thedrifter
08-26-03, 05:01 PM
This was sent to me by dhowell....his wife......
Thanks Again and Welcome........
Sempers,
Roger
BAND DIRECTOR GETS SET TO MARCH - HERNANDO'S HOWELL JOINS MARINE CORPS
Stephen Howell loves making music.
And that's fortunate, because by the end of the month, he'll swap the
conductor's wand he's been using as Hernando Middle School's band
director for a pair of drumsticks and a gig as one of the few and the proud.
He's joining the Marines.
"As long as I can remember, my dad has always talked about being a
marine," said Howell, 28, whose father served in Vietnam.
"I always wanted to enlist and finally everything just worked out. I'm
ready to go."
Originally, Howell planned to enlist immediately after high school with
a buddy. But his friend had a change of heart, and Howell decided to go
to college, where he earned a bachelor's in music.
Along the way he met his future wife, Dorothy.
After graduating from Delta State University, the pair returned home to
DeSoto County where Stephen accepted the Hernando Middle band
director's post and Dorothy took a job as a secretary at Olive Branch High.
"Our family's here and we knew that we wanted to live in this area,"
Stephen said.
"But I knew that I wanted to try and get in the service and if I got
the chance again I had to take it. Next year this wouldn't be happening"
That's because the cutoff age for enlisting in the Marines is 28.
To jump start his entry, a recruiter from South Carolina traveled to
Hernando Middle to hear him perform.
Howell played a few drum numbers and after his audition, learned he'd
passed with flying colors.
"It was pretty much all about the audition," Howell said. "They told me
that if I didn't do well that I wouldn't be getting in, so I felt good
after it was over and they liked my performance."
So now it's crunch time for the Howells. He leaves at the end of the
month for 13 weeks at boot camp. He'll graduate in late October and come
back to DeSoto County for 10 days before entering his next round of
training.
By the end of the year he hopes to be settled on a base, preferably in
Georgia. And while he's there, Howell is looking for a shot at
performing with some top-notch musicians.
"They've got a great band program in Albany (Ga) and that's my first
choice," Howell said. "To be able to play with them and travel around
boosting morale would be a dream come true."
It's a dream his wife shares.
Even though she'll be maintaining their home by herself until the end
of the year when she moves with Stephen to a base, Dorothy is happy her
husband got what she describes as a chance of a lifetime.
"I'm very supportive of what he's doing, and since he's talked about it
for as long as I've known him, it's really no big decision," Dorothy
Howell said.
"It'll be a big change, but I think it's going to be an exciting
adventure."
The initial enlistment will be four years, though Stephen plans to
become a career military officer.
He figures that by the time he's served a couple decades, there'll be
plenty of time left to pursue other avenues.
"By the time I've got 20 years in, I can retire from the military and
I'll only be 48," Howells said.
"I may decide to go back into teaching or do something completely
different. I'm just excited that I've finally got the opportunity to follow
my dream."
- James Dowd: (901) 333-2014
Caption: By James Dowd
Stephen Howell, 28, of Hernando, is following in his father's footsteps
as he finally joins the Marines.
CAPTION: Dorothy Howell
Keywords: DESOTO CO SCHOOL MILITARY
Document Number: 0FC278ACE5768242
Thanks Again and Welcome........
Sempers,
Roger
BAND DIRECTOR GETS SET TO MARCH - HERNANDO'S HOWELL JOINS MARINE CORPS
Stephen Howell loves making music.
And that's fortunate, because by the end of the month, he'll swap the
conductor's wand he's been using as Hernando Middle School's band
director for a pair of drumsticks and a gig as one of the few and the proud.
He's joining the Marines.
"As long as I can remember, my dad has always talked about being a
marine," said Howell, 28, whose father served in Vietnam.
"I always wanted to enlist and finally everything just worked out. I'm
ready to go."
Originally, Howell planned to enlist immediately after high school with
a buddy. But his friend had a change of heart, and Howell decided to go
to college, where he earned a bachelor's in music.
Along the way he met his future wife, Dorothy.
After graduating from Delta State University, the pair returned home to
DeSoto County where Stephen accepted the Hernando Middle band
director's post and Dorothy took a job as a secretary at Olive Branch High.
"Our family's here and we knew that we wanted to live in this area,"
Stephen said.
"But I knew that I wanted to try and get in the service and if I got
the chance again I had to take it. Next year this wouldn't be happening"
That's because the cutoff age for enlisting in the Marines is 28.
To jump start his entry, a recruiter from South Carolina traveled to
Hernando Middle to hear him perform.
Howell played a few drum numbers and after his audition, learned he'd
passed with flying colors.
"It was pretty much all about the audition," Howell said. "They told me
that if I didn't do well that I wouldn't be getting in, so I felt good
after it was over and they liked my performance."
So now it's crunch time for the Howells. He leaves at the end of the
month for 13 weeks at boot camp. He'll graduate in late October and come
back to DeSoto County for 10 days before entering his next round of
training.
By the end of the year he hopes to be settled on a base, preferably in
Georgia. And while he's there, Howell is looking for a shot at
performing with some top-notch musicians.
"They've got a great band program in Albany (Ga) and that's my first
choice," Howell said. "To be able to play with them and travel around
boosting morale would be a dream come true."
It's a dream his wife shares.
Even though she'll be maintaining their home by herself until the end
of the year when she moves with Stephen to a base, Dorothy is happy her
husband got what she describes as a chance of a lifetime.
"I'm very supportive of what he's doing, and since he's talked about it
for as long as I've known him, it's really no big decision," Dorothy
Howell said.
"It'll be a big change, but I think it's going to be an exciting
adventure."
The initial enlistment will be four years, though Stephen plans to
become a career military officer.
He figures that by the time he's served a couple decades, there'll be
plenty of time left to pursue other avenues.
"By the time I've got 20 years in, I can retire from the military and
I'll only be 48," Howells said.
"I may decide to go back into teaching or do something completely
different. I'm just excited that I've finally got the opportunity to follow
my dream."
- James Dowd: (901) 333-2014
Caption: By James Dowd
Stephen Howell, 28, of Hernando, is following in his father's footsteps
as he finally joins the Marines.
CAPTION: Dorothy Howell
Keywords: DESOTO CO SCHOOL MILITARY
Document Number: 0FC278ACE5768242