Hrvatski Običaj - Board of Directors

Board of Directors

Donald Taylor — Chair 2

Don joined Hrvatski Obicaj in 2012. He was a past member of the St. John Tamburitzans from 1972 to 1982 and the Strawberry Hill Folk Ensemble from 1982 through 1990. He has been a member of St. John the Baptist Croatian Catholic Church’s St. Cecilia Choir from 1988 to the present as a tenor. Don plays the brac’ and sings with the men’s medley. Don travelled to Croatia with the group both in 2022 and 2024. He also has travelled with the group to Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Las Vegas, as well as the countless performance around the Midwest. He enjoys his time with group and preserving our Croation music and culture.

Joe Baric — Chair 2

Joe Baric was raised with a love of Tamburitzan music. His first instrument was an accordion. One of his teachers in both tambura and accordion was midwest legend Don Lipovac. Joe spent most of his high school years performing wth Kansas City, Kansas' junior tramburitzans, performing around the midwest in venues such as Worlds of Fun, in Topeka and even touring the former Yugoslavia with the ensemble. Joe was excited to be part of a group in 2006 that went up to St. Louis to see the annual Adult C.F.U. Festival. After seeing the performances, Joe, along with several others from that trip, were excited to start up the now well-established Hrvatski Običaj. He also performs with his brother and Duquesne Tammie Alum Jim Baric in the Baric Brothers and other ensembles. If you listen closely, you can hear him practicing the scales he should have as a kid.

Nancy Calvano — Chair 3

Nancy was born and raised in Kansas City, KS, and attended St. John the Baptist grade school on Strawberry Hill. Nancy learned to play the brac from the esteemed Don Lipovac as a fourth grader and performed with the St. John’s CC Tamburitzans until she left to attend college in 1979. After a several years hiatus, she was reunited with old friends and the music by becoming a part of Hrvatski Običaj when it was founded in 2007. With the group, she has travelled to several CFU tamfests, to Zagreb in 2022 and 2024, and performed locally for Croatian festivals, events, and weddings. She is excited to see the group continue its role preserving the Croatian culture through music as it approaches its 20th anniversary.

Board Appointments

Rick Mikesic — Director

Rick started playing the tambura at age nine, when he first joined the Saint John Tamburitzans, the junior tambura group in Kansas City, Kansas. After just two years learning his way around the instrument, he became a part of the performing group. He fondly recalls the many performances and trips the group took, with the highlight of his young career being a three week tour of Croatia and Slovenia to perform. His knowledge of music is largely due to the nationally renowned Don Lipovac, who served for decades as the Musical Director of the junior group. After spending so much of his youth learning from Don, as an adult he returned as a guest performer on a regular basis. In addition, he was also a member of a local tambura band, Živili Hrvati, during the 1990's.

After more than a decade of being absent from the tambura scene to start a family and focus on a career, he jumped at the chance to once again play the tambura when Hrvatski Običaj began to come together. He credits the success of the group to the many dedicated members that share the love of the tambura music and the desire to "have fun". He's experienced immense joy in performing across the Midwest with Hrvatski Običaj and considers the recently released CD as a watershed moment for the group. He looks forward to many more years of playing the music he loves so much.

Kristina Mikesic — Webmaster

Mario Viskovic — Music Coordinator

Past Board Members and Appointed Members

Joe Baric — Music Coordinator (2007–2009)

Ann Cavlovic — Dance Coordinator (2007–2010)

Rick Desko — Assistant Director (2010–2012)

Rick Desko — Webmaster (2009-2013)

Kristen Henry — Ad Hoc (2007–2008)

John Mikesic — Business Manager (2011)

Rick Mikesic — Business Manager (2007–2010)

Bunny Rodina — Ad Hoc (2009), Music Coordinator (2010)

Stephanie Sandelich — Ad Hoc (2010)

Mario Viskovic — Ad Hoc (2010-2013)

Sarah Soptic — Business Manager (2011-2014)

Kristina Mikesic — Public Relations (2007-2015)

Jim Frankovich — Chair 1 (2013-2016)

Marie Kolichh — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2014-2017)

Nancy Calvano — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2015-2018)

Ann Cavlovic — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2016-2019)

John Mikesic — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2017-2021)

Joe Baric — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2018-2021)

Kristina Mikesic — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2019-2021)

Marie Kolich — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2021-2024)

Stephanie Sandelich — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2021-2024)

Sarah Soptic — Chair 1, 2 & 3 (2022-2025)

Photos courtesy of Don Wolf SNAP Photography and most recently Ivana Dordevic.

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