Ellie Elkinton

When the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia decided to transition from a singer board to a board of community leaders, Ellie served as chair to build the new board and secure the funding to hire a full-time professional executive director. She served for 11 years, and is now in her second year as vice chair. An amateur singer all her life, she has sung with Mendelssohn Club for 23 years.

Outside of music, she spent most of her career at Germantown Friends School in Philadelphia as a teacher and administrator. Her last 20 years were spent as director of admission and financial aid, from which she retired 10 years ago. She has served on numerous education and non-profit boards, and currently is on the boards of Germantown Friends School and the Friends Council on Education.

She is married to Tom Elkinton, whom she met while singing; together they have two grown children and two grandchildren. Beyond music, interests include travel (especially to visit grandchildren), gardening, walking, bird watching, environmental issues, and non-profit governance.