A student at Parkview High School is an example of how young people don’t have to choose between two things they love. Chris Anderson was chosen as team captain in football and was also a drum major in band — two positions that require lots of commitment.
Growing up, Anderson always had a passion for band and football. As he neared high
school, he wasn’t sure if he would be able to continue doing both. But a trip to Parkview
when he was in the eighth grade changed his thinking.
"I did both in middle school, but I was planning on not doing band in high school," he said. "It was more of a combination of my mom kind of talking to me and also seeing another football player that was a drum major my eighth grade year, we came and visited the school. That kind of got me interested in doing both of them."
Although Anderson was thrilled to be able to pursue both of his passions, he knew committing to both was not going to be an easy task.
"I’m waking up at 5:30, I’m at the school at 6:30 early morning band then I have the whole
day of school, then you have practice from 3:10 to 6, and then a lot of times we had
afternoon practice, so afternoon practice was 6:30 to like 8:30, 9 for band," he said.
Those who commit to two organizations that require so much time and effort — like Anderson — require a strong work ethic, said Parkview band director Curtis Tipton said.
"But What Chris does is very unique in that he is a leader in both groups," he said. "So, I’ve had football players be in band before but I’ve only had one other drum major who was also in football, and Chris is my first football captain who was also a drum major, so that’s two major leadership roles on his shoulders for both those organizations."
Anderson said, not only did the football team and band benefit from his commitment and
striving for excellence, he benefited from it, too.
He has advice for other high school students who are unsure if they can do both or will have to choose.
"Get involved and do something, don’t just do the bare minimum. Just go out and enjoy
your life," he said, "because after high school you don’t know when you will have a chance to make friends, you don’t know when you will have a chance to open up and be able to make mistakes and be a part of group or a family like that."