Hunter's Story: And The Band Played On.......

Friday night brought yet another reality check, one of many we all will face as we move through our days. Friday night I should have been watching my sweet Hunter march with his brothers and sisters as they performed their show "Infected". Hunter especially was over the moon about the theme and song choices this year as he and I (as well as Tara and Daniel) were obsessed with The Walking Dead and other zombie apocalypse shows. Between that and Harry Potter we had many a marathons. Hunter couldn't wait to showcase something he held so close......and to be able to do it with his friends, well, it just didn't get any better than that.

Friday night myself, Madison, Lance, Tara, Kallen, Jenna, Kayle, Chelsea, Josie and Jordin all watched with tears in our eyes as Hunter's beloved band performed his beloved show without him. How God gave us the strength to actually go is beyond me, it would have been so much easier to keep it out of sight and out of mind, but God took us all there. I'm pretty sure I'm speaking for the others when I say that even though the heartbreak is still so very fresh to us, it was an absolute blessing being able to be there. I believe that we all received some type of comfort and peace having been there.

Hunter Clark 2014 Marching Season

After Hunter passed we talked of what we should do with his sax. It would have been special to keep it and put it on display, but we knew in our hearts that Hunter would want it to be played, especially by someone within the band. After much consideration Lance sent sweet Macey Lillard to hand delivered Hunter's saxophone to the school to be donated to the band. We left it purely up to the directors how they wanted to use the sax.....and we were deeply touched when they chose to ask one of Hunter's close friends to play it in his honor.

The directors chose Alex Johnson. Alex was a very close friend of Hunter's, and I have come to love him as well. To Alex, being asked to play Hunter's saxophone was a top honor, one that he appreciated and considered himself blessed to have been asked. Friday night we got to see Alex holding and playing our sweet boy's instrument........I thought it would be too painful to see, but I was deeply surprised when a sense of peace and comfort came over me.

Alex Johnson 2015


Alex Johnson playing 2015

It touched me to no end to see how he carried it with pride and treated it with the utmost respect. Immediately I knew this was how it was supposed to be.....Hunter wouldn't have wanted it any other way. As the band began to get ready for their show I noticed Hunter's saxophone held high in the middle of a huddle, and one the count of three the band chanted Hunter's name.

Prayer Circle around Hunter's sax

Next came a prayer circle where they laid the saxophone in the middle of a circle they formed by holding hands. A prayer was given and students spent time saying something about Hunter. While the prayer circle formed I walked up to join them....holding tightly to Cameron's hand on one side of me and Alex's hand on the other. At the very end I said something to the group, though I can't remember exactly what I said (through my own tears). Friday night we watched as Alex and the rest of the band marched, performing their hearts out and PLAYING IT LOUD. This small band of less than 100 blew away Walker Valley's beast of a band (300+ members), their sound and overall performance fueled purely off emotion, each did their best to honor Hunter......and in my opinion, they more than accomplished that goal. We all knew how much Hunter meant to his band mates, their friendships forever sealed, but we were touched beyond measure to see how much respect and love they showed for him. Anyone watching could see that their hearts, too, were breaking. It's hard to take a step forward without someone you love, but it's a beautiful thing to watch them use his memory to give them the strength they needed to get through the night.

The only way I could have been prouder were if my sweet boy were on the field with them, belting out the smooth tunes of his saxophone. Watching him grin ear to ear as he hugged and celebrated the much deserving performance. Though Hunter wasn't physically there we still felt his presence and though our hearts will continue to break, Hunter will forever live on through this music. As the wrist band each band member so proudly wears states "Hunter Clark.....your memory marches on", they did in fact keep his memory marching on..........BEAR PRIDE!