STUART POMPEL was a founding instructor of Pacific Crest in 1993, served as its Executive Director from 1996 to 2018, and was appointed CEO in November 2018. During his tenure, he has led the growth of the organization from a small performing group to a nationally recognized performing arts education organization, and a member of the Drum Corps International World Class.
In addition to fundraising, donor relations, board cultivation, and program development, Stuart has nurtured relationships between Pacific Crest and community and corporate leaders, and has developed endorsement agreements and partnerships with leaders in the music industry. He is active in Drum Corps International governance, having served on the DCI-Pacific Advisory Board since 1999, as its president from 2005 – 2010, the DCI Finance Committee and Audit Committee, chair of the DCI Audit Committee, and DCI Voting Member Chair.
Stuart holds a BA in Social Sciences and a teaching credential from Chapman University in Orange, California. He lives in Placentia, California, with his wife Ann, and two daughters, Maya and Tahlia.
EDWARD B. MARTIN joined Pacific Crest in 2010. As the organization’s Operations Director, he’s responsible for earned income strategies, event coordination, merchandise development, the Pacific Crest online store, marketing, volunteer coordination, foodservice, tour planning and management.
Ed’s performing experience includes seven years as a member of the Riverside City College Marching Tigers.
Ed has over 25 years of experience in the travel industry, specializing in performance tours for high school, college and university bands, choirs, and orchestras to destinations around the world.
His first exposure to drum corps was a PBS broadcast of the 1985 DCI World Championships. For the next ten years, Ed attended the DCI World Championships as an avid drum corps fan, and he toured with with the Concord Blue Devils in 1995 as a member of their support staff.
Having sat in the stands for ten years, Ed took a bold step by co-founding the Yamato Drum and Bugle Corps in 1997. Originally founded to recruit musicians and performers in Japan to compete exclusively in the United States at DCI Open Class events, Yamato developed into a multicultural group when it began recruiting members in California and Japan. Yamato became DCI’s first International Division Champion, and earned two silver medals, two Spirit of Disney Awards, and eight Finalist appearances.
In 2006, Ed was voted by his peers as Division III Director of the Year. Ed brought his experience with Yamato to Pacific Crest by developing a recruiting program in Japan, and acts as the corps’ liaison for its Japanese performers.
CHRIS HENDERSON has an unyielding passion for working with youth arts education and nonprofits.
Chris is a Pacific Crest alumnus who performed with the corps from 2005-2008. After aging out, he took up roles in visual instruction, tour management, and administrative operations. He also facilitates with safety management, health and wellness, and set design and fabrication.
Outside of Pacific Crest, Chris has served as a music and visual performance educator at several high schools in the Southern California area, including as visual technician, visual caption head and program coordinator. Chris also serves as the Director of Programs at the WGI and SCPA World Class Ensembles, Pulse Percussion and POW Percussion.
For the past 15 years, Chris has worked for the Walt Disney Company in Anaheim as a research product developer in confections as well as with the Disney Performing Arts program.
He was born and raised in Southern California and currently lives in Downey, CA.
MARK KVETON has been involved with Pacific Crest Youth Arts Organization for over a decade, holding instructional and administrative roles. He serves as the Education Programs Director overseeing Pacific Crest’s educational camps, workshops and virtual learning programming. Prior to this, Mark oversaw the teaching and coordination of the Drum Major and student leadership teams and also founded the Pacific Crest Drum Major Camps. His drum corps performance experience includes the Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps from 2008-2011 (Drum Major) and the 2019 Pacific Crest Rose Parade Ensemble (Conductor).
In addition to his work with PCYAO, Mark has participated on the teaching faculty for Drum Corps International’s Leadership Seminars since 2013, mentoring and training student leaders from across the country. Mark also previously served as the Ensemble Director for Pulse Percussion from 2015-2017. Other marching arts programs he has worked with include Rowland, Esperanza, Santa Monica, and Gladstone High Schools.
Mark will receive his M.S. in Arts Leadership from the University of Southern California in 2022. He previously attended the University of California, Irvine and received his B.A. in Psychology and Social Behavior. Mark holds a full-time position with USC as a Senior Assistant Director of Admission for the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. He lives with his wife Annie (fellow Pacific Crest alum) in Arcadia, CA.
JENIFER GULDNER received her B.A from CSUF in Business Administration with an emphasis in Human Resource Management, and is currently working on a dual M.A. at Webster University. She has been part of the color guard activity since middle school, and performed with Esperanza Drum & Bugle Corps, Blue Devils Drum & Bugle Corps, Corona and Fantasia.
In addition to her role at Pacific Crest, Jen is Human Resource Administrative Coordinator for Creative Costuming & Designs. She is married to Tim Tintari, an alumnus of Pacific Crest. They have a little boy, Nicholas, a daughter on the way, and two dogs, Noodles and Emma.
