Metro Detroit teacher named Michigan band teacher of the year
MILFORD, Mich. (CBS DETROIT) - For some, the love of music starts at an early age.
"I always tell people it chose me, I didn't choose it," said Kristin Blanchard, Muir Middle School band director.
That passion struck a chord for Blanchard when she was 9 years old.
"There comes a point when you realize maybe I can do this for a living," Blanchard said.
For 28 years, most of those memories taking place at Muir Middle School in Milford, Blanchard has taught kids the melody of music, how to harmonize and play an instrument, but mostly how to have fun.
"For me, it's where they're going to go with this. So, they may not be a musician their whole life. That's not important to me. What's important is that they remember how fun it was and maybe they go to concerts and maybe they go spend money to see live music or they have kids later, and they want those kids to be in band so that's a really important thing for me. It's bigger than just music," she said.
After decades of dedication to her students, Blanchard recently received the ultimate praise.
For the first time in her career, she was named the Michigan School Band & Orchestra Association Band Teacher of the Year. It's an award voted on by her fellow colleagues across the state.
"Was I surprised? You bet. We were at our state conference in Grand Rapids. And so, we're all in DeVos Hall, we're at this big concert, and there's just a ton of people there, and at that particular concert, they announced the directors of the year. I didn't know they called my name (laughs). I did the whole like pause ... and my husband was there, so I looked at him, and I was like, did they just say my name, and so yeah, it was very surprising because I was up against two really, really amazing teachers," said Blanchard.
It's an honor Blanchard says she's grateful to receive, but it's the impact she leaves on her students that is the most rewarding.
"We don't come to work every day to earn these awards, so it was cool. It was very awesome," Blanchard stated.
What's next for this band director? Blanchard says she still has many things she wants to accomplish in her lifetime.
"I have a lot of hopes. I have a lot of things I want to do. I want to retire in a couple of years and call it re-wirement. I want to keep doing things. I want to spread my wings. I work for the Detroit Symphony, so I already have another job, so my hope is that I can just ramp up all the other side stuff I've been doing and keep going," she stated.
In the meantime, Blanchard plans to continue to encourage anyone with a passion for music to simply bring the energy and keep playing.
"If you're willing to put in the work and effort, the payoff is something you can't even imagine," Blanchard stated.