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Death notices and obituaries
Remembering Ron Siteman and the St. Mary’s Folk Choir
Obit day: Monday, September 30, 2019
BY VICKI TRAINOR
Photo courtesy of Ann Marie Siteman
I’ve got Dan Fogelberg’s “Leader of the Band” stuck in my head; it was one of Ron Siteman’s favorite songs. It’s one of a cascade of songs and memories from my St. Mary’s Folk Choir days that have been coming back to me ever since I learned of Ron’s death in October 2019.
Ron was one of the very first people I met when I came to Halifax to attend St. Mary’s, and it was the Folk Choir that brought us together. It was September 1978, the first chaplaincy Mass of the school year. The Mass had outgrown its chapel on campus and was being held in Canadian Martyrs Church on Inglis Street. When I arrived, the church was packed; when I heard the music, I realized why.
There was a kind of revival happening in the church at that time due in part to rock musicals like Jesus Christ Superstar and Godspell, and folk singers who wanted to express their faith in the type of music they loved. Encouraged by a hip young priest, Fr. John Mills, the Saint Mary’s Folk Choir filled the Mass with music that resonated with students and community members alike. I knew immediately that I wanted to join them, so after Mass, I talked to the leader of the group. It was Ron.
I found out that Ron had been a driving force behind the creation of the Folk Choir and although he was a recent alumnus, he was still very actively committed to the choir, a commitment that eventually spanned a decade. Traveling by bus from his home in Woodside, he would help us with rehearsals on Thursday nights, sing and play for the Sunday masses, and put in extra time for special events on campus. He played several instruments, guitar being his favorite, and he sang with a sweet ringing tenor voice that could switch on a dime from melody to harmony.
He was also the backbone of informal gatherings hosted by the Chaplaincy Society every Sunday evening after Mass. Held in the chapel in Loyola, this “Coffee Hour” brought together shy new students and familiar faces alike. All were invited to share coffee and doughnuts, mingle, and of course, sing. It was supposed to last about an hour but we stayed long afterwards singing into the night, and Ron would selflessly accompany everyone who wanted his sweet guitar to back them up. Nobody got paid, except in joy.
I can still hear Ron, belting out Godspell’s “Prepare Ye” or leading us in “Beautiful City” – all our young faces beaming with joy, singing like we wrote the songs: “We can build a Beautiful City, yes we can!” For many of us, the Folk Choir was that beautiful city—a joyous, loving society where bonds were forged that still exist today – even marriages! I cannot imagine what my university experience would have been like without the choir.
Even after Ron finally left the choir and married the love of his life, Ann Marie, was busy with his beloved son, John, and with playing in his regular band, Triple Image, he still would call on his old SMU friends, always inviting us to sing. Even when he was diagnosed with early Parkinson’s, his phone call to me was not only to inform me but also to ask if I would sing with him at an upcoming fundraiser for the Parkinson’s Society. Ann Marie tells of how for the first two years of his residence in a nursing home, he had volunteered his talent so often that most people thought he was part of the staff.
This was the same generous spirit, love of music, and commitment to community that Ron brought to the Saint Mary’s Folk Choir, and I know I am not the only one who feels a world of gratitude for his presence in our lives. If we all created that Beautiful City together, Ron was the Mayor. It would not have happened without him. He was the leader of our band, and a beautiful part of Saint Mary’s history.