[nfbwatlk] Blind marching band

[KAYE KIPP]

We had a marching band when I was in high school and that was fun.  I think 
that's neat.

Kaye
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Joanne Laurent" <joanne at blindcoach.com>
To: "'NFB of Washington Talk Mailing List'" <nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Saturday, October 25, 2008 10:28 PM
Subject: Re: [nfbwatlk] Blind marching band


>
> Hi Guys,
>    I received information (scroll down for article) that a school for the
> blind (Ohio) has been invited to march in the 2010 Pasadena Tournament of
> Roses Parade. That's a really big thing! I grew up in Pasadena, decorated
> floats and went to almost every parade so I'm very familiar with the
> magnitude of this offer.
>     I'm wondering if there is any interest in planning a trip to Pasadena,
> as a group, to support this band and cheer them on. We've got an entire 
> year
> to pull it together. If you've never spent the night sleeping on the 
> street
> (Colorado Blvd.) and partying all night long this is your chance! A large
> showing at this parade could net the NFB national coverage, not to mention
> it would be a blast! There's no better place to spend New Year's Eve than
> Pasadena, California. Read on for the article:
>
> THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
>
> Members of the Ohio State School for the Blind marching band react to news
> that their band has been invited to the 2010 Tournament of Roses Parade. 
> The
>
> entire student body was in the gym when the surprise announcement was 
> heard.
>
> The band's trip to Pasadena, Calif., will cost about $1,500 per person.
> Donations can be sent to the Ohio State School for the Blind
> Parent-Teacher-Staff Organization, 5220 N. High St., Columbus 43214 The
> entire student body had been herded into the gym to sing The Star-Spangled
> Banner, which was video- recorded for a school project.
>
> That was pretty cool, in itself -- several of the roughly 120 students at
> the Ohio State School for the Blind have perfect pitch, so it wasn't your
> average school-choir rendition.
>
> What happened next was even cooler: Music director Carol Agler's cell 
> phone
> rang and the crowd went quiet. She held the microphone to the phone's
> earpiece as a man, calling from California, invited the school's marching
> band to join the 2010 Rose Parade.
>
> You'd have thought Paris Hilton or the Jonas Brothers had just walked 
> in --
>
> that's how loud the screaming was.
>
> "Congratulations, and we look forward to seeing you all," said Gary Di-
> Sano, the parade's president in 2010.
>
> The Rose Parade, which features flowers-only floats and takes place in
> Pasadena, Calif., each New Year's Day, has never hosted a blind marching
> band. In fact, Agler said she doesn't know of another one in the country.
>
> Right now, there are only 17 band members, plus about as many sighted
> marching assistants who help them stay in formation.
>
> "I think this will generate more kids in the band," said Agler, who
> co-directs the band with another teacher, Dan Kelley. They've got a year 
> to
> whip the band into shape and to raise money for the cross-country trip.
>
> Band members likely will practice marching on the school's campus and even
> on one of the gym's treadmills. The parade route is about 6 miles and will
> take about two hours to march, a grind the band isn't used to.
>
> "I'm nervous, but I'm excited, too. It's gonna be hard, but we're gonna 
> get
> through it," said Bria Goshay, a 15-year-old snare drummer from Columbus.
>
> The band was formed in 2005 and played its first full season with about 20
> members in 2006. Its uniforms are castoffs from another high school that 
> got
>
> new ones.
>
> During a regular season, the band plays for an audience a handful of 
> times:
> at deaf-school football games, at a Dublin high-school pregame show, at 
> the
> Ohio State University Skull Session in St. John Arena. The band recently
> marched in a Circleville Pumpkin Show parade.
>
> Twenty-one bands from across the country have been booked for the Rose
> Parade, said music committee chairwoman Stacy Houser. Two others,
> Pickerington Central High School and Ohio University, are from Ohio.
>
> "A blind marching band is such an incredibly unique thing," she said. 
> "We're
>
> hoping it'll be an inspiration throughout the country."
>
> Bands are chosen using several criteria, including marching and musical
> ability, uniqueness and overall talent.
>
> Macy McClain, who plays the flute and piccolo in the band, likened the 
> honor
>
> to being on American Idol.
>
> "Except you don't have to stand in line," she said.
>
> Jenine Stanley
>
> Joanne Laurent
> Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist If you can't learn it, I'm 
> not
> teaching it right!
> www.blindcoach.com
>
> Highest Expectations Travel and Adaptive Skills Instruction for the Blind
> P.O. Box 586 Ariel, WA 98603
> (360) 231-4597
>
>
> Joanne at blindcoach.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> nfbwatlk mailing list
> nfbwatlk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfbwatlk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for 
> nfbwatlk:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfbwatlk_nfbnet.org/kkipp123%40msn.com
>