Executive Transition Press Release & FAQ

Girls Rock MKE Announces Executive Transition

MILWAUKEE - Girls Rock MKE is thrilled to announce the appointment of Hannah Pardee as its new Executive Director, effective July 1, 2026. A longtime volunteer with both Girls Rock and Ladies Rock Camps, alumna of the Ladies Rock program now active in the Milwaukee music community, and most recently, President of the Girls Rock MKE board of directors, Ms. Pardee brings a wealth of experience, dedication, and passion for the organization's mission and values.

Girls Rock MKE, a non-profit organization dedicated to providing a supportive community for girls, women, and gender-expansive youth and adults to learn, grow, and express themselves through music, held its first week-long day camp for 30 girls in 2013, under the direction of Valeri Lucks (Pie, Inc.) and Ashley Smith (One Trick Pony). In the 13 years since, Girls Rock Camp has snowballed into two sold-out sessions each serving 60 youth campers (ages 8-17); Ladies Rock Camp was introduced in 2015 and has now expanded to two sessions, each serving 30 adult campers (ages 18+). The mostly volunteer-run organization is pleased to be in a position to pay Girls Rock Camp’s lead band coaches, lead instrument instructors, and Camp Directors a modest stipend for their time this year.

This announcement comes at a crucial moment of transition for Girls Rock MKE. After an incredible season of revitalization and growth under outgoing Executive Director, Mary Joy Hickey, the organization is currently in the process of transitioning to the name Let’s Get Loud MKE, which will go into effect on January 1, 2027. “We are incredibly grateful to Mary Joy for her contributions as Executive Director, and over the past decade as a volunteer,” said D Kirschling, the new board President.

“We’re so excited to see what Mary Joy does next, and wish her great success with her new venture,” said Ms. Kirschling. “Hannah, who worked closely with Mary Joy over the last two years, is an ideal fit to lead the organization forward. With her enthusiasm for social impact and commitment to creative leadership, the board is extremely confident in her ability to provide a magical experience for our campers this summer and beyond.” With sustained strong leadership and continued support from the community, the organization will continue making a meaningful difference in the lives of Milwaukee’s girls, women, and gender-expansive youth and adults.

Q: Why is there an Executive transition?
A: After serving as our first-ever full-time Executive Director and building an incredible foundation for the organization, Mary Joy is feeling called to her next professional chapter as an entrepreneur. We are grateful for her vision, her dedication, and everything she has contributed to this organization in this pioneering role. You can read Mary Joy’s personal note here.

Q: Is the organization in good standing?
A: Absolutely. The board has worked closely with Mary Joy on a thoughtful transition plan, and we are moving forward with confidence. We are excited to announce new leadership that will carry the mission forward.

Q: Who will be leading Girls Rock/Let’s Get Loud MKE now?
A: We are thrilled to share that Hannah Pardee has been hired as the full-time Executive Director starting July 1, 2026. Hannah has been a core leader of the organization for 13 years and knows our mission, our campers, and our community inside and out. You can read Hannah’s introduction letter here.

Q: Will this change affect summer camps or upcoming programs?
A: Not at all. Our mission remains our top priority. The board, Mary Joy, and Hannah have worked closely on a transition plan specifically designed to ensure that all programming continues without interruption. You can expect the same high-quality, impactful experience you’ve always had with Girls Rock/Let’s Get Loud MKE.

Q: How can we stay in touch with Mary Joy or support her?
A: Mary Joy will be sharing updates about her next chapter in due course. In the meantime, the board is currently collecting notes of appreciation and "thank yous" to celebrate her tenure.

Girls Rock MKE Announces Executive Transition, pt. 2

Girls Rock MKE is thrilled to announce the appointment of Hannah Pardee as its new Executive Director, effective July 1, 2026. Hannah brings a wealth of experience as a longtime volunteer with Girls Rock and Ladies Rock Camps, Ladies Rock alumna, and most recently President of the Girls Rock MKE board of directors. We invite you to read her welcome letter:

“The year is 2006. I’m 15 years old and I’m in Portland with my family, crossing all my fingers on both hands that I’ll be called off the waitlist to attend the Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp for Girls. I’ve been singing my whole life, writing songs since the tender age of eight, and have been the lead singer of Milwaukee’s hardest-to-say-clearly indie rock band The Roves since middle school. I desperately want to meet other girls like me, who eat, sleep, and breathe music, and though I don’t have the words or mental framework at the time, I’m looking for my community.

