Students serenade music teacher injured in hit-and-run

Robert Crowder was supposed to be with students from the Palmer High Chamber Singers.

Instead, the veteran music teacher spent Tuesday night in the emergency room — the victim of a hit-and-run driver who barreled into him minutes before he was to lead the group in a concert at the high school.

So students brought the concert to him.

Keeping vigil in a private waiting room at Memorial Hospital, singers from the choral group serenaded the man they call “Bob” as he was wheeled down the hall toward his room, choosing “Everything That Hath Breath,” a favorite of his from their repertoire.

“He had this huge grin on his face,” said Brittani Janish, 18, a senior at Palmer who was among 25 teens who spent several hours at the hospital. “And as he went around the corner, we could hear him whisper to his nurse, ‘Those are my kids.’ That’s how amazing Bob is.”

Crowder is a co-founder of the Colorado Springs Children’s Chorale and has taught in District 11 since 1987, said Elaine Naleski, a spokeswoman for the school district.

No arrests have been made in the hit-and-run, which happened about 6:40 p.m. outside the school.

Police say he was in the crosswalk on North Weber Street at Platte Avenue when he was hit by a blue car. The driver stopped briefly but continued eastbound.

Crowder suffered broken bones in his legs, hips, ribs and shoulder, and was expected to be in the hospital for at least five days, with as much as five months of physical therapy to follow, Naleski said.

He was listed in serious condition Wednesday night, a hospital spokesman said.

Students praise him as a charismatic teacher with a knack for communicating the power of music.

“Everything, every story, every life lesson — with him, it all comes from music,” said Rachael Prichard, 15, who began studying under Crowder at 9 as a member of the Children’s Chorale.

“He’s the most popular teacher around,” said Palmer High Principal Tom Kelly. “Everyone likes Bob. One student today was talking about how energetic he is. How he jumps up and down in class, jumps on the risers and directs from the risers. He’s just fun to be around.”

Nerissa Adkison, 16, a junior, has never had a class with Crowder but said she’s grown to like and respect him after running in to him in the hallways and school events.

“He’s just one of the teachers who’s really happy and joyful and says hi to everybody,” she said. “He’s somebody you can really confide in.”

Students and their parents were in a hallway waiting for Crowder to arrive and unlock the choir room for the concert when they learned he had been badly injured.

“A lot of people broke down and just started crying,” said Janish, also a member of the Children’s Chorale.

“It shocked me,” said Prichard, who also started with the Children’s Chorale. “I couldn’t believe that I was about to lose that crazy old man. I couldn’t believe that someone would hit him and just leave him behind.”

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0366 or lance.benzel@gazette.com