Missy Stempien '93
Solos: Material Girl
You Can Hear Her: singing Material Girl on On Purpose
Post-Carleton Life: I stuck around Northfield for a year as a nanny for the children of Dean Elizabeth McKinsey. So When the Accidentals cut their first CD On Purpose, I was able to sing on a couple of the cuts. Then I went on to do a MA in Art History and Museum Studies at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, OH. After graduating in 1996, I went home (unemplyed, of course) to Ann Arbor, MI where I worked in a dry cleaners and the U of Michigan dental school until I got a job as Development Assistant at the U of Michigan Museum of Art. From there, I went on to the Kalamazoo Institute of Arts where I am Associate Curator of Museum Education. In my personal life I live in a small house in Otsego, MI, with my amazing hubby, John (married in Aug 2001) and we are expecting our first child in July, 2004! I still sing whenever possible: for friends' weddings, in the Kalamazoo Bach Festival Choir, church choir, the shower, etc.
I was one of the founding members of the Accidentals, along with Liz Keyes, Sarah Martin Busse, Alicia Hutchison, etc.
My major claim to fame: I was the 1st member of the Accidentals to graduate.
The story of the Accidentals: When I got to Carleton, I joined Choir and Chamber Singers to meet people with similar interests and met some of the most amazing women: Liz, Sarah, Mariana, Alicia, Julia, Katie, Bea, Jenny, and Susan. I think all of us had all tried out for the Knightingales at least once and had been rejected, so we started talking about forming our own group. Things really got rolling in Fall 1991, my junior year. Using a tape of mine of the Chenille Sisters, an a cappella duo from Ann Arbor, we learned "I Want to Be Seduced" and "Regretting What I Said" (our first hit). We started making a name for ourselves by performing at Sunday night study breaks (we knew a lot of RA's) and then started having small concerts in Severance Hall and outside in the amphitheatre. The rest is, as they say, history. After leaving Carleton, I've sung in other groups, but I've always felt that being a part of and helping to form the Accidentals was one of the best things I've ever done. Great times, great songs and great friends. I'm so proud and honored that the group has continued.
Last updated May 1, 2004.