I struggled most of my time in school. Read and writing were a challenge for me. Even more challenging for me was public speaking. Getting in front of my classmates and reading a Shakespeare poem or reading an essay I wrote brought out this fear in me that is hard to discribe. As I stood in front of the class and read and stumbled over the easiest of words, I could see my classmates with their hands over their mouths to hide the laughter. I remember one day one of my classmates made fun of me and I chased him all the way to his class and I would have hit him if the teacher hadn’t stopped me. It was a struggle to find my voice until I discovered I could sing.
I remember singing in chorus in seventh grade. I loved to sing but singing to records in my room isn’t the same as singing in front of people. I didn’t realize people thought I could sing until they asked me to sing for then Governor Dukakis and his wife Kitty. It was my first performance in front of people who were not in my family. I had found my voice and music was the one place where people didn’t laugh at me.
When I entered high school, I auditioned for the chorus, and I was assigned to the tenor section. My first year was challenging because I struggled to read music. I had to train myself to learn the songs and notes so that I could keep up. We learned songs in Latin, German, French, and Spanish. It was difficult, but I loved it. I remember we were preparing for our Christmas concert and there was a solo opportunity. Everyone told me Mr. Hermance (Choir Director) didn’t give solos to freshmen. Well, I was determined to get that solo. It was a song called “Christmas Gift.” I was the last to audition and when I was done, the entire chorus was giving me a standing ovation. I got the solo and I sang my heart out to 300+ families and friends.
Each year I grew as a singer, and the music department was the one place I felt like I belonged to. They saw me and I was part of a family of people who loved music as much as I did. I still struggled as a teenager, and I made bad choices and poor decisions, but the one place I could go for understanding, forgiveness, and accountability was music led by Donald Hermance. He was the first strong male figure I had in my life who wasn’t Black.
Mr. Hermance saw the potential in me even before I could see it myself. He challenged me and brought out the best in me. He was hard on me when I messed up and the hardest thing for me was when he would get disappointed in me like the time, I skipped school or the day I stole money from a family who took me into their home. It took me over a year to earn his trust back. He was gentle but firm with me. As I look back on it now I realized he treated me like he would his own children. He wanted so much more for me.
Mr. Hermance, my choral classmates, and music got me through some of the toughest times as a teen. If I had the opportunity today to speak with his son and daughter (I had the biggest crush on her all through high school) I would say what I did not, then. Thank you, Mr. Hermance, for giving me a voice and teaching me that I could be so much more.
Charles Redd RN
Dignity Freedom Fighter
Dignity Freedom Fighter 