For the people who helped make this band what it is.

ALWAYS PART OF THE BAND

There is something about a band like ours that is difficult to explain to someone who has never been part of it. You join hopefully because of the music, but you stay because of the people. Somewhere along the way, those people become family.

For more than forty years, men and women have walked through the doors of The American Legion, picked up a set of pipes or a pair of sticks, pulled on the uniform, and found their place in the ranks. Some stayed for a few years, some for decades, some are retired now, and some are no longer here.

When we look back, we do not remember names and dates. We remember people. The ones who taught us our first tune, stood beside us during our first parade, made us laugh, pushed us to be better, and became part of our lives far beyond the music. Those ordinary moments were never ordinary at all. They were the good old days while we were still living them.

That is the beautiful thing about music. It remembers. A tune gets passed down, a story gets told to a new member, a tradition carries on, and suddenly someone who is gone feels close again.

So this is for all of you. To those who wore the uniform before us, to those enjoying retirement, to the old friends we do not see enough, and especially to those we wish we could see one more time, thank you for the music, the friendships, the stories, and the memories.

Some of you still march with us. Some cheer us on from the sidewalk. And some we carry only in our hearts.

But when the pipes strike up and the drums begin to roll, you are all still here. Still part of the music. Still part of the family. Still in the band. Always.

~NPDB