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![Perry and Catherine Norris said "for years" they have been attending the annual auction fundraiser held on behalf of the Bloomingdale High School Rajun Bull Band program. "They did a lot better getting stuff this year than in other years," Perry Norris noted at the March 6, 2010 auction in the school cafeteria. "I think they'll do good."
For the Norris', the annual visit to the school is bittersweet. Their son, Mark, graduated from Bloomingdale High School in 1995. He died in 2005. As members of the greater community, they attend the auction both to support their neighborhood school and to honor the memory of their son's journey as a Bloomingdale Bull.
"I was talking with one of his friends the other day, and he told me [Mark] was one of a kind, all the things he used to do for people," Catherine Norris said, tears brimming in her eyes. Her son at first was afraid to attend Bloomingdale, which at the time was newly opened, because he thought "he wouldn't fit in, thinking people who come here were in the upper class and we were primarily country bumpkins from Lithia," she said. "At the time, though, there really were no cliques [at Bloomingdale] and everybody spoke to each other and my son graduated in the honor court."](http://www.mypapernow.com/Other/Bloomingdale-Rajun-Bull-Band/i-wfM4cVT/1/Ti/DSC_0003-Ti.jpg "Perry and Catherine Norris said \"for years\" they have been attending the annual auction fundraiser held on behalf of the Bloomingdale High School Rajun Bull Band program. \"They did a lot better getting stuff this year than in other years,\" Perry Norris noted at the March 6, 2010 auction in the school cafeteria. \"I think they'll do good.\"
For the Norris', the annual visit to the school is bittersweet. Their son, Mark, graduated from Bloomingdale High School in 1995. He died in 2005. As members of the greater community, they attend the auction both to support their neighborhood school and to honor the memory of their son's journey as a Bloomingdale Bull.
\"I was talking with one of his friends the other day, and he told me [Mark] was one of a kind, all the things he used to do for people,\" Catherine Norris said, tears brimming in her eyes. Her son at first was afraid to attend Bloomingdale, which at the time was newly opened, because he thought \"he wouldn't fit in, thinking people who come here were in the upper class and we were primarily country bumpkins from Lithia,\" she said. \"At the time, though, there really were no cliques [at Bloomingdale] and everybody spoke to each other and my son graduated in the honor court.\"")
Beverly Sutherland, director of the Bloomingdale Senior High School choral program, and Jon Sever, the school's band director, share a moment at the March 6, 2010 auction. The two teachers, along with Su Ling, the orchestra teacher, have been invited to take their students to London next year for the 2011 New Year's Day Parade and London Festival. The October 2009 announcement added to the reputation of the Bloomingdale Senior High School Rajun' Bull Band program (18 years of superior ratings), which this year also saw the naming of Sever as Bloomingdale's 2009-10 Teacher of the Year.
"He does his job like nobody else," Sutherland said about Sever. "I respect the man so much. He's one of the smartest people I know for one thing, his intelligence. And the way he treats his kids. He's always listening, always caring. He's concerned about the total student and not just the playing ability. He wants to know what he can do for the kid instead of what the kid can do for him."
"The thing for me," Sever said, "is I keep doing the job for the kids." His philosphy: "If people focus on their job instead of on their career the career takes care of itself."
In turn, Sever had high praise for his colleagues. "One of the reasons I have the best job in the world are the people I work with. The administration, Bev Sutherland, and Su Ling."
As for the London invitation, Sever called it "the biggest thing that's ever happened here for our music department. It's overwhelming."
Indeed, too, overwhelming is the cost of the trip per student. The $2,900 price tag includees transportation, hotel accommodations, two meals a day, and performance entry fees. The trip is scheduled for Dec. 27, 2010 through Jan. 2, 2011.
As for the music that will be played, that remains a work in progress. The British Invasion show the band is playing here is not necessarily something the British want to hear. "They want to hear American music there," Sever said.
"He does his job like nobody else," Sutherland said about Sever. "I respect the man so much. He's one of the smartest people I know for one thing, his intelligence. And the way he treats his kids. He's always listening, always caring. He's concerned about the total student and not just the playing ability. He wants to know what he can do for the kid instead of what the kid can do for him."
"The thing for me," Sever said, "is I keep doing the job for the kids." His philosphy: "If people focus on their job instead of on their career the career takes care of itself."
In turn, Sever had high praise for his colleagues. "One of the reasons I have the best job in the world are the people I work with. The administration, Bev Sutherland, and Su Ling."
As for the London invitation, Sever called it "the biggest thing that's ever happened here for our music department. It's overwhelming."
