Choir Director
Debbie Gouge
Deborah Bowers Gouge was a public school teacher for forty five years, with thirty seven of those years spent as the choral director at Elizabethton High School. Other responsibilities at EHS included AP Music Theory instructor, sponsor of the Student Government Association, sponsor of the Chick-Fil-A Leader Academy, Arts Department Chair/Learning Leader, and director of the graduation ceremonies. She has served as an adjunct faculty member in Music Education at both ETSU and Milligan College. Deb is a member of numerous professional organizations, including ACDA, NAFmE, Pi Kappa Lambda, and NEA. She served on the TMEA Council and is a past president of the East Tennessee Vocal Association. Deborah was selected as system-wide Teacher of the Year (2008-2009), is listed in Who’s Who in Teaching, and was recognized by the TN Governor’s School for the Arts as an Outstanding Teacher. She was presented the second-ever “Dave Rider Legacy Award” by the Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton/Carter County in May of 2019 in honor of her “lifetime commitment to the success and well-being of kids.” She was recognized by EHS for her leadership and passion for the arts at her retirement in May of 2024. Deborah is an honors graduate of East Tennessee State University (BSME, 1978; M.Ed., 1982.) As a voice major at ETSU, Deborah was a member of the Chorale, Chamber Singers, Jazz Singers, Opera Workshop, Percussion Ensemble, the Marching Bucs Band, and accompanist for the Women’s Choir. She has been a featured mezzosoprano soloist for various civic, school, and church events. She was featured vocalist for the world premiere of Jack Stamp’s Five Songs from the Hills for soprano, baritone, and Wind Ensemble (2010) commissioned by East Tennessee State University for their 100th anniversary. Deborah is the conductor of the Elizabethton Choral Club, a community chorus originally founded during WW II. She has led the Choral Club since Christmas of 2007. The Elizabethton High School Advanced Ensembles under her direction performed over thirty times each semester in concerts, competitions, and school/civic functions. They performed the National Anthem at various sporting events throughout the region – including every home football and basketball game at EHS. The ensembles have consistently received superior ratings at district and state choral festivals and have twice performed at Carnegie Hall.
They were the only ensemble from Tennessee and the only high school group chosen to participate in the National Memorial Day Concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, in the spring of 2018. Other notable performances include multiple concerts at Dollywood, singing in the Winter Garden at Biltmore House, and singing the National Anthem for the Atlanta Braves, the ETSU Bucs, and for a race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Deb began playing the organ in church at age 13, which started her work in church music leadership in her hometown of Elizabethton. In recent years, Deb sang and traveled with the TLC, a women’s chorale on mission for the TBC. Notable performances included singing with Keith and Krystin Getty at the Schermerhorn for An Irish Christmas, and participating in a mission trip to Iowa that involved music and philanthropic ministries. She served as the WBA Associational Music Director for several years and has been the guest conductor for the Music School. She will be leading this event again in February of 2025, as area churches will gather to learn an Easter cantata in three days and then present the final product as a mass choir with accompaniment on Friday, February 28. Retirement has not been a quiet time for reflection so far. In November of 2024, Deb was elected to the City Council of Elizabethton. She was happily sworn in on November 26th, and looks forward to serving the community that raised her in this new role. She continues to serve on the Board of Directors for the Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton/ Carter County, and has just been appointed to serve on the Board of the Elizabethton/Carter County Animal Shelter. A breast cancer survivor, Deb celebrates life and actively supports those who are currently dealing with their own cancer story. She served as regional honorary chair for the ACS Relay for Life in 2010 and for the Susan G. Komen Tri Cities Race for the Cure in 2011. Deborah and her husband Larry met at ETSU and will be married 46 years on January 6, 2025. They have two grown sons and a daughter in law: Jamis, who is currently a medical fellow in critical care at the University of Utah; Jamis’ wife, Veronica, also a physician who works at the Cancer Center in Warner Robbins, GA; and Jerran, who is in private practice as an attorney Knoxville. Deb and Larry are a ‘package deal;’ if you get one of them, you get them both. J They continue to celebrate life together, especially as they are now retired from full-time employment. They enjoy traveling, cooking, gardening together, and doing construction projects. (Larry designed their home – and the two of them built their own house.) Deb’s parents are Ruth Bowers and the late Fred Bowers. The Bowers girls were raised in the United Methodist Church, having all been baptized at Valley Forge UMC as teenagers.
