Professor Whitman Spreads Joy Through Music

The warm sounds of the acoustic guitar fill the air as Finance Professor Andy Whitman guides the room at the senior living facility into a chorus of “You Are My Sunshine.” Hands clap and feet tap along with the beat.

“Music is magic, so it brings them right back,” Whitman says.

Several times a week, Whitman and his wife, Carol, perform tunes from the Great American Songbook to residents at Presbyterian Homes senior living facilities throughout the Twin Cities area. Through music, they connect with residents in memory care, military veterans, and more.

“We get to know the people and we see them move and it is just so fun and satisfying to see them get right into it,” he says. “Same songs that we like.”

Whitman started volunteering at the care facilities in 1991. Since then, he’s received the Presbyterian Homes’ Volunteer of the Year award. But it isn’t the awards that keep him coming back—it’s the people. Whitman even met his wife during one of his performances about a decade ago. She had been visiting her father at the care center and couldn’t help but sing along. Noticing her enthusiasm, he called her up to join him. She’s been his singing partner ever since.

At 85 years old, Whitman, one of the Carlson School’s longest-serving faculty members, shows no signs of stopping. On top of his weekly volunteer work, he is also an attorney, serves as a certified tax counselor and certified financial planner for Prepare & Prosper, runs finance and legal seminars for the UMN Retiree Association, and still teaches multiple risk management and insurance classes each semester.

“You keep moving,” Whitman says, smiling. “That’s the key. I believe that what keeps me moving is taking what I can do best and keeping it going.”