I was ultimately thwarted by that waitlist, and never got my own Girls Rock camp experience as a young person. So when I heard that Milwaukee was starting its own chapter in 2013, just as I was finishing up my undergraduate degree in New York City and planning to return to my hometown for graduate school at Marquette University, it felt like a dream come true. I was so excited to offer up my budding audio engineering skills, hard-earned over 900 hours at the Institute of Audio Research, and so nervous that volunteer spots would fill up immediately that I applied as soon as the volunteer application opened – even though I was actively attending an in-person accounting class. I showed up to that summer’s volunteer orientation at Palomino a full week early, ready to rock.

I hadn’t touched a guitar in four years at that point, and had relegated singing to showers, errands in my parents’ borrowed car, and part-time work as a very bad karaoke DJ. The music scene here was so intense and intimidating to me as a self-taught young woman musician, despite my years of youth experience. I was spending my days at Marquette learning about intersectional feminism and its applications in mass communication; practicing video editing on interviews with Girls Rock MKE founders Val Lucks and Ashley Smith for my digital storytelling certificate; and analyzing camper song lyrics from 2013 and 2014 for qualitative research courses. I had started to understand my desire for an inclusive music community on a deeper level, and the rise of local grassroots festivals like Riverwest FemFest and Arte Para Todos told me I wasn’t the only one searching.

Since 2013, I’ve been a band coach, workshop facilitator, camp support, roadie, organizer, and more for both Girls Rock and Ladies Rock camp programs. I worked closely with Mary Joy on the Ladies Rock Planning Committee before participating as a guitarist in 2018, rocking on stage for the first time in almost a decade – something I still wasn’t 100% sure I could find the courage to do, despite my deep musical roots and witnessing the bravery of campers, both young and old, for years at that point. I joined the Board of Directors that year, working my way up to Secretary in 2023, then President in 2025. It’s hard to believe I’ve spent 13 incredible and rewarding years volunteering with this truly amazing community, or that this journey has led me to become Executive Director of the organization I hold so dear.

Throughout the last 13 years, I have demonstrated in my professional and personal life my passion for empowering and amplifying the Milwaukee music scene’s underrepresented genders, including girls, women, nonbinary and trans individuals, and gender-expansive folks of all backgrounds and abilities. I have worked in a variety of capacities at youth serving nonprofit organizations, higher education institutions, and mission-driven corporations, all while working extensively to develop and build relationships within Girls Rock MKE’s multifaceted intergenerational and multicultural audience. I’ve steadfastly supported our organizational goals and objectives, consistently communicated our mission and values, and fiercely fought for positive social change – and I plan to continue doing all of those things as your next Executive Director.

During that long-ago trip to Portland, 15-year-old Hannah spent most of the week hanging around a zine resource center, wishing she could be immersed in the camp experience, but instead planting the seed of a new dream. Seeing how that zine resource center operated – offering a blend of studio space, all-ages programming, and beloved community – gave me insight into what the young people of Milwaukee’s music scene desperately needed at that time. For the last twenty years, it’s been my vision to help connect emerging musicians to the tools, space, and resources they need to get started and keep going, prioritizing collaboration, creativity, and community-building. I’m so proud to say that’s what Girls Rock MKE does and Let’s Get Loud MKE will keep doing: connecting underrepresented musicians of all stripes to lessons, equipment, and most importantly, to each other.”

You can also read a personal note here from outgoing Executive Director Mary Joy Hickey, whose 12+ years of dedication and vision have shaped the organization for this moment and forthcoming era. You can read our full press release and prepared FAQs here.

Please join us in officially welcoming Hannah to the team at the Girls Rock Camp Showcases! 12-2pm on Sundays, July 19 & August 9 at the Cooperage. RSVP here for July 19 and here for August 9.

Girls Rock MKE Announces Executive Transition

Girls Rock MKE is thrilled to announce the appointment of Hannah Pardee as its new Executive Director, effective July 1, 2026. Hannah brings a wealth of experience as a longtime volunteer with Girls Rock and Ladies Rock Camps, Ladies Rock alumna, and most recently President of the Girls Rock MKE board of directors. Read her welcome letter here.

First, we invite you to read a personal note from outgoing Executive Director Mary Joy Hickey, whose 12+ years of dedication and vision have shaped the organization for this moment and forthcoming era:

As we look ahead to the 2026 summer camp season on the horizon, I'd like to take you back to December 12, 2012.

