Mrs. Carmen Kruyf

Professional Biography

• I graduated from Timothy Christian High School in 2001 – BME (Bachelor of Music Education), Calvin College, 2006
• AppliedMusic (Vocal Performance), Calvin College, 2006
• MME (Master of Music Education), VanderCook College of Music, 2009
• K-8 Music Teacher, Walker Charter Academy, 2006-2007
• Knollcrest Summer Music Camp, World Music Teacher (Calvin College), 2007-2011
• Feierabend Association for Music Education – certified in “First Steps in Music”, 2016
• Feierabend Association for Music Education – certified in “Conversational Solfege”, 2018

Personal Biography

My family is originally from West Michigan but the majority of my adolescence was in the western suburbs of Chicago, more specifically, Wheaton. My two brothers still reside in that area so I get back “home” fairly often. My parents and sister and brother-in-law live in Hudsonville where I spend a lot of my time playing with my three nieces. I met my husband Zach, a few years ago at church and we’ve been happily married for four years. We welcomed a daughter, Clara, in the spring of 2019. When I’m not spending time with family, I can usually be found in a rehearsal somewhere. I am a founding member of The Choral Scholars, and a member of the handbell choir at my church where I also serve on the worship committee.

Philosophical Biography

“The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meets” (Frederick Buechner)

I did not know I wanted to teach elementary music until I did my student teaching at Hudsonville Christian. The experience opened my eyes to the joy of teaching children music. No matter what musical concept I was addressing at the time, my heart became filled with a “deep gladness” I had never felt before. Every time I see the face of a student who has just grasped an idea, I am filled with joy and know that God is working through me to teach and inspire young children about His gift of music. Music programs have often been the first to be cut from schools across the country. I believe that God has called me to this vocation because it is, as the Theologian Frederick Buechner states, a place where my deep gladness meets a deep hunger that exists in the world.

I am a firm believer in the idea that every child has been given the gift of music. However, that gift may take different forms for each person. In the time that I spend with students at Hudsonville Christian, I hope to expose children to a wide variety of music, important historical figures, hands-on learning experiences, as well as performance opportunities so that they can appreciate God’s gift of music and begin to discover their personal musical gifts and abilities. In all that we do in music at Hudsonville Christian, I hope to welcome students into a safe environment where they can be free to “Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy” (Psalm 33:3).