On Dec. 11th, the 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade Pembroke Pines Charter Middle School (PPCMS) West Campus band students performed their annual Winter Concert—but this time, with a more sentimental feeling. After 26 years of working at PPCMS West Campus, Ms. Cole, the Band teacher, will retire next year.
The concert starts with the Beginning Band (6th graders) playing traditional Holiday songs like “Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel” and “Feliz Navidad.” The room is filled with parents each pulling out their phones to record their children, not knowing that their kids will continue to improve immensely within the next two years.
Next comes the Symphonic Band, which is composed of 7th and 8th graders. They perform songs that are still fun, yet precise. The bright light that shines on them highlights how big the instrument is, allowing the audience to recognize the amount of effort they put into the instruments that they play.
Midway through their performance, Ms. Cole bestowed upon Mr. Castellano, the middle school’s principal, to narrate “The night before Christmas,” an action she would normally do. Mr. Castellano describes how much it means to him to be able to narrate the melody in honor of his dear friend, illustrating the sweet connection they both built up with each other over the past years. “It has been the greatest pleasure to teach at the PPCS for the past 26 years,” Ms. Cole expresses.
For the final part of the concert, the 7th and 8th graders in Symphonic Winds came on stage.
They performed technical, elegant songs that embodied the holiday spirit and amazed the audience with the skills they had been learning for the past two to three years. Along with their mastered skills, at least five of them are in the All-County band—some even being top band students in the state. Ms. Cole emphasizes how much of an accomplishment that is, especially since it is her last year, and has never had that many of her students achieve that status all at once.
One of her All-County band students, Oluwayanmife Akinbami, an 8th grader, states, “I’m happy we did good [at the concert], but I also don’t want to see her go. It’s kind of sad because it’s also my final concert as a middle schooler and middle school was some of my favorite middle school years, so it’s a bittersweet feeling.”
Throughout the night, Ms. Cole is beside her daughter, Ms. McMillan. Before they end the night, her daughter gives a tearful speech mentioning what it is like working with her mother, which is not something many can say. The audience is filled with silence as they watch an impactful moment of a daughter wrapping up their mother’s career.
To honor her mother’s legacy, Ms. McMillan ends the night in one remarkable way:
Before playing the last song, Ms. Cole always dresses up as the Grinch. “The Grinch costume kind of evolved over time—first just playing the song, and as the years progressed, I added the hat and gloves and eventually, the slippers. One of my students bought me the Grinch doll which I proudly display at the Winter Concert each year! My students—both current and past—look forward to the donning of the costume.”
But this time, Ms. McMillan gathered Charter alumni from Ms. Cole’s years of teaching band and called them to come up on stage to play “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch” to close out the show as a surprise.
PPCHS junior and former student of Ms. Cole Mia Rodriguez shares, “Coming to Ms. Cole’s last Winter Concert genuinely felt overall nostalgic and a little bittersweet. I’m glad that I was given the opportunity to come back after three years and watch the last holiday concert of the person who helped me get to where I am today and encouraged me to continue with something, which I can confidently call my passion.” She continues, “I’m really grateful that she was there for me at the beginning of my musician career while I got to be there at one of the last moments of her career as well.”
The PPCMS West Campus Winter Concert has concluded for the year, along with the one person who made it meaningful for many. Although she is finishing her last year of teaching band at West Campus, “It was a great final Winter Concert, and I am looking forward to finishing out my final year in grand fashion!”
