THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 5, 1996 TAG: 9605030208
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 36 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SHIRLEY BRINKLEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
Portsmouth teenager Kimberley J. Stickles this summer will take music to others in another part of the world.
A senior at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, Kimberley has been accepted as a member of the 1996 Spirit of America National Honor Band Performing Tour of Europe.
She plays bells in the marching band and mallets, bells, marimba and chimes in the concert band.
Kimberley, who lives in Portsmouth, was selected for her maturity, performance ability and the ability to represent a positive image of the young people of America.
``The band members will come from all over the country,'' Kimberley said, ``and I won't know anyone on the tour. But I'm really looking forward to everything. I'll get to do something I love doing and I'll be able to sight-see.''
The Spirit of America will tour and perform in Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Germany, Holland and Belgium. They also will perform for the diplomatic community.
The highlight of the trip, however, will be performing for thousands of people in Geneva, Switzerland, July 4 at a celebration hosted by the American Club of Geneva.
George Naff, former conductor of the Duke University Wind Symphony, is the director of operations and music coordinator of the 1996 Spirit of America based in Boone, N.C.
Sue Naff is the administrative director, uniform and flag designer, staff photographer and personnel director. She provides the ``personal touch'' with Spirit members long before the tour begins by sending them informational newsletters.
Expenses for the trip, which begins June 24, will be a graduation gift to Kimberley from her grandparents.
After a flight to Atlanta, Ga., Kimberley will meet other selected students from throughout the United States at West Georgia College in Carrollton. After attending orientation, the group will meet for four days of rehearsals, meetings and social functions.
On June 29, they will board a plane for Amsterdam, Holland to begin a whirlwind tour of sight-seeing, shopping, tours, and performances.
After viewing the Swiss Alps and the waters of Lake Geneva, the group will perform several times in the gala July 4 celebration. As part of the festivities, there will be dancing groups, hot air balloons, hang-gliders and a fireworks display.
A ``Tyrolean Evening'' for folk dance, singing and bell-ringing are on the agenda in Innsbruck, Austria, home of the 1976 Winter Olympics. They take a cruise on the Rhine River and visit the Bavarian mountains where King Ludwig II built the medieval castle that inspired Walt Disney to create the famous Cinderella castle. On July 13, they return to America.
A native of Falls Church, Kimberley is the daughter of Louis Stickles of Marco Island, Fla., and Janet Stickles of Dallas, Texas. She lives with her maternal grandparents, Charles and Doris Parker.
Kimberley began taking mallet lessons at Churchland High School after helping the color guard and acting as a runner for the band.
``I helped the band get ready to go out on the field and picked up flags on the field,'' she said.
Kimberley has been a member of the N-SA Band directed by John R. Jenkins for the past five years.
She has been a member of the Drama Club and has participated in junior varsity basketball, junior varsity softball and lettered in varsity track.
A member of the District Youth Council for St. Andrew's United Methodist Church in Portsmouth, Kimberley also serves on the Virginia United Methodist Youth League Association.
While visiting her father, a Civil War re-enactor, Kimberley volunteered as a Ranger at Fort Zachary Taylor in Key West, Fla.
Hobbies include playing soccer with the Churchland Recreation League and listening to friends who perform in a ``rock'' band. She works as a waitress at Andy Boys restaurant in Chesapeake.
In the fall, Kimberley plans to major in psychology or history at North Carolina Wesleyan College in Rocky Mount, N.C. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by MICHAEL KESTNER
Kimberley Stickles will perform for thousands in Switzerland this
summer.
by CNB