I was in my mid-twenties, a musician playing in several bands in Milwaukee, navigating some difficult personal transitions. I had started to hear inklings about a Milwaukee chapter of the Girls Rock Camp movement, and reflecting on my own journey as a female musician growing up in a small town, I thought maybe I could be of some help. I was also desperately in need of community and a new investment of purpose.

So I showed up at Sugar Maple on December 12, 2012, the day we now consider our organizational birthday. As the momentum of planning the first camp took off, I inexplicably held back on the fringes, a hostage to my own insecurities. As a largely self-taught musician with virtually no experience with kids, who was I to teach or coach? Ultimately, I did not volunteer at the first Girls Rock Camp in 2013.

I did go to the showcase, however. And what I witnessed on stage that day left me gutted in the most powerful way. These courageous kids, despite their age, their skill levels, their own fears, took the stage of Turner Hall and did the thing, confidently. Witnessing their performances showed me what creative agency actually looks like: having something to express to the world, maybe being scared, but doing it anyway. Because you must. Because the world needs these voices to remind us that ours matter, too.

That first showcase transformed something in me. I started volunteering the summer of 2014, and helped co-found Ladies Rock that same year. Now, reflecting on 12+ years in this organization, including the past 2+ years as Executive Director, I am stunned at the growth I can directly attribute to my experiences here and the values embedded in these programs: Authenticity. Confidence. Self-expression. Collaboration. Courage. Vulnerability. Community.

Much like that showcase cracked me open, leading this organization has once again pulled me forcefully toward my next stage of evolution. 

It is with great care that I announce my departure from the Executive Director role as of June 30, 2026. It has been an honor to serve as the inaugural Executive Director, and I look forward to continuing to support this work in new ways, including through Creative Ecology, the business my soul has longed to create, and for which I now have the courage to do the thing.

It’s been an honor to serve alongside you in community. I couldn’t be more proud or enthusiastic about Hannah taking the reins as your new Executive Director. One ending creates space for a powerful new beginning.

You can also read a personal note here from incoming Executive Director Hannah Pardee, who brings a wealth of experience, dedication, and passion for the organization's mission and values. You can read our full press release and prepared FAQs here.

Our Next Chapter: Introducing Let’s Get Loud MKE

Girls Rock MKE is becoming Let’s Get Loud MKE: an inclusive, community-driven evolution that reflects who we’ve always been and who we’re becoming.

For over 13 years, Girls Rock MKE has empowered youth and adults of underrepresented gender identities through music, creativity, and community. Our mission is not changing. What is changing is our name, and that change is rooted in you.

After a year of listening to campers, families, volunteers, alumni, donors, sponsors, partners, and community members, it became clear that our name no longer fully reflected the values, identities, and inclusive spirit at the heart of our work. You helped us recognize that the mission we love deserves a name that represents everyone who finds belonging here.

That is why, beginning in 2027, Girls Rock MKE will officially become Let’s Get Loud MKE.

Throughout 2026, we will continue using “Girls Rock” and “Ladies Rock” as our camp program names while transitioning behind the scenes toward our new identity. Our programs, mission, leadership, values, and commitment to uplifting underrepresented genders through music remain exactly the same. This name simply allows us to show up more truthfully, and more loudly, for everyone in our community.

Girls Rock Milwaukee Embarks on Organization Name Change Process

On this day 12 YEARS AGO, December 12, 2012, friends and co-workers Val Lucks and Ashley Smith founded Girls Rock MKE with its first camps occurring in the summer of 2013. HAPPY 12TH BIRTHDAY GIRLS ROCK!

On this big day, we have some big news to share.

Girls Rock MKE is thrilled to announce that we have officially initiated an organizational name change process to better reflect our values and those we serve. Accordingly, 2025 will be the last year our programs run under the Girls Rock and Ladies Rock camp names.

We are seeking a new organization name that emerges from the community we serve and that is inclusive of people of all marginalized gender identities, expressions, and experiences, aligning with our commitment to fostering a diverse and welcoming environment.

To do this, we are engaging in a program evaluation so that we can engage maximum community input in the decision making with plans to announce a new name in mid-2025. We anticipate a launch under the new organizational name on January 1, 2026.

We know this is big news that will hit different people in different ways. We want to hear from you! We invite you in to this important process by:

-Applying to participate in one of our focus groups: https://forms.gle/Qhe11gDcjsnodQPT8
-Completing a community input survey to share your thoughts: https://forms.gle/PNUzMKNfJrrfbGae8
-Reading our FAQs posted on our web site: https://girlsrockmke.org/name-change
-Sending us an email to share your thoughts and ideas!

