Executive Staff

Ed Harris, served as the president and chief operating officer of GIA from 1967-2002. His grandfather founded the Chicago Carl Fisher store around the turn of the last century, and Ed was a third generation Harris in Fisher management when he left there to take over GIA in 1967. Ed continues to serve on the management staff after passing the company's torch to his son, Alec.

Robert J. Batastini is the retired vice president and senior editor of GIA Publications, Inc., Chicago. Though retired from management, he maintains an active role at GIA. Bob has over fifty years of service in pastoral music ministry, having served several parishes in the Archdiocese of Chicago and one in the Diocese of Joliet where he remains director of music emeritus for St. Joseph Parish in Downers Grove, Illinois. He served as executive editor and project director for the Worship hymnals (three editions), Gather hymnals (three editions), Catholic Community Hymnal, and as executive editor of RitualSong. In 1993 he became the first recipient of the Father Lawrence Heimann Citation for lifetime contribution to church music and liturgy in the U.S., awarded by St. Joseph's College, Rensselaer, Indiana, and was named "Pastoral Musician of the Year-2000" by the National Association of Pastoral Musicians (NPM). At its 2006 conference, he was named a Fellow of the Hymn society in the United States and Canada. Bob is a thirty-year member of the North American Academy of Liturgy, past-president of the Hymn Society in the United States and Canada, served as a member of the Council for the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, and currently is a member of the Music Advisory Committee of the Bishops Committee on the Liturgy.

Alec Harris, President, (Ed's son) serves as GIA's president and chief operating officer. He also supervises all printing and manufacturing of recordings, and coordinates the growing and remarkably successful educational side of the GIA catalog.

Kelly Dobbs Mickus, Senior Editor, joined GIA in 1987 and became the principal choral editor in 1990. As Senior Editor, a position that primarily involves the supervision of GIA's editorial department along with the responsibilities associated with being a member of GIA's management team, she succeeds Robert Batastini. Kelly has worked with Bob for many years both at GIA and in parish music ministry. At St. Joseph Church in Downers Grove, Kelly was co-director with Bob from 1991-1999, and then director until 2001. She maintains an active role as a pastoral musician at St. John of the Cross in Western Springs, Illinois, where she serves as assistant organist and has been involved in different aspects of the music ministry since 2001. Kelly studied organ at Indiana University in Bloomington and DePaul University in Chicago, where she studied with Jerome Butera. She is heard as pianist and organist on a number of GIA recordings, and is the pianist on most of GIA's choral packet demo recordings.

Michael Cymbala, Director of Marketing/Executive Producer,is a familiar face at exhibits at various conventions throughout the year. Michael is a member of the music staff of the Archdiocese of Chicago and brings to GIA more than twenty years experience in parish work as a pastoral musician.

Tom Hawley, Controller, has worked at GIA since 1997 after being one of their Public Accountants with KGN from 1988 until 1995. Aside from his accounting talents, Tom is also a musician. He is the principal bassist with the Southwest Symphony Orchestra and performs with the Kankakee Valley Symphony Orchestra as well as in the pit for numerous community theater productions. Tom also plays at monthly Taizé Prayer services at Ascension Catholic Church in Oak Park as well as at various GIA showcases and reading sessions.

Editorial Staff

Neil Borgstrom, Editor has been at GIA since 1984. He is GIA’s principal book editor, and includes among his regular duties copy-editing each issue of the GIA Quarterly. Neil is also organist and pianist at Our Lady of the Woods Parish, Orland Park, Illinois.   Joshua Evanovich, Editorial Assistant, is the 2007 outstanding music graduate of Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa, with a double major in music and business administration. As an intern with Augsburg Fortress Publishers, Josh worked on the production of the Evangelical Lutheran Worship hymnal. He now serves GIA as an assistant music engraver and proofreader. Josh is an active composer and arranger, having music recorded on Iowa Public Television and the Moody Broadcasting Network. He is also an accomplished organist and pianist, frequently appearing as a recitalist and accompanist in churches, and he plays the trombone and rings handbells. Josh enjoys downhill skiing and playing golf in his spare time. Cathy Kennerk, Administrative Assistant, has worked for GIA’s Editorial Department since 2003. Growing up singing GIA music, she is very proud to work here. Cathy is also an active member of the Beverly Theatre Guild in Chicago. Jeff Mickus, Hymnal Coordinator, coordinates GIA hymnal projects, as well as tending to other layout and editorial duties. He performs as a professional trumpeter in Chicago and can be heard on the GIA CD, Gaudeamus: Music for Brass (along with his wife, Kelly, who plays organ). He can also be heard on various movie soundtracks (Big Night, The Imposters, Secret Lives of Dentists) as well as various jazz CD's. He sings tenor in the choir at St. John of the Cross Parish, Western Springs, where he is also the section leader. Phil Roberts, Handbell Editor, has over 20 years of choral and handbell directing experience and is a published composer. He directs Chicago Bronze, an auditioned community handbell ensemble. Here at GIA Phil is the editor of our Resounding Faith Series: Handbell Music for the Church and he also serves as our senior music engraver. Brian Streem, Assistant Editor is a long-time choral singer, with groups such as Chicago a cappella, the Chicago Symphony Chorus, the Grant Park Symphony Chorus, and the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, and is the assistant conductor of the Schola Cantorum of St. Peter the Apostle. He is a graduate of the Chicago College of Performing Arts, studying voice with Tracy Watson and music theory with Dr. Rudy Marcozzi, and combines his love of choral music and theory as the editor of choral music for GIA.

