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Autobiography  265 AFTERWORD With forty years of teaching behind him, even considering the five-year period of modified service, I wondered how John Haynie handled the transition from “leaving the office on Friday afternoon” to “I’m retired on Monday morning.” His explanation was characteristically candid. “For one thing, teaching has never been a nine-to-five job. I’d like to meet the person who thinks it is. There is a routine, certainly, but the flexibility in this profession is what keeps it fresh. Recitals to give and attend, new music to learn and teach, the responsibilities of new students, and the joy of former students’ successes. It takes about fifteen minutes to get from the College of Music building to my home, and by the time I got home that Friday, I was retired. I donated my studio music to the North Texas library, the solos with band accompaniments were given to Texas Tech, the church music stayed with my church where Michael Steinel uses it and keeps it organized, and the recordings are part of Keith Johnson’s studio materials to use and lend as he sees fit. I wanted students to have access to all that. Forty years and it was done. I loved it, but that part of my life was over.” He added, “When I entered modified service, I started playing more, especially at my church. I started my career by performing in a church, and I ended it the same way. On my 74th birthday, I performed at church—the prelude and all the hymns, complete with Doug Smith’s descants. I did a special offertory, and at the end of the service I played a very festive postlude. It was probably the most mistake-free performance I’ve ever given—the one I always knew I could give. I saved the best for last and put the trumpet away for good.” In some ways, John’s retirement is no different from his forty years at North Texas. He still enjoys a good game of golf; 266 Inside John Haynie’s Studio unsuspecting fish are still in danger, as are ducks, quail, and anything else in season. His enthusiastic support of his beloved University of Illinois football and basketball teams is stronger than ever. He enjoys cooking, though Marilyn says with most recipes he’s more imaginative than talented. I can attest that his version of chicken and dumplings is one of the best comfort foods around. And when he dips out a cup of the roux and hands it to you to taste—well, move over, Campbell’s. Always a bit of a “gadget man,” his interest in technology has kept up with the times. He transfers his digital photographs to disks, adds music, and deals with a steady batch of email. You know he’s telling the truth when he says, “It’s more challenging if you never read the manuals.” He finally bought a drill press, a table saw, and a radial cross-cut saw, and reorganized the thousands of odds and ends in his shop. He builds boxes. More discriminating people would call them pieces of furniture. No matter what he builds, he calls it a box. His first career goal was to become a band director like Robert Maddox, and he retraces that path a bit when, every year since 1990, he has judged middle school/junior high bands at the Sandy Lake FunFest near Denton. He writes, “I never look much at the score. I just listen to the sounds and write about the physical stuff in a down-to-earth way. At the end of a day, my three C’s have become several complete alphabets.” For many years, John and Marilyn have spent the summers in Colorado, usually in Crested Butte. This is the home of The MoUNTain Institute, which began in 1998 as a summer opportunity for University of North Texas students to study and perform in casual indoor and outdoor settings. The Haynies are two of the institute’s sponsors. They enjoy attending concerts and John coaches trumpet players in master classes. Afterward, the Autobiography  267 group usually finds its way to the Haynie home for a cookout or get-together. Generous in the studio and at home, the Haynies joined the University of North Texas President’s Council and established the John and Marilyn Haynie Trumpet Scholarship, as well as the John and Marilyn Haynie Endowment for Trumpet Projects. The endowment was...

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