Local surgeon devotes time to children's chorus
As an orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Bruce Goldberg treats patients at his offices in Hoffman Estates and Wheaton and performs surgery at St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates.
But for one group of cherished patients, he comes to them. For each of the Palatine Children's Chorus's performance tours - they went to Carnegie Hall in February and next summer they head to Ireland - Goldberg collects health information about every member and packs a medical kit, anticipating what both singers and adults might need.
Goldberg also now serves on the Parent Board, where he helps produce a newsletter, has compiled a database and has instituted long range planning goals. Members say he has helped provide scholarships and he now serves as stage manager at every concert.
All this he contributes to the organization more than a dozen years after his daughter, Leslie, left the program to attend college.
"After Leslie graduated, I stayed involved because it is fun," Goldberg says. "I just love being part of the organization. I love making PCC a special experience in the singers' lives."
Goldberg was recognized earlier this month as an Outstanding Citizen Volunteer by the Illinois Association of Park Districts. Since the Palatine Children's Chorus is sponsored by the Palatine Park District, its leaders seized the opportunity to honor him in a public way for all of his behind-the-scenes work.
He was one of only four individuals honored, with the rest coming from Glenview, the Cook County and Will County forest preserve districts.
"It's impossible to overstate how much we appreciate his assistance," says Diane Ramsden, the group's managing director, who nominated Goldberg for this award. She recently announced this will be her last year with the chorus.
The award-winning chorus was founded in 1987 by Judith Meyer Hays. When Susan Falbo took over as music director 10 years later, she expanded the program and started touring, taking them from Vienna, Austria, and London to San Francisco and Hawaii, to name a few.
Currently, Rachel Rossellini - a former chorus member - serves as music director. The Palatine Children's Chorus has six separate choirs, starting with the "Sing With Me" chorus for 4- and 5-year-olds and culminating in the concert and honors choirs for teens up to 18.
"The (Palatine Children's Chorus) was such a wonderful experience for my daughter, and so much more than singing one night a week at the Palatine Park District," Goldberg says. "The choirs make wonderful music.
"It allowed my daughter - and countless other singers - to grow and develop in a safe, positive and nurturing environment," he adds, "and just be themselves."