Michael Boschert, Permissions Editor, hails from St. Charles, MO. He brings five years of experience as Publications Administrator for Choristers Guild. He has two music degrees in vocal performance (Master’s from the University of North Texas, Bachelor’s from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville). While a resident of Dallas, he sang with the Dallas Opera and was the bass section leader for First Presbyterian Church. He sings at Old St. Pat’s in downtown Chicago, as well as the Grant Park Music Festival Chorus and the Chicago Symphony Chorus. Michael loves living in Chicago and working with his colleagues at GIA. Garrett Jackson, is the Editorial and Marketing Assistant for African American Editions. Jackson is a graduate of Morgan State University, Baltimore, with a BA in music and has sung on several of the recordings in the GIA series. Jackson will also serve as administrative assistant to Dr. Abbington, and be GIA’s liaison with the AACMS composers. He relocated to Chicago from Baltimore to assume this position. Vicki Krstansky, Editorial Assistant, earned her Bachelor’s degree in music from Clarke College and is an NPM Certified Organist. She has over twenty years of experience as a choir member and accompanist throughout the Chicago land area and currently serves as an accompanist at St. Alexander Church in Villa Park. Some of her duties at GIA include music engraving, proofreading, and overseeing the contents of HymnPrint.net. Clarence Reiels, Editorial Assistant has been with GIA for more than 30 years, serving as music engraver, layout person, eagle-eyed proofreader. He has been active in Christ the King Lutheran Church, Chicago, for most of his adult life.   Randy Sensmeier, Editor, edits primarily hymnic and liturgical materials, as well as instrumental and keyboard music. He is Cantor of Ascension Lutheran Church in Riverside, Illinois, where he plans and coordinates worship, directs adult and children's choirs, and is organist. Among his published compositions are numerous choral octavos, keyboard and instrumental works, and a collection of hymn tunes. Randy has a B.Ed. and Masters in Church Music from Concordia University, River Forest, Illinois, and his parish music career of thirty-two years includes twenty-one years as a teacher in Lutheran elementary schools.

Marketing Staff

David Anderson, Workshop Coordinator,and GIA Presents Primary Clinician In addition to serving as Workshop Director for GIA Publications, Inc., David Anderson serves as Director of Music and Liturgy at Ascension Parish in Oak Park, Illinois. David's outreach of music in the parish embraces a broad variety of ages and levels of musical ability. David's formal education includes theological studies at Catholic Theological Union and Loyola University of Chicago, a Master of Church Music degree from Concordia University and advanced choral studies at Westminster Choir College. David is a well-known speaker at many national conferences, is frequently asked to prepare the liturgy and music for various conferences, and for retreats, has consulted and authored materials for Liturgy Training Publications (including Handbook of Church Music for Weddings), and served as an editor of GIA's hymnal RitualSong and Singing Our Faith, GIA's new hymnal for children. For the past eight years on the first Friday of each month, David has prepared and coordinated a Taizé prayer at Ascension Parish that brings together over 800 people from many Christian traditions. This monthly gathering serves as a model for ministry, hospitality, and outreach.

Gary Daigle, Contemporary Music Consultant, received his Bachelor of Music degree from Southeastern Louisiana University. His liturgical expertise received great impetus when he joined the program in liturgical studies in Arizona at the Corpus Christi Center for Liturgical Studies, the Southwestern epicenter for liturgical scholarship, which had been directed by John Gallen, SJ. At that time, Gary served as Director of Music Ministry at the Franciscan Renewal Center (The Casa - Scottsdale, AZ) After his work at the center, he moved on to other churches in Arizona, California, and Illinois. He is presently the Associate Director of Music at St. Anne Catholic Church in Barrington, IL in addition to his duties at GIA.

