Years at Pacific Crest:
2013
Hometown:
Bellevue, WA
Currently living in Laguna Niguel, CA
Education:
Aliso Niguel High School
Siblings:
Older brother Vincent
What brought you to Pacific Crest?
A few of my older friends from school marched at PC. Seeing them at local shows and hearing all their stories really inspired me to join. One of the instructors at my school was also a Pacific Crest alum, and he was helpful, supportive, and encouraging. At first, I thought that due to my age and lack of experience, I would audition for an Open Class corps before doing PC, but I asked around, got input from friends, staff, and people on various social media sites who had marched before, and finally mustered the courage to audition – one of the best decisions of my life.
How you do you think your Pacific Crest experience will affect your future goals and/or plans?
Pacific Crest had a tremendous impact on my life. Being away from my family all summer actually helped us bond a lot more than we did each day under the same roof. I (finally) got a texting plan on my phone and stayed in touch with my dad via daily updates about tour life, and those brief anecdotes and small conversations were the most we had talked in a long time. At home, we’re always preoccupied with work, school, and everyday life. My mom volunteered on the food truck and worked hard alongside us for two weeks on tour. We grew to appreciate each other even more, and she learned to love drum corps. While I may have been away from my biological family for the summer, I found, in the people around me, a second family. Through tears, laughter, happiness and heartbreak, blood, sweat, and glory, we formed a bond like no other. My PC peeps mean the world to me, and the experience truly transformed me into a different person. I used to be shy and insecure, but drum corps taught me a little thing called confidence, so nowadays, I stand a bit taller, talk a bit louder, and smile a bit brighter than I did just last year.
How have you applied the experience to your life outside of drum corps?
I’m not sure what kind of a career I want, and I don’t know what educational endeavors might occupy my future, but I definitely want to fill my summers with drum corps. After I age out, I hope to have the opportunity to teach marching band or drum corps, and give other students a chance to experience what I’ve experienced.
Is there something you’d like others to know about Pacific Crest?
I have never loved a group of people more than I do my Pacific Crest family — members, staff, volunteers, everyone. I had the summer of my life, and wouldn’t trade it for the world.
