Meet the Staff - Schantz Organ Company

One of the most important assets of any craft-oriented organization is its dedicated and skilled staff.

Schantz Organ Company takes great pride in the craftspersons associated with our firm. The thirty-plus artisans who work amongst us are seasoned organbuilders – bringing a variety of skills and disciplines to our work.

From time-to-time, we'll take opportunity to introduce them.


Meet the Staff

Tashawna Collins

Growing up locally in Wayne County, new addition, Tashawna Collins has been familiar with the Schantz name throughout her life. She enjoys watercolor painting, plant cultivation, and spending time with her two sons. Tashawna joined the team in 2023 with a decade of proven experience in logistics, customer service, and overall business administration. Tashawna has been particularly fascinated by the attention to detail Schantz employees have. She also found it interesting that pipes can be crafted to mimic human voices (Vox Humana Stop).


Chris Fortune

After serving in the Army, Chris worked as a technician at an agricultural equipment shop. When he heard that Schantz was hiring, he was eager to learn something new while working for a small, local, family-owned company. At Schantz, Chris works primarily in the Chest Department, where he takes raw lumber and forms it into the chest that allows air into pipes to make them speak. The fact that every chest is built slightly differently is his favorite part of organ building. When not working at the shop, Chris enjoys outside activities such as hiking, fishing, hunting, and gardening.

Meet the Staff

Meet the Staff

Dave Heinzeroth

As a young man, Dave’s mother pointed out the Schantz factory when they drove past it. Years later, he is happy to be working here. Before coming to Schantz, he was a furniture builder for several different companies, including Gulfstream Jets in Georgia. Today his primary work is building casework. He especially enjoys being a part of the installation team, because he can watch the casework that he built coming to fruition. When he is not working with wood, he enjoys growing as a golfer.


Adam Holden

Adam grew up near Orrville, and especially enjoyed a Design and Production class (formerly known as Wood Shop) in high school. He plays some piano and guitar, and he even built his own guitar. He started working at Schantz only one year after graduating from High School, and helps to operate the CNC machine in addition to various woodworking tasks all over the shop. As a self-proclaimed “foodie,” Adam especially enjoys traveling to see different churches - and restaurants - all over the country.

Meet the Staff

Meet the Staff

Kelsea McCullough

Music played an important part in Kelsea’s life growing up, so he is pleased to be working in a musical instrument factory. He played percussion (including mallet instruments) in high school. He also played guitar and sang in church. In the shop, Kelsea enjoys his main job of restoring or building new wooden pipes. Before starting at Schantz, Kelsea also studied at Anderson University (International Relations) and served in the RAF, where he enjoyed starting to learn how to fly.


Ashley Ruffner

Ashley found out about Schantz from her sister, Jessica. She is still a student at the Wayne County Career center, where she is studying construction. Working part-time at Schantz, she helps build blower boxes and reservoirs. She enjoys the variety of tasks that happen at an organ factory – nothing is ever quite the same. Ashley enjoys playing volleyball at her school, and various Arts & Crafts projects.

Meet the Staff

Meet the Staff

Jessica Ruffner

During her senior year at the local career center, Jessica was offered a part-time job at Schantz Organ Company. But she initially thought that “Organ” referred to body parts! After finding out that she would be helping to build pipe organs, she was more interested. After finishing high school, Jessica was happy to work full-time at Schantz. In addition to soldering wires in chests, she also helps with gluing leather pouches and testing chests when they are completed. Outside of the shop, Jessica enjoys caring for her many animals and hiking.


Kyle Tobias

When Kyle’s mother-in-law heard that Schantz was looking to hire an electrical expert, she encouraged Kyle to reach out. He uses his experience in IT and electronics to work with the electrical system that connects the organ console to the pipes in the chamber. He also enjoys building new keyboards for organists to play. Kyle enjoys being able to work with his hands to build parts for the organ. Kyle also enjoys raising three young children down the street from the shop.

Meet the Staff

Meet the Staff

Mike Zwick

Mike initially found out about Schantz through a family member who bought a house in Akron that happened to have a small Schantz organ in it. This led him to research Schantz online and apply for a job. At Schantz, he is primarily a pipe-maker and voicer. He is also part of the Service Team. This work combines Mike’s talents as a musician (jazz drummer, guitar, and some piano) with his experience operating CNC machines at other companies. Mike especially enjoys being part of the Tonal Finishing team, where he can hear the work of the entire shop coming together to make a true musical instrument.

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