Ukulele instructor Richard Wyant of Austintown, center, plays a song with JoAnn Baugh of Niles, left, and Gloria Siegfried of Austintown during ukulele practice at the Niles SCOPE Center. Photo by R. Michael Semple

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is part of a series of Saturday profiles of area residents and their stories. To suggest a Trumbull County resident, contact Features Editor Burton Cole at bcole@tribtoday.com.

WARREN — Richard Wyant describes himself as a ukulele enthusiast.

That’s why the former activities aide at Austintown Senior Center and former nurse’s aide now combines his passion for the ukulele with teaching the instrument to seniors.

Wyant holds classes at the Niles SCOPE Senior Center 9 a.m. Thursdays, the Austintown Senior Center noon Wednesdays and Ohio Living Park Vista in Youngstown 11 a.m. Fridays. If that wasn’t enough, Wyant founded The Steel Valley Ukers, a band comprised of seniors in his classes.

“I discovered my love for ukulele while playing ukulele music for my grandchildren and I saw an ‘America’s Got Talent’ video that really inspired me,” Wyant said. “I did research on YouTube and I saw that there were a lot of senior groups who like to play the ukulele.

“With teaching ukulele classes, I found out they are excellent for seniors because they feel a sense of accomplishment and they make new friends every day,” Wyant said.

The Steel Valley Ukers have had ukulele workshops at local libraries and at area festivals such as The Summer Festival of The Arts, which is held every July on the campus of Youngstown State University.

“I take everyone from my ukulele classes at the Niles SCOPE Center, Austintown Senior Center and Ohio Living Park Vista and we go to various nursing homes in the area and play songs for the residents. It’s a double whammy, the players love it as well as the residents,” Wyant said.

Wyant said some of the favorite songs that members of his classes like to play include standards such as “You are my sunshine,” “He’s got the whole world in his hands,” and “Amazing Grace.”

“We have a new repertoire of songs this year. These are songs the students have selected to cover, such as ‘Rollin’ in My Sweet Baby’s Arms,’ ‘San Francisco Bay Blues,’ ‘Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)’ and ‘Goodnight Irene,'” Wyant said.

Student Roberta “Bobbie” McGee of Niles said she grew up playing the saxophone and for her at that time, it was all about New Orleans jazz and the groove of John Coltrane. The ukulele is the first stringed instrument that McGee picked up.

McGee describes the saxophone and the ukulele as “night and day.” McGee has been in Wyant’s ukulele class since November.

“One of my friends, Patricia Pfeifer, got me interested in taking the ukulele classes at the Niles SCOPE senior center. A couple of months ago, if you would have asked me if I like playing the saxophone more than the ukulele, I would have answered, the saxophone. Now it’s the ukulele.

“Right now, one of the songs Wyant has been teaching us that I really enjoy playing is ‘Three Little Birds’ by Bob Marley.’ I jazz up that song a bit,” McGee said.

“I love the ukulele, it’s a beautiful instrument and the music is great. During our Christmas program, Wyant had us play a Hawaiian song and it sounded beautiful,” McGee said.

McGee describes Wyant as a great teacher and the type of person who you can ask the same question a hundred times and he will have an answer. To the students, Wyant is a patient and a kind-hearted teacher.

“He does not have an attitude. If you are willing to learn how to play, he is always willing to teach you. Wyant is very passionate and dedicated. If anyone asks me about learning the ukulele, I would highly recommend Wyant’s classes,” McGee said.

Wyant said that many years before picking up the ukulele, he played guitar and discovered many genres of music.

“When I was younger, I got mostly into folk music such as John Denver. Today, I am learning with my students and I am learning as they are learning.

“I used to work with seniors and it’s great seeing the seniors get a kick out of playing ukulele music. I even have a blind student, and he enjoys playing the ukulele. It’s harder for him, but he is catching up,” Wyant said.

Linda Wiland of Youngstown takes Wyant’s ukulele classes at Austintown Senior Center on Wednesdays, Niles SCOPE on Thursdays and sometimes Ohio Living Park Vista on Fridays.

Wiland said she has been playing the ukulele for a few years. She learned the ukulele by herself, but then decided that it was fun playing with a group of people and socializing.

“Ukulele is simple to learn. I tried teaching myself to play the guitar, but the steel strings made it difficult. A ukulele’s strings are made out of nylon and the chords are easier to play.

“With the ukulele, you just look at the chord diagram and just press the strings where the diagram tells you to press your finger, so you don’t have to learn to read music. The ukulele is also portable. I took my ukulele on a trip to Mexico,” Wiland said.

Wiland said that the nice aspect of Wyant’s ukulele classes is the fact that he is learning as he is teaching his students.

“He is motivated and has a lot of extra time and he shares his knowledge with us as he learns. His classes are worth it and we are all having fun. This makes the experience more relatable,” she said. “He is patient with everyone and his goal is to have fun. He accepts everyone at whatever level they are at.”

Doreen Kascsak, receptionist at Niles SCOPE, said Wyant is so dedicated that he will walk to the center to teach a class.

“Wyant’s ukulele classes bring out a lot of personality out of these seniors and I work here and I listen to his classes every Thursday,” Kascsak said. “I get entertained out of these folks.”

“He sure loves to sing and his classes are always a good time,” Kascsak said.