We will keep our community informed of these processes and progress as we move through them. Thank you for your support of Girls Rock MKE over our first 12 years, and we cannot wait to see what holds for our next chapter. 🩷

Girls Rock MKE Appoints Inaugural Executive Director

Dear Girls Rock MKE Family,

We are so thrilled to share some exciting news with y’all! It is with great pleasure that we announce the appointment of Mary Joy Hickey as Interim Executive Director, Girls Rock MKE’s very first full-time staff position. As a co-founder of our annual Ladies Rock camp, a former co-organizer of Riverwest FemFest festival, and a talented multi-instrumentalist active in the Milwaukee music community, Mary Joy brings a wealth of experience, a deep dedication to our mission and values, and a big heart and vision for channeling the transformational power of music as a vehicle for leadership development and social justice.

Mary Joy's leadership comes at a crucial time for Girls Rock MKE as we embark on a path of revitalization and growth. As we intentionally and strategically build the organization to ensure financial stability, Mary Joy’s strategic acumen, passion for social impact, and dedication to serving our community make her an ideal fit to lead us forward. With her at the helm, we are confident that we will emerge stronger, more resilient, and more impactful than ever before. We are so excited to welcome Mary Joy back into the Girls Rock MKE family.

We also want to express our enduring gratitude to the committed volunteers and part-time staff who have helped pave the way for this position over the last eleven years. Their incredible determination and dedication has had a truly life-changing impact on our campers. We particularly want to acknowledge the contributions of Program Director Amy Upthagrove, who is transitioning out of their role with Girls Rock MKE for personal reasons. Please join us in thanking Amy for their hard work to get the organization to where we are today; we wish them great success on their next adventure.

As always, we are deeply grateful for your unwavering support and dedication to our cause. With Mary Joy's leadership and your continued partnership, we are confident that Girls Rock MKE will continue to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the girls, women, and gender-expansive youth and adults we serve.

With warm regards,

Girls Rock MKE’s Board of Directors

PS - We invite you to come meet Mary Joy for yourself! Join us for an Executive Director Meet and Greet fundraising event on May 21, 2024, from 4-7pm at Sprecher Brewery! This is a fantastic opportunity to meet Mary Joy, learn about her vision for Girls Rock MKE, and connect with the larger Girls Rock community. Enjoy light appetizers, music, and a drawing featuring exciting prizes. Plus, it’s Mary Joy’s birthday! We hope to see you there!

WE DID IT, y'all!

With your help, we SMASHED our $20K goal!

We owe our amazing community the BIGGEST THANKS EVER for your many, many individual donations; for attending and sharing our fundraising events; as well as the corporate matching donations you helped us get from Google, CNH Industrial, and Johnson Controls! Our hearts are 3 sizes bigger after witnessing your incredible generosity.

We also want to thank everyone who purchased office items from us as we transitioned out of our longtime space at the Blatz Building. We're so glad our abundance of shelves, tables, and supplies will live new lives in your spaces.

Girls Rock MKE would literally not exist if it weren't for our amazing community partners and sponsors. To Music-Go-Round, Cactus+, and X-Ray Arcade, we are grateful beyond words.

Finally, we're so honored to have received several donations and grants from foundations in our community to help us continue doing this work in 2024 (and beyond!). Thank you to the Wisconsin Arts Board, the United Performing Arts Fund, and United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County for your critical support.

• Total raised since announcing our emergency fundraiser on August 24, 2023: $28,524

• Knowing your beloved community has your back when you need them: Priceless

We say this a lot but it’s so true: You rock. You really, really do.

With love and so much gratitude,
The Girls Rock MKE Board of Directors

Check out our full list of 2023 donors here.

Volunteer Spotlight: Band Coaches

Do You Have What It Takes to be a Band Coach?

We interviewed two of our Band Coach volunteers to shine a light on this special camp counselor-like volunteer role!

A Band Coach is assigned to mentor each band at camp (10 per session). Band Coaches lead campers with positive support through songwriting, the creative process, band practice, workshops, and more!

Band Coaches are at camp *all day* each day of camp and stipends are available for your time! Fill out the volunteer application or email volunteer@girlsrockmke.org to learn more.

Q&A with Band Coach: Betty Allen

Girls Rock: How did you hear about Girls Rock MKE or how did you first become involved?

Betty Allen: "I was interning at Milwaukee Film at the time and my mentor said she was volunteering for a new camp, Girls Rock, and suggested I sign up too."

GR: What made you want to get involved?