Suzanne Orland, Associate Director of Marketing and GIA Presents Coordinator, holds a Master of Music degree with an emphasis in vocal performance and pedagogy from Northern Illinois University and a second Master’s in Organizational Management. She also received her liturgical certification through the Catholic Theological Union. Suzanne has spent most of her life involved in liturgical music. Her musical background includes singing opera, teaching music and voice, and choral directing. For over eleven years she was the director of music and liturgy at St. Mary’s Parish in West Chicago, Illinois. She currently works part time as the director of music at Resurrection Catholic Community in Wayne, Illinois. Some of Suzanne’s primary responsibilities with GIA include catalog production, writing web and catalog copy, assisting with convention and conference preparations, organizing, preparing, and executing GIA’s Summer Choral Reading Sessions, and coordinating the GIA Presents program. In her off time from GIA, Suzanne sings in various recitals around the Chicago land area, and is a choral section leader for a Reform congregation in Glenview, Illinois.

Andrew Schultz, Assistant Director of Marketing, uses his visual art and design background in compiling many of GIA’s promotional materials. Andrew studied painting and art history at Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter, MN.

Adjunct Staff

James Abbington, currently Associate Professor of Music and Worship at Candler School of Theology, Emory University in Atlanta, GA, was previously a professor of music in the Department of Fine Arts at Morgan State University. Prior to his tenure in Baltimore he was Associate Professor of Music and Chair of the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at Shaw University in Raleigh, NC (1998–2003). He is the Executive Editor of the African American Church Music Series published by GIA Publications, Inc. of Chicago and has served as co-director of the annual Hampton University Ministers’ and Musicians’ Conference since 2000.

James Jordan, Executive Editor of the Evoking Sound Choral Series, published by GIA Publications in Chicago. This series presents choral literature at the highest levels for high school and college choirs. In addition to new compositions by America's finest composers, the series also presents new editions of standard choral repertoire, edited with singers in mind. Also unique to this series are solfege editions that utilize Jordan's groundbreaking approach to the use of solfege in choral ensembles that uses accurate aural analysis as the basis of the approach.

Ron Krisman, Editor for Bilingual Resources, is a priest of the Diocese of Orlando. Served on the staff of the USCCB Committee on the Liturgy from 1981 to 1993. He serves as Hispanic editor for GIA, focusing primarily on Oramos Cantando, GIA's forthcoming bilingual hymnal.

Fred Moleck. In 2001 after forty-six years of parish music ministry and after thirty-nine years of university and college teaching, he retired from those activities and began a new phase of church work. He became the director of the Office for Worship for the Diocese of Greensburg in western Pennsylvania where he is a native. He also directed the diocesan choir there. Although he is now fully retired from church work, Fred continues to be the editor of the GIAQuarterly, the journal for liturgical music published by GIA Publications, Inc. of Chicago, a post he has held since founding the Quarterly fifteen years ago. His weekly column, TableTalk, appears on the GIA Web site, www.giamusic.com/sacred_music/tabletalk/

Art Department

Martha Chlipala, Graphic Artist loves her job and would rather let her work speak for her. Some of her favorite projects at GIA include; Paul Tate’s CD Bring Us Home (my first design at GIA) Alice Parker's Anatomy of Melody cover (A great cover that would never have happened without art direction from Alec Harris, who said, "Think of something simple, like a spring of water...") James Jordan's The Musician's Walk (From the search for the elusive perfect cover photo to the many illustrations within, this was a project that pushed the outside of the envelope.) Cak Marshall's Tootles (Just plain fun, with jumping kids and dancing animals) James Abbington's, New Wine in Old Wineskins (Working on a hymnal cover is both a great honor and a great responsibility. This cover was fun because it was bright and vibrant and I love the folk art style.) My thanks to GIA and all the authors and artists who allow me to interpret their work visually.  It's been a great two years and I hope for many more!

Bob Sacha, Graphic Artist, has been with GIA since 1992. Robert has his A.A. from Moraine Valley Community College and a BFA from University of Illinois at Chicago; his major was graphic/communications design with an emphasis in typography and photography. Outside of GIA, Bob spends his time with his partner, Joel, his parrots, and their dogs, and enjoying several hobbies, including photography. Bob prefers to be on the other side of the camera lens, hence no photo.

