Birkmeyer1

Lauren Birkmeyer

Mrs. Poeppelman

English 12 period 3

October 6, 2016

Letters to Mr. Horsky

Logan, OH

1985

Dear Diary,

Al Horsky, our band director, was yelling at one of the percussionists again today.

Someone questioned him about why he made me first chair for the percussion section instead of

him just because I’m a girl. He replied, “It doesn’t matter whether you [are] a boy or a girl, it

only [matters] that you [are] the best musician” (Birkmeyer 1). The student nodded in

understanding, if he wasn’t scared of Mr. Horsky before, he sure was now. I don’t blame him

though: Mr. Horsky can be pretty scary at times, but he just wants us to be the best we can be.

The band competition is coming up, and we’ve been working our tails off. My

friend, Gretchen, was starting to complain about her legs becoming sore after practice today.

“Hey Jamie,” she asked, “how come you’re not tired?” I only shrugged.

“I’m just doing what I love,” I replied, “When you are doing something you love to do,

you don’t get tired of it very easily.” Looking back at it now, I had a really good point. You

can’t get tired easily of doing something you love, so why not do something I love for the rest of

my life? I could become a band director, like Mr. Horsky.

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Ohio University

Athens, OH

1989

Dear Diary,

I really feel like I’m getting somewhere as I continue to take these classes here at

OU. I’m the first woman to be in the drumline. At first, the guys thought I was a joke when I

said I wanted to be in the drumline, but you should have seen the looks on their faces when I

showed them what I could really do. Gretchen is taking classes here too, but I haven’t seen her

since after our first year; honestly, I don’t care what she is up to right now. I love it here, but I

really do miss home. I miss Mom, Dad, Tom, Al Horsky, everyone. I don’t regret going here

though.

Now that I think of it, I probably wouldn’t be here majoring in music education if it

wasn’t for Mr. Horsky. He’s done so much for me and I never thanked him for everything he

has done. I think I’ll write him a letter (1). I mean, he did so much for all of us, but how many

of us actually wrote him a letter thanking him for pushing us so hard? He should know how at

least one of his students is doing now that they graduated high school. How should I start this?

Never mind, I’ll have to start it later. I have to head back to class.

Fort Loramie High School

1998

Dear Diary,

I’ve finally started to work on that letter for Mr. Horsky. I’m thinking of starting

it like this:

Dear Mr. Horsky

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I’m writing to you because I want to say thank you for everything you have done

for me. Thanks to you, I have been a band director at Fort Loramie High School in Shelby

County for about 3-4 years now. You were the one who inspired me to become a band director. I

don’t know what I would be doing right now if I didn’t become a band director. Many of your

students thought you were a fantastic teacher.------------------

Oh, there’s the bell, back to work.

Houston, OH

2004

Dear Diary,

Work was hectic today. Who knew that I would go from being a high school band

director to being an elementary school music teacher? Mr. Horsky would be surprised at this

change of events. Oh! I never finished that thank you letter to him did I? I should probably

finish that before I completely forget about it. Let’s see, where was I?

“We respected [you]. We feared [your wrath]. We strived to earn [your] respect”

(Birkmeyer 4). “[We] loved [you]” (Larimer 1). You pushed us to our limits, and even though

we complained like little kids, we were motivated to keep going. You inspired us to do things

we never thought we could do. I have also learned over the years, “self-assessment is beneficial

to improve one’s teaching” (Whitaker 2011). Meaning, when I used self-assessment to improve

my marching, I was also preparing myself for the future so I could help to improve my teaching.

We are forever grateful to have had you as our band director. --------

Oh no, sounds like Thomas is up, again. I’ll have to finish this later.

Houston, OH

2010
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Dear Diary,

How long has it been since I last wrote? Six years? Honestly, I’m surprised I still

have this old thing. I guess that’s one good reason why not to throw away old journals, they

bring back so many memories. Lauren, my first child, is 12 now and she loves music. She loves

to sing along to the radio in the car. She is playing flute, piano, and she is in the choir. She

always taps her feet to the beat of the music. Mr. Horsky would love to have her as a student.

