THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 8, 1995 TAG: 9501060181
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 16 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HOLLY WESTER, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Long : 121 lines
AFTER BEING INVITED to perform at the Gator Bowl, members of Kellam High School's Marching Knights spent countless hours practicing and perfecting performances for their first college bowl trip.
But the one thing they couldn't prepare for was a flu bug that stung more than half of them during the weeklong trip during the holidays.
``It was pretty bad,'' said 17-year-old Latresha Reed, a senior and drum major. ``Everybody was sick.''
Chills, aches and pains didn't stop them, however. Kellam performed three times in three days, capturing a second place overall in parade and a third place overall in field show at the 1994 Outback Steakhouse Gator Bowl Music Festival.
The drum line took home two first place caption awards for parade and field show performances.
``We're very proud of the fact that we stayed focused and played our best show,'' said 18-year-old Heath Oderman, senior and drum captain.
Nine high schools from as far away as Hawaii traveled to Florida to compete and to entertain.
After sending a resume and video of the band in action to the Bowl Games of America staff, band director Pat Burke received an invitation to the Gator Bowl in June.
``I knew they would love it,'' said Burke, who took a band to the bowl eight years ago.
Students sacrificed their annual spring trip to fund the winter excursion south. They hung around the band room weeks into December, even though competition season usually ends in early November. ``We lived here, basically,'' Latresha said.
Even though their season was over, they practiced more by competing in the Jaycees Christmas Parade in Richmond where they placed first overall, first color guard and first drum major. But it all came to a head the night after Christmas, when 85 students and 14 adults piled into two Gallop buses and began the 14-hour trip to Jacksonville, Fla., where they participated in the field show contest and parade.
Then, it happened. ``People just started to get sick on the way down,'' said 17-year-old Miranda Truitt, a senior and drum major.
Students did whatever they had to do to avoid getting the virus. They avoided the bus bathrooms, as well as one another.
``We didn't want to be around each other,'' Latresha said. ``We all just tried to hold our breath.''
Eighteen-year-old Michele Edwards, a senior and clarinet section leader, was one of the students who couldn't beat the flu. But she maintained the attitude of her peers: ``We were sick, but we knew we had to do our best.''
After capturing their places at the field show contest and parade, Kellam's next and final performance was half-time at the Gator Bowl in Gainesville in front of a crowd of more than 62,000.
``It's huge,'' said 17-year-old Jennifer Green, a senior and rifle captain of the color guard. ``There were so many people there.''
But nerves weren't an issue. ``We were really comfortable,'' Heath said. ``We planned to go in there, play our best and have a lot of fun.''
Separated into groups according to instruments, the Knights marched out with the eight other high school bands and played a four-minute number titled ``Celebration Medley.'' The song was a mix of various tunes, including ``Celebrate'' and ``I Feel Good.''
Most were surprised that they couldn't hear anything but their own instruments. ``I couldn't hear anything . . . no cheering, not anything,'' Latresha said. ``I didn't know if we were playing good or not.''
After a day trip to Disney World, the band headed home, with mixed emotions.
``All of the seniors are happy because we got to perform together, but sad because it was the last time,'' Latresha said.
While it was great for some, sad for others, and somewhere in between for the rest, the trip accomplished what Burke had in mind.
``Actively participating in a major college bowl is something that not many people get to do,'' he said. ``I wanted them to get a sense of `We are the big time.'
``They knew they were capable, but they hadn't had the opportunity to perform at such a high level. The Gator Bowl was that opportunity.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by HOLLY WESTER
Jim Davis, left, and Heath Oderman practice for the field show at
the Gator Bowl festivities in Jacksonville, Fla. The drum line
received two first-place awards.
Actively participating in a major college bowl is something that not
many people get to do,'' said band director Pat Burke. ``I wanted
them to get a sense of `We are the big time.' They knew they were
capable, but they hadn't had the opportunity to perform at such a
high level. The Gator Bowl was that opportunity.''
Graphic
MARCHING KNIGHTS
These are the Kellam High School students who participated in the
Gator Bowl Music Festival:
Zachary Adgie, Michael Aho, Jennifer Arzola, Amy Barry, Laura
Barry, Ashley Bradshaw, Jay Branson, Marc Bullard, Kyle Butters,
James Buttrey, Jennifer Byl, Jennifer Cassada, Chris Coleman, Robert
Combs, Julie Contreras, Jim Davis, Leigh Dodson, Brandy Dozier,
Michele Edwards, Chris Ellis, Jessica Ethridge, Leon Falks, Ben
Falvey, Robert Falvey, Jason Fibish, Claude Fuhrer, Gina Gallucci,
Teddy Gelle,
Bobby Glover, Rebecca Goodnight, Sabrina Grayson, Leah Greber,
Jennifer Green, John Green, Ross Hartig, Christopher Henry, Melissa
Hill, Mindy Horne, Donovan Howard, Keith Jackson, Allison Johnson,
Bethany Jones, Rick Jordan, Tristian Keller, Elizabeth Klages, John
Klages, Kym Knight, Valerie Lett, Betina Lewis, Amanda Lorts, Mark
Lull, Ryan MacCaffrey, Erica Martin, Alicia McFarlane, Danielle
McGrath, Jonathan McIvor, Alicia Mead, Christie Meiggs, Jamie Meleo,
Matt Moy, Jonathan Nichols, Heath Oderman, Melissa Penney,
Stephanie Peppers, Ronnie Pruden, Latresha Reed, Shannon Reilly,
Katera Riddick, Stephanie Ridenour, April Rottenberry, Amber
Saunders, Shawn Seebo, Sidney Smith, Nicklaus Solheim, Tim Sturcken,
Danielle Sweet, Brad Tate, Courtney Tomaselli, Mandy Truitt, Angela
Turner, Alina Vela, Chris Vickrey, Sarah Workman, Jennifer [Zuchenga
and Tony Zuchenga.]
by CNB