Influential, longtime music teacher to end career
Coming out of room G-1 at Rancho San Justo Middle School is a
familiar sound. The swirling horns and banging drums seep from the
building.
Standing in front of the almost 50 students with brass horns and
white drums is Joe Ostenson, or
”
Mr. O
”
as he is affectionately called. He has been there for nearly 45
years, influencing the lives of many students, but at the end of
this school year Mr. O is saying goodbye.
Influential, longtime music teacher to end career
Coming out of room G-1 at Rancho San Justo Middle School is a familiar sound. The swirling horns and banging drums seep from the building.
Standing in front of the almost 50 students with brass horns and white drums is Joe Ostenson, or “Mr. O” as he is affectionately called. He has been there for nearly 45 years, influencing the lives of many students, but at the end of this school year Mr. O is saying goodbye.
The towering man with broad shoulders, big glasses, gray hair and a pencil-thin mustache seethes with musical passion but he said he realizes after 45 years of teaching, it is enough.
“It’s time,” Ostenson said. “The eyes don’t work quite as well. The back doesn’t work as well. It’s time to get out so I can still do some things.”
Ostenson, 68, has been through many changes, including the Cold War, the rapid growth of Hollister and now the recent budget cuts, but he always has stuck with it because it has been about the kids and the family, he said.
Over his 45 years, Ostenson has taught entire families, from parents to their kids. Ostenson has left a musical mark on many, including Hollister native Laura Cavanaugh. Ostenson taught her two kids from 1996 to 2003, Cavanaugh said.
“Our relationship began with a mutual love of music that has evolved from teacher to mentor to friend, and finally, into something more like a family,” Cavanaugh said in an e-mail. “The best part is that our story is only one of hundreds that are just the same.”
Eighth-grade student Breanna Alosi knows first hand what kind of effect Ostenson can have on a family. Years ago, both of Alosi’s parents were students under Ostenson. Now, Alosi has learned from him for the past three years.
“He is like my music grandfather, my mentor and my teacher,” Alosi said. “It’s going to be really sad – band won’t be the same without him.”
He takes pride in those families who have kept coming back through the years.
“It’s got to be the greatest compliment a teacher could ever have,” Ostenson said. “to have their kids come back because of the positive things that they had when they were going to school.”
Ostenson has nurtured the musical ambitions of thousands of kids, turning the San Justo-Maze band into a Hollister tradition that has won hundreds of awards, and whose trophies line the walls of room G-1.
A path to inspiration
After graduating from San Jose State in January 1965, Ostenson made his way to Hollister to become the music teacher at the Hollister School District. But he had no clue he would stay for so long.
“It was partly because I met a young lady – Frances – who I would later marry,” Ostenson said. “I was also told you have to live here for at least 30 years to become part of the community – I think I’ve done that now.”
Ostenson has taught at R.O. Hardin Elementary, Maze and San Justo middle schools during his 45 years in the district. Ostenson also has been part of other community bands such as Pacific Brass.
“I think it’s nearly impossible to gauge just how great an impact this one man has had on this community,” Cavanaugh said. “On an amp, he’s an 11.”
His class is open to all students hoping to find a release from other school activities. And the biggest thing is, those who join his class want to be there.
Ostenson’s replacement, who joined the district this year, already has noticed it.
“Kids choose to be in the class. They want to be here and they act like it,” teacher Erinn Mitchell said. “They even choose to have lunch in here.”
Eighth-grader Lorenzo Arroloa wouldn’t spend his time anywhere else.
“It gives me more peace of mind,” Arroloa said. “It’s calmer and you feel more at home.”
Arroloa has spent the last three years in Ostenson’s class because of the ease and comfort Ostenson incites, he said.
“You actually get to know your teacher,” Arroloa said.
That means the most to Ostenson – the connection between him and his students. Using the movie “Mr. Holland’s Opus” as an example, Ostenson is bringing back his old students for his retirement party, hoping to see them one last time.
“I’m going to show more emotion than I’ve ever showed,” Ostenson said.
On June 12 and 13, Ostenson is going to celebrate his final days as a music teacher with a fundraising golf tournament and a reunion of past students, with a dinner and a concert of his favorite songs.
Until then Ostenson will enjoy his final weeks in G-1, sitting back and listening to his favorite sound of “organized chaos.”
