LifeChanger of the Year Nominee Profile

Corey Maesaka was nominated by an anonymous student.

"Mr. Maesaka, rather, Band Master Maesaka, changed my life," said the student. "Throughout my years spent with him, he has taught me so many memorable and key life skills. In school, he was always hard on me. He's hard on all of his students. He does this because he sees the potential in each and every one of them. Band Master Maesaka tries to shape students into independent young adults who will create harmony within the community, similar to the ones we make in band. He told us we were his best group in a while because of the chemistry we had as a group. He was a part of that and was our biggest influence. His compassion and tough love towards us helped us build a connection with one another. He helped me through a lot, as my love for music goes far. He created a separate group for us to be able to see each other while still making music. The life skills I developed through him have toughened me as a person and helped me become a more self-directed learner, like one of the GLOs he loves so much. I appreciate everything he has done, and still does, for me. I am excited for the many more years of making music, and I hope he is able to change many more lives."