The El Dorado High School band has been invited to march in the 2020 Memorial Day Parade in Washington D.C.
The band was nominated by Rep. Bruce Westerman (R-Hot Springs) because of the confidence he had in it.
“The National Memorial Day Parade honors the men and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice to protect American freedoms and I know El Dorado High School’s marching band will be a worthy addition to the 2020 parade,” Westerman said. “They have received many prestigious awards over the past few years, making them a top-ranked marching band in Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District. I look forward to seeing their performance in D.C. next year!”
Band Director Rob Kloap said he verified with Westerman’s office that the offer was legitimate for an actual event. He has accepted the invitation on behalf of the band and plans to attend with students.
“We’re just very honored for our students to be recognized with this honor,” Kloap said. “And that people are confident that our band will represent the state of Arkansas and this congressional district well. We appreciate that vote of confidence from people.”
In order to pay for the trip, Kloap said he’s working with somebody who is experienced with grant writing to reach out to foundations. In addition, he’s planning on working with the students on some fundraisers they can participate in and the band parents are working on identifying some fundraisers they can do as well.
“This is a very expensive trip,” he said. “We’re still in the planning phases. We don’t have details on anything we’re going to do yet. We’re just checking out all our options at this point and we’ll move forward from there. But if anybody feels the willingness to give, they can feel free.”
Kloap said he’ll start working with the students after Christmas this year on the music. He said the parade is about 10 blocks long, which is about the same as the Christmas and homecoming parades.
“We’ll start rehearsing the marching, rehearsing the music and getting it all memorized and learned,” he said. “Then just go up there and do the performance. We’ll probably find some places in Washington to rehearse too, while we’re there.”
El Dorado School District Superintendent Jim Tucker expressed the same feelings as Kloap about the honor it is to have this opportunity for the band students.
“I think it’s a very big honor,” Tucker said. “It shows our commitment to the band program. It shows the dedication that our band students and teachers and parents have to the program. I think it’s a very exciting opportunity for the school district and the city to represent in Washington D.C.”
The parade will take place on Monday, May 25, 2020 on Historic Constitution Avenue and will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. The parade is livestreamed at americanveteranscenter.org.
Michael Shine may be reached at 870-862-6611 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter and like him on Facebook @MichaelAZShine for updates on Union County school news.