Principal by Day, Musician by Night

As if her demanding job as principal of Sierra Madre Elementary's two campuses and one thousand students wasn't enough, Gayle Bluemel spends her evenings rocking Sierra Madre, the San Gabriel Valley and the West Coast with her band the Late Bloomers.

"Music feeds my soul," she said. "My own life would be so empty without music! It's as much a part of me as the education side. " Bluemel added that she's always felt it was "important to share the importance of balance in life, and that there's a real life use and application for music and the arts, though not necessarily for personal financial gain or fame."

Bluemel rose through the ranks of the Pasadena Unified School District, beginning as a fourth grade teacher at Washington School in 1973. In 1990, she moved to Sierra Madre Elementary as a first grade teacher, then assumed an administrative role in curriculum at the school, then was named principal in 2006.

This year, this beloved educator celebrated 20 years at SME, guiding the elementary school lives of 700 students in kindergarten through eighth grades at the lower campus at 141 W. Highland [Ave.?] and about 300 in grades six through eight at the upper school campus at 160 N. Canon Ave.

"I've always blended my love and training in music and drama into my academic career, and now my daughter, Emily Clark, is doing the same at our upper campus as vocal and glee club teacher that our PAK, Performing Arts Kids, funded by SME's yearly fundraiser," Bluemel said.

Bluemel's the Late Bloomers band includes her contractor husband, Dan Ames, whom she married 10 years ago, after reconnecting many decades after their initial friendship in high school. Hence, the band name the Late Bloomers.

About once a week, the four band members--Bluemel, her husband and finance professionals Scott Shepherd and Ross Johnsen--leave their day jobs behind to rehearse the music of the '60s and '70s, plus R&B tunes. [Any original songs?]

They perform around the San Gabriel Valley, including a regular stop at the Coffee Gallery Backstage in Altadena. This summer, the band toured the Pacific Northwest,  including the Lavender Festival in Sequim, WA, and other Olympic Peninsula venues.

"Each of us can be the lead singer, so we have quite a range of style we can perform," Bluemel said. "We use Ames as lead for the Johnny Cash songs, and Shepherd and Johnsen can insert that grittiness needed for R&B."

SME students, their families and the community had the opportunity to hear Bluemel and her band play toe-tapping songs on her "home stage" at Sierra Madre Elementary on Sept. 11. The Late Bloomers donated the performance, playing warm-up to enthusiastic listeners for A Taste of Sierra Madre's headliner fundraising concert, which featured two-time Grammy winner Paul Brown and Billboard chart-topper Chris Standring and many others.

Dan Alle, whose daughter Megan attends SME, was delighted to hear Bluemel's group was performing onstage that day. "It's great to see our school staff sharing their talents with the students from another side of their lives," he said.