Katie’s Story
At the start of 2017 I opened up applications for my Class of 2018 Senior Team. I love hearing from the girls that apply, and what Katie wrote really got my attention. When I asked her to tell me about herself she replied “I’m in a competitive indoor percussion group at pinnacle high school, and I volunteer at an organization called stepping stones of hope. They put on grief camps for kids and adults who have had someone die in their lives and help them cope with it. I’ve been volunteering there since I was a camper in 2013 after my dad died. I want to go to ASU and get a doctorate in music therapy and help people. I’m also thinking about joining the peace corps for a few years. I think my sense of humor and my musical abilities make me beautiful.” Whoa. I invited her to join my team and have spent some time talking to her and her mom about her dad and the impact losing him has had on her life. I asked her if I could share her story, because I know she’s not the only one who has suffered loss and heartbreak. Katie has taken the heart ache and grief and channeled it into a desire to help other kids who are going through similar situations. Here are her words…
“Throughout my life, I have noticed the chain reactions that have put me in the position that I am in now and have discovered how grateful I am for the unfortunate events that have shaped me into the person I am today. Growing up, my dad was my best friend. He instilled a love of music in me that has only grown stronger over the years. I went everywhere with him and was friends with all of his friends. I could not picture a life without my dad in it. However, in May of 2012, my dad was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, which is a rare cancer of the plasma cells in the blood. It escalated very rapidly and he died in November of that year. He had the most rapid case of that particular cancer his doctor had ever seen and died 3 days after a check-up in which his doctor predicted he would recover.
My doctor and my school counselor made the recommendation to my mom that we attend a grief program run by Stepping Stones of Hope (SSOH), a local non-profit organization. SSOH is a completely volunteer run organization that puts on camps for individuals and families who have experienced the death loss of a loved one. The April after my dad died, we attended one of the most popular camps the organization holds, called Camp Paz, and I fell in love with the camp and wanted to be able to help others experiencing grief. At 13 I became the youngest volunteer the organization had had up until that point, and since then I have been volunteering over 120 hours a year with them.
My dad was a musician and artist, and in the years leading up to his death, I fell in love with music in the same way he had when he was my age. However, after he died I began struggling with my identity and self worth and began to experience deep depression and anxiety. I stopped all music related activities and quickly lost the urge to ever pick up an instrument again, but frequently turned to listening to music as an outlet for my emotions, and began to have a deeper understanding for its healing powers.
Going into my freshman year of high school, my school hired a new band teacher, David Burchi, and he encouraged me to join the new club he was starting; drum line. In the beginning stages of it, I only saw it as a way to hang out with my friends, but as the year progressed, I realized that I had fallen in love with music again, all thanks to Burchi. As a sophomore, I helped TA for his elementary music class and began to realize that my love for music had grown past a love for performing, and quickly became a desire for a career in the music field. I did not want to be a performer, so I thought my only option was being a music teacher. I spent the remainder of this year intently watching Burchi teach and worked hard so I could further my capabilities as a musician, and better my chances of getting into a school of music. However, one thought stuck out in my mind through all of this; I don’t like kids and I don’t want to teach them.
The summer after my sophomore year, I was volunteering at a camp put on by SSOH, and began to talk to a music therapist they bring into all of the camps. I quickly realized that it was the perfect career for me. It combined my love for helping people and desire to help them heal, with my love for music. I continued my journey by joining the competitive indoor percussion group Burchi directs, and fell even deeper in love with music, and now I intend on attending college for a degree in music therapy. If my father had not died, I may have never discovered my dream career. I can now say with certainty, that all things happen for a reason, and positive things can come from bad situations.
Thank you so much for sharing your story with us Katie! I’m trusting that there is continued beauty and healing in your future. I’m so glad you stepped out of your comfort zone and applied to be on my Senior Team. It’s been a gift to get to know you and your mom.
