A choir trip to Branson in late August could have been disastrous. Instead, it provided opportunities for the best of humanity to shine. And for that, Beth Williamson is thankful.
“The little things that people did to help the students, the school and me, was very evident,” Williamson said. “There were many unsung heroes.”
The potential problems began following a four-hour rehearsal for Williamson, the director of the choir at Houston Schools, and 35 students who were among the feature acts for more than 900 attendees of the Student Youth Travel Association. It was 3 p.m. when as the group traveled to a restaurant for a late lunch –– on a very tight schedule –– their bus broke down.
Instead of panicking, Williamson said those around her group began problem solving.
The bus driver, Tony Overy, called the district’s transportation director, Joe Montgomery, and started investigating the vehicle. HHS principal Charlie Malam contacted superintendent Scott Dill and the two agreed to do whatever it took to get the students to their destination. It was a hot day, so two parent sponsors on the bus –– Lisa Malam and Laura Spurlin –– led students to a shady area. Other parent sponsors on the trip then began loading students in their personal vehicles and taking them to the restaurant.
“All the adults sprung into action for the students,” Williamson said.
With all that unfolding, solutions began forming. Montgomery volunteered –– on his day off –– to drive another bus to Branson. The tour guide found an available charter bus in town from Mountain Home, Ark., to pick up the remaining students.
When the students made it to lunch, Williamson gave them 10 minutes to eat.
“I never got any complaints,” she said. “They ate as much as they could and when I told them it was time to go, they got up.”
They had 10 minutes to change at the hotel before leaving for their performance at Silver Dollar City. Despite the challenges, they were only a few minutes late to sing for conference attendees as they arrived at the theme park.
Then came another challenge.
“About 15 minutes into it, it started sprinkling,” Williamson said. “And then it started pouring, and we’re out there with no shelter. The kids were still singing.”
Williamson moved the group under a nearby awning. The sound equipment was ruined by the rain, but the HHS choir kept singing.
“I gave the students the pitch and they sang underneath that awning while the people were still coming in,” Williamson said. “People were coming up to our sponsors and telling them how amazing our students were. They had no idea what we had been through that day.”
After singing, there was yet another issue. The group was now stranded at Silver Dollar City without a ride back to their hotel. The tour guide again sprang into action and found another charter bus willing to provide transportation.
“Total strangers were helping us out,” Williamson said.
Following a short night of rest, the choir was back at rehearsals for another performance at 6 a.m. A potential problem arose when Williamson realized she left her personal keys on the broken down bus. Fortunately, Overy had grabbed them.
When the group returned back to Houston later that day, they were greeted by Joe Ward, who had returned earlier from the trip and printed out a large photo of the weekend for Williamson. He also created DVDs for the students of their performances.
“He is another adult who has gone above and beyond what is required for the students here at Houston,” Williamson said.
In a time of the year when people often pause for thanks, Williamson said she has many examples from that trip alone. She said her students had amazing attitudes through all the issues and later sent ‘thank you’ cards to those who helped. Parents stepped in to assist when needed and school staff gave their personal time for the success of the students. Williamson said Houston is the only district where she has worked that sends an administrator on most choir trips.
The story officially ended the following weekend when Montgomery drove back to Branson to save the district the cost of towing the bus and repaired it.
“Some people do just their job minimally,” Williamson said. “I think this is a story of thankfulness for the people who stepped in –– some even strangers –– and helped when things didn’t go well.”