In 2008, after 23 years in the Paragould School District, I accepted the position of director of bands at Riverview High School in Searcy, Arkansas. Since it was the school’s first year fielding a varsity football team, starting a marching band was one of my responsibilities. When interviewing for the job, I found it an intriguing thought to start a marching program from scratch.
The summer practices were sporadically attended. Most of the contact numbers I had were incorrect, and there was a great deal of uncertainty about which students would participate. It became obvious that we wouldn’t really get started until the first day of school when I finally met everyone.
The behavior of the kids who showed up during the summer left a lot to be desired. After one rehearsal, I commented to a student that we were going to have to be a lot more disciplined and focused if we wanted to succeed. To which the student responded, “Wait until Davion gets here. You’ll never be able to control him.”
They weren’t far from wrong. Davion, a freshman, was disagreeable, sullen, and smart-mouthed with no filter that I could detect. I tolerated his behavior and that of others because I was the third director the band had had in four years; I was like the step-father they didn’t want in the first place. Quite a few quit.
Yet Davion remained, as disrespectful as ever. I seriously considered kicking him out several times, but one thing kept going through my mind – he was still there. He could have quit like the others, but he stayed. There was something that kept him there even though I didn’t have the foggiest idea what it was. Not only that, he gave his best effort when learning and memorizing his trumpet music – which I didn’t understand given his demeanor. I decided to ride the Davion wave for as long as I could and see what happened.
Amazingly enough, a painfully slow but steady transformation began to take place in Davion over the next few months. The sullen and disagreeable young man became more positive and cooperative. One Friday on game night, he introduced me to the youth pastor at his church. It became evident that the people from his church had a positive and profound influence on him. Our daily interactions and conversations gradually turned from confrontational to pleasant and entertaining. Davion’s great personality became more evident, particularly when he was sharing his opinionated yet hilarious takes on things. Over the next three years, Davion became a rock solid band member who always gave his best and set a great example for others in a program that was just in its infancy. He became one of my favorite students of all time.
After his graduation, Davion visited me on campus from time to time, always smiling and full of positivity despite serious health struggles that hampered his college pursuits and life in general. In the summer of 2023, we had lunch together; it was great to catch up more fully on the years since his graduation. Unfortunately, he died suddenly in November of 2024. Many of his dreams were unrealized due to circumstances beyond his control.
But what he did realize was amazing – a unique and loving bond with so many different people. As with many of my former students, I only saw a small slice of his life. His funeral was a pew-packed, racially-diverse collection of people all touched by his life of faith. To see his impact on others was enlightening and inspirational. There were tears, there were laughs, and many nods from the audience as speakers recounted their Davion stories.
During the funeral, I recalled my most memorable moment with Davion. One day during his freshman year, after the months of butting heads had abated, he said to me, “We like each other now, don’t we?” Taken aback a little, I smiled and responded, “Yes, we do, Davion. Yes, we do.” I’m still not sure if he believed he had changed or that I had changed to make this transformation in our relationship possible. I suppose we were both looking for changes in each other and over time found what we wanted. And what we found made all the difference.
