Sudie Pollock

Napa, California
Napa Valley Threshold Choir

I spent 30 years as the Head Teacher for the Hill & Valley Teen Parent Program, a school for pregnant students aged 12 – 18, in Napa, California. During that time, I earned a Masters Degree in Marriage, Family, and Child Counseling and had a private practice. I taught Human Sexuality at Napa Valley College for several semesters, was a volunteer trainer for Planned Parenthood, and taught Health Classes at local high schools. I retired in 2002 to care for my aging parents.

Kate Munger started coming to Napa to hold Rounds Group sings sometime in the late 1990s and I was a regular attendee. She began teaching us her new Threshold Songs. I was drawn to the songs and the concept of bedside singing so in 2007, I gathered some of the singers from Rounds and started holding rehearsals at my home. We had our first public sing at a funeral in 2008 and grew to bedside singing after that.

Prior to Covid, I held rehearsals on the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Thursdays. Fifth Thursdays were reserved for potlucks at my home where we sang our thanks for the food, shared thoughts on a specific topic chosen beforehand, and sang after each woman’s turn to speak. In that way, we bonded as a group who knew each other as more than singers. Several of us composed Threshold songs that are now in the Repertoire and we recorded a CD of our original songs that is available through the website. We look forward to re-creating our connection though our voices and our stories.