In honor of Jerry Lange’s 38 years of teaching music at Upper Columbia Academy, the student council initiated a move to name the music building “Lange Hall.” The announcement, which came as a surprise to the Langes, was made during the final Christmas concert of the season before an enthusiastic audience of more than 400 people. Members of student council presented Lange with a plaque in honor of the occasion and presented his wife Harriet with a dramatic Christmas bouquet.

UCA’s music department put on three Christmas concerts this year. The first two were sacred choral concerts, conducted by Curtis Anderson, and also included Wafia Kinne's UCA piano students and the Spangle Adventist Elementary School’s bell choir, directed by Paul Jenks. They were held in the church this year to take advantage of the worship-inspiring atmosphere and the improved acoustics in the recently remodeled sanctuary.

The final concert, which was a more general concert held in the gymnasium, also included numbers by UCA’s choral groups, but it featured the concert band, directed by Jerry Lange. In another surprise to Lange, his two-year-old grandson, Quinn, was presented to assist in conducting one of the band’s numbers.

“At first, we thought we’d make the announcement during alumni weekend (May 5–6), when we knew Mr. Lange would be honored,” said David Mack, the member of student council who presented the idea. “But we were afraid we couldn’t keep the secret that long! This way, Mr. Lange can be involved in the design of the lettering that will go on the side of the building, and we can still have the official ceremony during alumni weekend.”

“I am very proud of this student council,” says Jeff Bovee, principal. “They aren’t coming to us with trivial requests. They are working on more meaningful issues—like this one.”

Lange and his wife, Harriet (business ed.), will retire from full-time service after this year; however, next year he will serve as UCA’s contract keyboard instructor.