Driven by natural curiosity and a desire to experience new things, Lynette Colvin sums up her life thus far: "I've done quite a bit, but singing is my passion."

Born Lynette Smith and raised in Bermuda, she left the Island at age 12 with her family to live in California. A few years after completing her high school education, she enrolled in the United States Air Force (USAF), and spent nearly five years serving at a USAF Base in New Mexico, where she rose to be a Staff Sergeant in Supply.

"I joined because I am an inquisitive person who is always wanting to learn new things," Mrs. Colvin says. "I drove a one and a half-ton truck, and delivered aircraft parts."

With music in her genes _ her grandfathers were Bandmaster Furbert and bass player Arthur Smith - Lynette always loved to sing. As a child she was in the choir at Central School in Bermuda, and in her high school in California. The teenager also entered many talent contests and auditions, yet after graduation she set her public singing aside. Privately, however, she enjoyed singing to herself. One day, an Air Force colleague overheard her and was so impressed that she urged the Bermudian to enter the Base talent contest.

"No way, I don't have the confidence," the young woman protested.

But her friend persisted, and finally she gave in. During the competition Miss Smith heard one young woman sing and, thinking her voice "so beautiful", was convinced that this was her serious competitor. The judges, however, disagreed.

"I heard them announce the second and third place winners, and she wasn't among them, so I thought, 'Well, at least I tried'. Then they announced the winner and it was me! I just cried and cried," Mrs. Colvin remembers, "and that was how it all started."

"It all" included subsequent appearances in other USAF talent shows, private (unpaid) singing engagements, and now a regular, paid gig back home in Bermuda.

"In the Air Force, if you won at one level you advanced through higher levels until eventually you got to the one that took you worldwide," she says. "Unfortunately, I didn't get to that level, but I did enjoy travelling to many states. In fact, I travelled more to sing than I did doing my regular job because they want you to be happy, and I was happy singing."

While in the Air Force the former S/Sgt. Smith met and married her husband, LeTerence Ramon, and had a daughter, Lynt. When she left the service, the couple made their home in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Never one to sit still, Mrs. Colvin led a triple life there: By day she studied for her degree as a dental technician at DeKalb College and by night she worked for the DeKalb County Sheriff's Department as a detention officer in the men's and women's prisons. In her "spare" time she was a wife and mother.

"I went to college from 8.30 a.m. to 2 p.m., and at night I worked from 11 p.m. to 8 a.m.," she remembers. "It was hard."

As with all warders, the prisoners "tested" Mrs. Colvin to see how far they could push her (not far), but she quickly established her reputation for firmness, and while drunks were her least favourite charges, she generally coped well.

Incredibly, she also found time to sing with the DeKalb County Sheriff's Department singing group, The Sheriff's Stars, and even made a couple of studio recordings with a friend and aspiring performer.

Following her graduation in 1993, the dental hygienist was persuaded by her sister Lynn Thompson to return home with her family, since which time Mrs. Colvin has been employed as a hygienist in Dr. John Dickinson's busy Paget practice.

"He is just wonderful, and incredibly fair," she says of her employer.

From time to time she has sung privately in an unpaid capacity, but latterly she has begun to find paying assignments in restaurants and hotels, including a regular gig at Griffin's in the St. George's Club, where her 14-year-old daughter acts as her "techie," setting up her equipment.

"I love it, and if I could continue to sing there for the next 20 years I'd be quite happy," she smiles. "I like cosy settings, not big night clubs."

Nonetheless, she has accepted an invitation from Dr. Zoraida Suarez, one of the St. George's Club guests, to perform at a special Rotary event in California on February 10, where the audience will exceed 300.

"Dr. Suarez is from the North San Fernando Valley Rotary Club, and when she heard me singing she said, 'Your voice is so beautiful, could you please come and sing at our special benefit in February?'," Mrs. Colvin relates. "I thought about it and finally said, 'Why not? You have to start somewhere.' It is a great opportunity, and I have to admit I'm both scared and excited."

Her repertoire is large and wide-ranging, and includes country, jazz, R&B, jazz and Top 40s from the 1960s to the 1980s.

"My overall desire is to capture the hearts of those who will take the time to listen," she says. "I feel I can move people with my melodic tune."

Although she has studied piano, Mrs. Colvin says this is not where her talent lies, so where there is no band to accompany her, she relies on her General Music Maker.

"This machine is an answer to my prayers because now I am able to provide numerous selections of music for the enjoyment of all ages," she says. "I like to get the crowd going."

Asked what advice she would give young, aspiring singers, the semi-professional performer says: "You have to be disciplined. To want to sing and not be prepared to put the time in is fruitless. If you are serious you also need to be versatile. To get out there and sing just one type of music doesn't cut it. You have to sing the whole gamut. It is important to be able to do impromptu material."

As for her own future, the busy wife, mother, hygienist and singer says she simply wants to "keep doing what I am doing".

"I don't take anything for granted."