ELKINS — Three area women are being honored for their contributions to music as well as faith.

The Elkins Church Women United will be honoring Deborah Super, Kathleen Gale Poe and Elizabeth “Liz” Marshall-MacVean with “Key Woman” awards during a celebration ceremony set to begin at noon Friday at Woodford Memorial United Methodist Church, located on First Street in Elkins.

The honors will highlight the impact the three have made through their music both in the churches they attend as well as in the community.

A 1970 graduate of Elkins High School, Super was a teacher in the Randolph County Schools system for 43 years prior to her retirement in 2015.

She also served as an adjunct professor at Davis & Elkins College, Fairmont State University, Pierpont Community College and Alderson Broaddus University at various times over a 30-year period.

Super’s community involvement includes being a life member of the Beta Sigma Phi sorority; serving as past state vice president of the Delta Kappa Gamma honorary; serving as the music chair of Elkins Woman’s Club, is a 40-plus year member of First Baptist Church of Elkins; being a 15-year writer for the Randolph County Athletic Hall of Fame; and serving16 years as a past-writer for the Mountain State Forest Festival.

Super also has an illustrious career in music, being a special student at 9 years old at Alderson Broaddus College; being a special student at Davis & Elkins College in high school; serving as the Elkins High School Choir accompanist for 22 years; being past-accompanist for the First Baptist Church Choir of Elkins for 15 years; serving as pianist/organist at First Baptist Church of Elkins for 30 years; starting and directing the handbell choir at First Baptist Church of Elkins; serving as a former music board member at First Baptist Church of Elkins for 10 years among other accolades.

Poe began her music career at a young age, playing for the Midland Memorial Presbyterian Church at the age of 10; playing for weddings at the age of 11; playing for funerals at the age of 19. She also began teaching piano at 16 years old, something she continued for 36 years.

She worked as a substitute for First United Methodist Church organist Carrie V. Lantz during the summer months of her high school years before taking over the position full-time in 1985. She remains the full-time FUMC organist presently.

Poe taught piano lessons at Davis & Elkins College from 1993-1997.

In 2005, she reorganized the Conway Ringers, which is the FUMC handbell group. It has continued for 13 years and features 15 members, five of which are original members, under her direction.

Also in 2005, Poe became the director of the 31-member chancel choir.

Poe has operated studios in Ohio, South Dakota and Elkins. For three years, while in South Dakota, she worked at a music studio where she was the assistant director that had 300 students and seven teachers on staff.

When she returned to Elkins in 1984, she opened a studio that had 65 students at its busiest time.

Marshall-MacVean has 20-plus years of choral directing experience. She is the choral director at Elkins High School and directs the Davis & Elkins Concert Choir.

She most recently served as the vocal music instructor for the Governor’s School for the Arts from 2011-2013.

During her career she has had the opportunity to work with several well-known choral directors, composers and advocacy activists. She also presented clinics to the West Virginia Educators and Maryland Music Educators In-Services.

Marshall-MacVean was the founding and artistic director for the highly acclaimed Elkins High School Madrigals who were at West Virginia State Honor Choir.

As a church choral musician she was the creative and music director for 12 seasons of “The Living Tree.”

Several of her choral programs have recorded and released CDs for public sale, and she is known for building and rebuilding choral programs at various levels.

Marshall-MacVean is the immediate past-president for the West Virginia Music Educators Association-National Association for Music Education and has also served WVMEA in the capacities of president and president-elect for the executive board.

She has also held the position of West Virginia Vocal Association president, president-elect, All-State Chorus chairperson and regional chairperson.