From a young age, Annabelle Koomson (12) has been interested in being a drum major and designing her own nails. This year, Koomson was able to make both of these dreams come true.
Koomson was inspired to become a drum major after seeing how the band trusts and respects the drum leaders, making her feel drawn to the position.
“Being a drum major is something I have considered since my seventh-grade year,” Koomson said. “Seeing the drum majors on the podium and how the band follows them and how respected and trusted they are made me feel a sense of pride in the band and something I wanted to do.”
Although Koomson has wanted to become a drum major for a few years, it has still brought its own challenges.
“A challenge I face is probably all the problems that people come up to you with, because sometimes you can’t solve them,” Koomson said. “They’re the band directions problem, but people think it’s your fault, and it’s your solution that will solve everything. But sometimes you really can’t. So you have to let them down easy, be like, I can’t fix this for you, like, I don’t know what you want from me here.”
Even though Koomson is sometimes unable to solve the problems being a drum major brings by herself, she does have someone to help her solve these problems.
“I get over these challenges by running to Mr. Sletto with everything that I can’t do,” Koomson said. ” I run to Mr. Sletto because he knows better than I do, and will be able to take care of the situation.”
Koomson has been able to move past these challenges and still create many memories in band.
“I would say that my favorite memory in band is probably the Six Flags trips that we go on,” Koomson said. “ I would say that because they’re always so chaotic, and you never know what’s going to happen. Like being chased by a vampire, that’s running after you for two minutes.”
Not only is Koomson a drum major for the marching band, she also designs nails.
“Doing nails is something I have always been interested in since I was little,” Koomson said. “I’ve always loved the colors and the designs that people do. And as I got older, I wanted to do them by myself because I’m not paying for that. And I also just like helping other people express themselves in their nails.”
In summary, Koomson has been able to make both of her dreams come true, and although they can both bring their own challenges, she still finds a way to overcome those challenges and enjoy watching her dreams become a reality.
