Ukulele Group Kicks Off New Season

Nancy Harrison

The Sun Lakes Ukulele Group, led by Cottonwood Palo Verde resident Nancy Harrison, will kick off its 11th season on Sunday, Nov. 2. We meet on the first and third Sundays of the month in the winter season in the Computer Learning Center, Room 1 (Phoenix Room). We learn songs, chords, strums, and fun licks and tricks on the ukulele.

If you are just getting started, come to the Beginner group and join the fun! The fee for each Beginner session is $3, and the group is open to everyone. The Beginner session runs from 1 to 1:45 p.m. Beginners (with standard GCEA tuning ukuleles) will need to purchase the beginner book for $15 (available at the first session).

Beginners and more experienced players are welcome at the Jam Session from 2 to 3:30 p.m. There is no fee for the Jam Session. Standard tuning and baritone ukuleles are welcome in the Jam group. We use songs from our website at www.sunlakesukes.com.

If you have a ukulele in playable condition (which means that the tuning pegs work, don’t slip, and the strings are relatively new), please come and join us. All songs are projected on the wall, but you may find that a music stand is useful for your book if you want to take notes. If you’re just curious, we’d love to have you drop in, share the fun, and see if the ukulele is the instrument for you.

Upcoming Sessions:

2025 Fall Schedule: Nov. 2, Nov. 16, Dec. 7, Dec. 21

2026 Winter Schedule: Jan. 4, Jan. 18, Feb. 1, Feb. 15, March 1, March 15

Go to the Sun Lakes Ukulele Group website at www.sunlakesukes.com for more information, or call 503-702-7021. Leave a message and call-back number.

Nancy Harrison moved to Cottonwood from Portland, Ore., as a full-time resident in October of 2013. She studied music education at the University of Iowa and recently completed a Ukulele Teacher Certification program with James Hill in Vancouver, BC. She taught public school music for several years in Iowa and is a retiree from Intel Corporation. She is a former member of the Luongo Ukulele Ensemble, based in Reno, Nev. In July of 2018 the group performed 11 concerts in Waikiki, Hawaii, including the 48th Annual Hawaii Ukulele Festival. She performs with James Hill and the Uke Heads (an international band) on the 2024 Album Uke Heads, which is available on Apple Music, Spotify, or Amazon Music.