September 25, 2008
UW student ‘stands up with pride’ after winning songwriting contest
Catherine Henderson, who describes herself as a romantic at heart, wrote her prize winning Song of Washington, Stand Up with Pride for Washington, because she wanted to inspire people to be part of something bigger than themselves.
Henderson and her husband will hear her song, with music by composer Bill Conti, performed live for the first time at an event on Friday, Sept. 26, that commemorates the successful conclusion of Campaign UW: Creating Futures. The song also will be available online at about 8 p.m. Friday at http://www.washington.edu/discovery/uwsong/.
“Bill Conti’s music is fabulous,” she says. Conti has said that Henderson’s lyrics were so inspirational that, upon hearing the words for the first time, the music came out almost spontaneously.
Henderson, who decided to pursue a degree after raising three children, has herself been inspired by higher education. First, graduating from Shoreline Community College and now at the UW, where she is a senior in the Evening Degree Program as a humanities major.
“Two of my children graduated from the UW, and my son-in law, a UW graduate, is now in his second year of medical school,” she says. In 2000, she started at Shoreline Community College with the modest goal of getting an AA degree. “But I was inspired by an English class and decided to continue on for a bachelor’s,” she says.
Doggedly, Henderson enrolled every quarter for one evening class, while keeping her day job in a dental office. But her family intervened and urged her to step up the pace, so since the fall of 2007 she’s been taking two classes a quarter. Her favorites have been art history, the sociology of religion and Arthurian legends.
“It’s the professors who have made these classes so good,” she says. “They clearly love what they do. People come to school for many different reasons. I’ve had amazing conversations with classmates and really enjoy the atmosphere on campus. It has meant a great deal to me.”
With her exceedingly busy life — in addition to pursuing her studies, she and her husband perform in her band, “Quarter Past 8,” where Henderson plays rhythm guitar, sings and writes songs — she didn’t actually see the announcement of the UW song contest. Her husband pointed it out to her, and with her try-anything attitude, she decided to throw her hat in the ring.
“I wanted to communicate the traditions of the UW — honor, integrity,” she says. “The UW stands for many great things, and it helps people achieve their higher goals. It was this sense of respect that I wanted to convey in the song, the idea of standing up for something bigger than yourself, to count for something more in your life.”
In addition to her first prize of $1,000 and lifetime membership in the alumni association, Henderson and her family will be guests of the UW at the Nov. 8 football game against Arizona State, where the song will be played for the first time by the Husky Marching Band.
Runners up are Donna Schultz of Bellevue, an employee of Harvest Capitol Advisers and Jessica Garbern, a UW student in bioengineering. They will both receive $500.
Henderson will graduate in December and is hoping for a future career that will encompass her love for music and art. “The world is my oyster now,” she says.
