Jeffrey LaBorde Henry
I was born in Columbia South Carolina January 12th, 1964. I started band in 6th grade and played clarinet. While in High School I tried out and made the S.C. All-State Band my Junior and Senior year. I was also in All-State Choir the same years. My senior year I was nominated to and accepted in Who's Who of American High School Musicians. After graduating High School in 1982 I went to the University of South Carolina and majored in Music Education. My Freshman Year I was one of 2 Freshman in the USC Symphonic Band clarinet section and one of two clarinet players in the USC Orchestra. My senior year I tried out for and made the National Intercollegiate Band, 5th chair on clarinet.
After graduation, I was hired as the middle school director at Newberry Middle School in Newberry, South Carolina. I taught in Newberry for six years. I was responsible for the high school marching band and we made the AAA finals every year except one. The head director in Newberry was Miss Lorraine Paris. She was the head director in Newberry for 48 years and I learned a lot from her. My last year in Newberry the middle school band received the S.C. Outstanding Performance Award. We were one of 12 middle schools in the state to receive this award in 1992. The most important event in my life that school year was not band related however but when I started dating my wife Kristi, a Texas girl and former Drum Major for Crowley H.S.
Kristi and I were married June 27th 1992. That same year I was hired as the head director for Brookland-Cayce High School. Even though B.C. was a AAAA school the band only had 43 members. Although I was only at B.C. 2 years the band grew to over 90 members and finished 2nd out of 6 bands at a marching contest. The year after I left, the band made the state finals. For the next year I managed a music store in Lexington, S.C. called Musician'Supply. I learned instrument repair while working there. That same year my wife Kristi was offered an excellent position here in Texas. We moved out here and I went to work for C&S Music (now called Mr. E's).
A year after moving to Texas I was hired as the assistant director at Rosemont Middle School. We had about 350 students in band 6, 7 & 8th grade. We built the band program to over 700 students in 1 year. The next year the head director and myself were both hired to help build the band program at the new North Crowley High School. After four years of hard work we had the middle school program, 7 & 8th grade, built to over 300 members and the High school to over 200. I then went to work for RadioShack where I became a manager in 6 months and then an area manager 2 yrs later. I have been waiting for Godley H.S. to be open since I left North Crowley. I was offered other band director positions the last 3 years, but this is the only place I want to be.