High school musicians from across Kansas were in Emporia to rehearse for the 53rd Kansas Shrine Bowl parade.
Jackson Young, Avery Strickler and Autumn Carr represented Iola in the Kansas Masonic All-State Marching Band during Saturday’s parade. The annual football game took place June 27 on the campus of Emporia State University.
The trio spent June 23-27 at the 43rd Annual Kansas Masonic All-State Marching Band Camp.
Hosted annually by the Kansas Masons and Shriners, the Kansas Shrine Bowl serves as a fundraiser for Shriners Children’s hospitals, helping provide specialized medical care to children at no cost to their families. Throughout the week, students took part not only in rehearsals, but also a banquet, the Shrine Bowl parade and other community events alongside Shriner members and several children whose lives have been impacted by the hospitals’ care. Young, Strickler and Carr attended the camp with sponsorship from the Iola Masonic Lodge.
FOR 15-YEAR-OLD Strickler, a sophomore, the week marked her first experience with the program.
Strickler said IHS band director Brandi Holt encouraged students to participate.
The camp required the 180 students to learn the music and marching formations over the course of the week.
Although learning four musical selections wasn’t difficult, Strickler said “the marching part was harder. And it was hot.”
Playing in such a large ensemble was unlike any experience for Strickler. “It was very different,” she said. “I think with so many people, everybody was really confident in their part. It was easy to put everything together because everybody trusted each other to do what we needed to do.”
That sense of teamwork extended beyond rehearsals.
It wasn’t all work and no play for the students. Strickler said making friends with other students from across the state was a highlight of the week.
“Everyone was there for the same thing and had the same interests,” she said. “So, it was easy to get along with them.”
One unexpected change in plans turned into another favorite memory. Camp participants had been scheduled to go swimming one afternoon, but rain forced organizers to cancel the outing. Instead, students gathered in an auditorium for a talent show.
“A whole bunch of kids signed up and there were kids that were singing and doing different acts,” Strickler said. “It was just really fun.”
STRICKLER plays trumpet and is also active in forensics, jazz band and tennis.
She said playing in the school band has done more than strengthen her musical abilities.
