The Big Sandy Mountaineer -

This coming school year has brought in a handful of new teachers. One teacher includes Timothy Bond who is the new teacher for the music program. After the wonderful advisement of Mrs. Robertson, the band and choir have been given great reviews in the past. Mr. Bond hopes to follow in her footsteps and help the band and choir go beyond their potential.

Timothy Bond was born in Elkhart, Indiana and was raised in a small town called Edwardsburg, Michigan. Living in a small town most of his life definitely makes the readjustment of moving to Big Sandy easier. He went to college at Western Michigan University. He started playing instruments in the third grade. The first instrument he learned was the saxophone, and then percussion in high school. He then learned several instruments throughout his life; he can play over twenty-five instruments, which will be very helpful for the band.

Mr. Bond moved to Big Sandy, Montana this July after close friends of his told him about the job opening. This will be his first-year teaching and he seems very excited about it. “I felt called to come out here and have seen how happy my friends are living here.” Mr. Bond says after being asked why he moved all the way to Montana for a job. He is very impressed with how devoted the music program is and feels welcomed into the community. He enjoys the small-town vibe and is enjoying the people in the community.

He sees so much potential in the students he’s been teaching and hopes to make sure the students sound just as good as they have these last years. He doesn’t want to change too much in the program, so the transition of a new teacher is easier on the students. He also hopes to add more percussion instruments with the help of fundraisers and donors. For the choirs, he hopes to expand the number of students. He is impressed with the number of students in choir but would love a few more male voices in the mix.

For next year he hopes to be able and create a seventh-grade band class where the students can learn the pep band songs and other pieces before jumping straight into the high school band. He hopes this will make the transition from elementary band to high school band easier for everyone. He would also love to add a jazz band in the future but knows the challenges jazz music can bring. Overall, Mr. Bond is very excited for the year and hopes for a good first year of teaching!