BA: "I had seen the documentary Girls Rock! In a class in college about the Portland camp and thought it looked awesome. When I heard about there being one in Milwaukee, I wanted to be a part of it."

GR: Do you have a favorite moment from volunteering?

BA: "This is the hardest question! Every camp there is something special that I’ll always remember. From the most recent summer one of my favorite moments is screaming “'SPACE GOATS, SPACE GOATS!' with my campers during our many elevator rides."

GR: What advice would you give to other Band Coaches?

BA: "That you don’t need to have any musical experience, you just need energy and positivity! Being a band coach is all about encouraging your campers to make whatever they want to make, not how to make the “best sounding” song. Whether you are 8 or 80, it can be scary to put yourself out there creatively. As a band coach, your main goal should be cultivating an environment that allows kids to feel comfortable sharing and growing their voice and creativity."

GR: What is a take-away from volunteering? How has Girls Rock impacted your life?

BA: "It has made me realize that trying is cool. Sometimes we think not trying is what cool people do, they are effortless and just do everything great naturally. This is not true! Even as an adult, I’ve struggled with this. At camp, putting yourself out there is what makes the song and performance so amazing. Doesn’t matter if that chord is perfectly timed, just that we can see you strumming away. It has definitely caused me to put myself out there more fearlessly.

"And in a bigger way, I have gained such a beautiful community from camp. I’ve met amazing people and great friends, and each year and am so lucky to spend time with unbelievably cool kids. It energizes me and gives me a huge amount of hope for our future."

Q&A with Band Coach: Robyn Ehrlich

Girls Rock: How did you hear about Girls Rock MKE or how did you first become involved?

Robyn Ehrlich: "I had been vaguely aware of Girls Rock and Ladies Rock MKE for a few years because of my time working at the UWM Student Union Cinema, as we had partnered with the organization on a few screenings. Years later, my former boss at the Union Cinema reached out to me on behalf of her daughter who was connected with Girls Rock, and asked if I would be interested in working with them."

GR: What made you want to get involved?

RE: "I love working with kids and watching them be creative. I was initially interested in working with Girls Rock because I was excited by their mission of empowering and inspiring young girls through music."

Do you have a favorite moment from volunteering?

RE: "The girls in group from session 1 last summer all became obsessed with bringing their stuffed animals and having them be "part of the band." Even during their final performance, they had meticulously placed stuffed animals all around the stage and on some of the instruments as props during the show. "

GR: What advice would you give to other Band Coaches?

RE: "Don't worry about being perfect! It's not going to be perfect, and that's okay. Your main priority should be making sure the campers are feeling comfortable with trying new things and collaborating. In the end, if you can get them up on stage feeling confident and excited to share their work, that's all that matters."

GR: What is a take-away from volunteering? How has Girls Rock impacted your life?

RE: "Girls Rock really helped me realize that I have a passion for working with children! Since working with them over the summer, I started teaching elementary school art classes, and I don't think I would've felt confident enough to pursue that without my experience as a Band Coach."

Amy Lynn's Announcements: March

Camp Registration

As some of our veteran participant families may have noticed we opened camp registration on February 15th, earlier than we ever have in the past, to record success. Within the first week of registration being open we reached over 50% of our camper capacity! We were able to reach a whole new audience through joining the Milwaukee with Kids Summer Camp Guide.

This summer we will have loads of new 8 and 9 year old campers — so if you are a caregiver for campers who have never attended before, and maybe feeling some nerves — you can help them, rest assured, that dozens of kids will be in the same boat!

Application Process

There were also some changes to our application process. As you can imagine, meeting every camper's preference for instrument, band mates, camp session, etc. can be tricky, but we always do our best! This year we changed the instrument choices from #1 & #2 pick to simply picking two instrument options. The idea behind this is to discourage any camper deflation from not getting their "first choice."

Program Offerings

It can be difficult to explain the programming Girls Rock MKE offers to those who have never experienced it before, but to sum it up, it is about encouraging self expression and collaboration. We do do instrument instruction as an aspect of our programming, but Girls Rock Camp as a whole is about empowerment and finding your voice. We offer this through the field of music.

Camp exists to enhance the diversity of people involved and creating music, and how to do so. Meaning marketing, merch, music history, stage presence, communication skills, highlighting other professions in music outside of musician, negotiation, connections to the local music scene... and instrument instruction.

Camp Planning Committee

The Camp Planning Committee is in full swing getting geared up for our July 2023 camps. If you are interested in getting involved in more of the planning, organizing, partnership aspect of camps please reach out!