She looked up; a middle school orchestra concert grabbed her attention from "Fruit Ninja" and "Plants Vs. Zombies" on her mom's iPad. The East High School auditorium was filled with passion and music, enough for a 10-year-old, my daughter Quinn, to put down her video game … and listen.
Music has allowed my kids to find a place in our community. It has helped them feel a part of something and successfully guided my two older boys through what can be the tumultuous years of middle school. It would not have happened without the Anchorage School District music program. Both boys were required to attend music class and encouraged to pick up an instrument and learn how to play it at Bear Valley Elementary School. Their sister sees the benefit of that now. The opportunity is offered at every elementary school in Anchorage.
My son Tony left Goldenview Middle School for South High School last year. He plays violin in the South High orchestra and enjoys that it is a part of his day, thanks in large part to orchestra teacher Katherin Eakes.
In middle school his teachers embraced him and that allowed him to embrace his peers. His closest friends are the boys he met in orchestra at Goldenview. Amanda Elfrink, the Goldenview Orchestra teacher, gave Tony the confidence that comes with knowing he had a place and he grew into a better violin player, better student and better person because of it.
My middle lad, Callahan, will leave Goldenview in May and attend West High School in the fall. He plays the clarinet and it has become one of his passions. His inspiration comes from Dan Whitfield, the Goldenview band teacher, who makes playing in the band there competitive, exciting and fun. Mr. Whitfield engaged Callahan from the moment he walked into the band room and Callahan was immediately inspired.
My daughter is excited to play her flute in the band at Bear Valley in two years and the school has a music teacher, Lynda McConnell, who has opened the joy of singing to her.
We moved back to Anchorage from Fairbanks about five years ago and the change was hard on both boys. There were times in the first year I thought we made a mistake, but the sounds and support from the ASD music program, Mrs. McConnell, Mrs. Elfrink and Mr. Whitfield helped our kids find their way and adjust to new surroundings.
Who knows what the next few years bring for my boys as they move through high school. I know they learned and grew to be more disciplined and efficient in math, science and English in part because they knew they had a place in band and orchestra at Goldenview. They knew they had teachers all over the school who cared and gently pushed.
As a horrible student who was overwhelmed and lost in middle school, I lost sleep three years ago as Tony prepared for Goldenview. Had you told me on his first day of middle school that I would be sad to see it end in a few years, well I would have thought it a fantasy on par with Harry Potter.
This is not written to engage in the budget debate, though I am a stalwart supporter of the ASD music program's value. I write to say thank you to Amanda Elfrink and Dan Whitfield at Goldenview Middle School, to Lynda McConnell at Bear Valley and to all the people who teach, assist or have helped grow the music program in Anchorage schools. You have served not only to broaden my children's horizons but also to give them a sense of belonging and the confidence to wade through a change in towns and schools.
Amanda, Dan, Lynda, ASD music program; you make a big difference to a lot of kids, including mine.
Charles Fedullo is the public relations director at Northwest Strategies. A former University of Alaska Fairbanks journalism professor, he and his wife Shannon have three children, Tony, Callahan and Quinn.
The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com