conder, who did not attend North High but are Hoovers friends.

The goal is to reach the $75,000 in donations by June 30. The money will be presented to the EVSC Foundation, a partner in the project, to benefit North music students. As of Friday night, the group has reached 55 percent of the goal, raising slightly more than $41,000 since the campaign began in early April.

Whitehouse said Hoover is just glad it will help the kids, expand the schools musical productions and ensure it is available for many years.

I think he may be speechless for the first time, she joked. We want this to be a legacy for him. Were not trying to keep it a secret, he knows too many people, so to keep it a secret would be too difficult.

Hoover, longtime North educator, choral director and noted local musician, will be 81in June. He was born and raised in Evansville, and employed with the EVSC for 48 years, working at North from 1956-1980 and at Harrison High School as a counselor from 1980-2001, and the choir director at Trinity United Methodist Church for 40 years. He thanked the committee for what its doing, and attributed his successes to the support of his former teachers and parents who inspired and influenced him.

My approach was to stay in the background and put the students in the foreground, he said. It was quite a surprise, and I was very humbled.

The committee is mailing forms to North alumni around the country, interested individuals, companies and family foundations in the Evansville community. All donations are tax-deductible within IRS guidelines because the EVSC is a partner in the campaign. People interested making contributions can pay in one lump sum or in five-year installments.

Whitehouse, executive director of the local medical society, had Hoover as a music teacher throughout high school for chorus and concert choir, and he directed the musical Camelot. He also directed her at Trinity.

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North alumni look to get music center named after longtime teacher