Indeed, too, overwhelming is the cost of the trip per student. The $2,900 price tag includees transportation, hotel accommodations, two meals a day, and performance entry fees. The trip is scheduled for Dec. 27, 2010 through Jan. 2, 2011.
As for the music that will be played, that remains a work in progress. The British Invasion show the band is playing here is not necessarily something the British want to hear. "They want to hear American music there," Sever said.
2011 New Year's Day Parade and London Festival. The October 2009 announcement added to the reputation of the Bloomingdale Senior High School Rajun' Bull Band program (18 years of superior ratings), which this year also saw the naming of Sever as Bloomingdale's 2009-10 Teacher of the Year.
"He does his job like nobody else," Sutherland said about Sever. "I respect the man so much. He's one of the smartest people I know for one thing, his intelligence. And the way he treats his kids. He's always listening, always caring. He's concerned about the total student and not just the playing ability. He wants to know what he can do for the kid instead of what the kid can do for him."
"The thing for me," Sever said, "is I keep doing the job for the kids." His philosphy: "If people focus on their job instead of on their career the career takes care of itself."
In turn, Sever had high praise for his colleagues. "One of the reasons I have the best job in the world are the people I work with. The administration, Bev Sutherland, and Su Ling."
As for the London invitation, Sever called it "the biggest thing that's ever happened here for our music department. It's overwhelming."
Indeed, too, overwhelming is the cost of the trip per student. The $2,900 price tag includees transportation, hotel accommodations, two meals a day, and performance entry fees. The trip is scheduled for Dec. 27, 2010 through Jan. 2, 2011.
As for the music that will be played, that remains a work in progress. The British Invasion show the band is playing here is not necessarily something the British want to hear. "They want to hear American music there," Sever said." href="javascript:openLB(804361778,'',XLarge,'',1024,681);">
Beverly Sutherland, director of the Bloomingdale Senior High School choral program, and Jon Sever, the school's band director, share a moment at the March 6, 2010 auction. The two teachers, along with Su Ling, the orchestra teacher, have been invited to take their students to London next year for the 2011 New Year's Day Parade and London Festival. The October 2009 announcement added to the reputation of the Bloomingdale Senior High School Rajun' Bull Band program (18 years of superior ratings), which this year also saw the naming of Sever as Bloomingdale's 2009-10 Teacher of the Year.
"He does his job like nobody else," Sutherland said about Sever. "I respect the man so much. He's one of the smartest people I know for one thing, his intelligence. And the way he treats his kids. He's always listening, always caring. He's concerned about the total student and not just the playing ability. He wants to know what he can do for the kid instead of what the kid can do for him."
"The thing for me," Sever said, "is I keep doing the job for the kids." His philosphy: "If people focus on their job instead of on their career the career takes care of itself."
In turn, Sever had high praise for his colleagues. "One of the reasons I have the best job in the world are the people I work with. The administration, Bev Sutherland, and Su Ling."
As for the London invitation, Sever called it "the biggest thing that's ever happened here for our music department. It's overwhelming."
Indeed, too, overwhelming is the cost of the trip per student. The $2,900 price tag includees transportation, hotel accommodations, two meals a day, and performance entry fees. The trip is scheduled for Dec. 27, 2010 through Jan. 2, 2011.
As for the music that will be played, that remains a work in progress. The British Invasion show the band is playing here is not necessarily something the British want to hear. "They want to hear American music there," Sever said.
"He does his job like nobody else," Sutherland said about Sever. "I respect the man so much. He's one of the smartest people I know for one thing, his intelligence. And the way he treats his kids. He's always listening, always caring. He's concerned about the total student and not just the playing ability. He wants to know what he can do for the kid instead of what the kid can do for him."
"The thing for me," Sever said, "is I keep doing the job for the kids." His philosphy: "If people focus on their job instead of on their career the career takes care of itself."
In turn, Sever had high praise for his colleagues. "One of the reasons I have the best job in the world are the people I work with. The administration, Bev Sutherland, and Su Ling."
As for the London invitation, Sever called it "the biggest thing that's ever happened here for our music department. It's overwhelming."
Indeed, too, overwhelming is the cost of the trip per student. The $2,900 price tag includees transportation, hotel accommodations, two meals a day, and performance entry fees. The trip is scheduled for Dec. 27, 2010 through Jan. 2, 2011.
As for the music that will be played, that remains a work in progress. The British Invasion show the band is playing here is not necessarily something the British want to hear. "They want to hear American music there," Sever said.
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