Hold on a second, someone’s calling.

Oh my gosh. My older brother, Tom, just called. He sounded upset, but I paid no

mind to it. He told me about how Dad was doing. When I finally asked him what was wrong, he

told me the worst news I could have ever heard. Al Horsky, the reason I became a band director,

the one I looked up to, the one I owe everything I know to, had died.

I can’t believe it. He’s gone. He’s really gone. I never got to tell him how much I

appreciated him. I never got to send him that letter.

Now, it’s too late.

Houston, OH

2016

Dear Diary,

It’s hard for me to believe it; my first child is in her senior year of high school.

She’s taking some online classes from Edison in Psychology and Sociology. She’s told me that

she is taking some of her classes for dual enrollment so she doesn’t have to worry about those

classes in college. She wants to go to Ohio University, the same college I went to. I’m so proud

of her.
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Today, she came home and told me about a writing assignment she has to do for

English.

“We have to write a paper about someone’s legacy,” she said, “then, we have to

interview at least two people about that person and their legacy, but I don’t know what to do.”

I sat and thought for a moment. “You could do a paper about Al Horsky,” I

suggested.

“Al Horsky? You mean your old band director?”

“Why not?” I asked, “I believe that he left behind a wonderful legacy as a band

director. You can interview your uncle and me to get more information.”

Lauren nodded in understanding. “Okay,” she said, “it’s better than some of the

ideas I had.”

I feel as though that was the first time she had asked me for help in a long time. For a

while now, she has been doing her work without asking for help, even when she obviously needs

it. I’m glad she came to me to ask for advice. I told her about the letter I was planning on

writing to Mr. Horsky, but never got around to finishing. Seeing her looking this determined

makes me determined to finish the letter.

Oak Grove Cemetery

Logan, OH

2016

Dear Diary,

I finally did it. I finished the thank you letter to Mr. Horsky. I feel as

though a large weight was lifted off my shoulder as I placed the envelope upon his grave. It’s

sad to know I won’t see him again for a long time, but I am glad to have known him. It interests
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me how there are many different things that inspire people to become what they are (2).

Finishing this has inspired me to continue writing a letter to place upon his grave every year,

updating him about what has been happening and how the love of music has spread through my

family. I’m planning on getting a head start with the next one right now. How should I start

this? Oh, I know:

Dear Mr. Horsky

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Endnotes

1. Jamie Birkmeyer stated, “I had started to write him a long letter thanking him for

everything he had done for me” (Birkmeyer 1). She wanted to show him how grateful

she was to have him as a teacher.

2. Bob Boilen said to Ari Shapiro from NPR, “I've been fascinated for a long time about

what it is that inspires people to become what they are. In particular, because I talk to

musicians: How did you do this? Why are you playing your guitar; why are you writing

poetry?” (NPR Staff). It shows that inspiration can come to people in many different

shapes and forms. It shows that Jamie’s inspiration to become a band director came to

her in the form of her high school band director.

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Works Cited

Birkmeyer, Jamie. Personal Interview. 21 Sept. 2016.

Boilen, Bob. “What Song Changed Your Life?: Bob Boilen on How Musicians Became

Themselves.” All Things Considered. (NPR) 2016: Newspaper Source. Web. 23 Sept

2016.

Larimer, Tom. Personal Interview. 21 Sept. 2016.

Reese, Andrew. “How Can Music Inspire Social Change?” How Can Music Inspire Social

Change? 12 Apr. 2015. Web. 24 Sept. 2016.

Whitaker, Jennifer A. "High School Band Students’ And Directors’ Perceptions Of Verbal And

Nonverbal Teaching Behaviors."Journal Of Research In Music Education 59.3 (2011):

290-309. Academic Search Premier. Web. 20 Sept. 2016.