Music Education

Gregg Sewell, Copy Editor, has a Bachelors of Music degree in Music Theory and Composition from Samford University. He has published over 2,600 compositions and arrangements in all genres and styles. He has edited and typeset music and music publications for over thirty years, from The Volunteer Choir and The Church Pianist magazines to various hymnals, children’s choir curricula, and a scholarly edition of Handel’s Messiah, and has been active as a choral director and pianist for church and community choirs for that time. Friends and co-workers describe him as energetic, positive, cooperative, collaborative, creative, insightful, a problem solver, and a craftsman.

Print Shop

John Tatar, Print Shop Manager

Tony Litwinko, Print Shop

Cheryl Meuller, Print Shop

Kevin Quan, Print Shop

Dave Lewalski, Print Shop

Order Filling

Joe Husenger, Order Filling Supervisor

Johanna Stober, Order Filling

Jolanta Burton, Order Filling

Ala Skubisz, Order Filling, immigrated from Poland 13 years ago and has been working for GIA the last seven. In Poland, Ala taught kindergarten and music. Outside of GIA she currently teaches at M. Konopnicka Polish Language School with her husband Stanley who is the school's principal. Ala has two sons.

Shipping

Don Wachowski, Shipping and Receiving Supervisor, has worked for GIA for over 20 years. In addition to his duties at GIA, Don plays guitar and is well versed in all styles of music from rock to classical. In his spare time Don runs his own seasonal party rental business called Jump-On-It which provides inflatable theme moonwalks and slides throughout the Chicago land area.

David Williams, Shipping Clerk

Dan Cramer, Shipping Clerk, has worked for GIA for 14 years. His interests outside of GIA include bowling and Cubs games. Dan’s greatest joy in life is his wife and 4 young daughters.

Business Office

Maria Peccia, Customer Service/Accounts Receivable Manager, is a very dedicated employee who was recently promoted to her current position as customer service and accounts receivable manager. Prior to that she served GIA as a customer service representative. She has been with the company for a total of 15 years. Maria lives with her husband and two daughters.

Gladys Guerrero, Assistant Controller, has eight years of experience with GIA. In addition to her duties as assistant controller, Gladys often travels to trade shows and conventions for GIA and is our resident Spanish translator. In her off time she enjoys reading, movies, Motown, and disco music. She is currently putting her two children through college.

Cathy Boyd, Customer Service Representative, has been a member of the GIA family since 1994. She is married and has an eight-year-old daughter. She really loves her role at GIA and receives a great deal of satisfaction from helping GIA customers.

Chris Giebel, Customer Service Representative, has been with GIA’s customer service department for two-and-a-half years. He comes to GIA with three years of experience in customer service with Shattinger Music Company in St. Louis, Missouri. Chris attended Concordia University in River Forest, Illinois where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in music performance and literature. He plays French horn and sings as well. Chris’s duties include commercial and mechanical licensing, royalties, and reprint permissions.

Kathy Giese, Customer Service Representative, has been with GIA for three years. She loves serving our customers especially helping them find the resources they need. Kathy has a degree in music education from Briar Cliff College in Sioux City, Iowa and University of Illinois at Champaign Urbana. For many years she taught elementary general music and one of her most rewarding jobs was serving her church as organist and choir director.

Ade Kallenborn, Customer Service Representative, has only been with GIA for short two years but she brings with her over 25 years of customer service experience. One of her most treasured activities outside of GIA is an annual charity event that raises money for Multiple Sclerosis. Each year she and her friends raise thousands of dollars to donate to Jerry’s Kids during their annual Labor Day Telethon.

Flo Kostyk, Customer Service Representative, has worked at GIA for over 5 years. Among her many duties at GIA, Flo specializes in international shipping.

Marylin La Faire, Office Support, has worked for GIA for over 10 years and feels that GIA is a great place to work. She enjoys her role in the customer service department and loves the wonderful people she works with. Prior to her work at GIA, Marilyn was employed with Sweetheart Cup Co where she put in 22 years of service.

Diane La Monto, Customer Service Representative

Nicole Micel, Customer Service Representative, has been with GIA for one year and has enjoyed it completely. Music is a big part of her life and GIA is a perfect fit. Nicole plays guitar and sang with her high school choir.

Nicole Zak, Customer Service Representative

Reavis High School Cooperative Education Program

GIA Publications, Inc. proudly supports and employs student workers through the Reavis High School Cooperative Education Program. The main goal of this program is to help students become productive members of the workforce.

Agnes Wypych, Customer Service Representative

Matt Moczarny, Shipping Clerk

Dan Palka, Order Filling