Surfer’s
Drum & Bugle Corps Alumni Association Southeastern Connecticut
Volume 1 – Number 2
February 2004
The Past, Present, and Future (Picture)
LEE MULLER
These are exciting times…from a small round table where 6 people dreamt of a Drum Corps at the Elks Club, three and a half years ago, to today at the gymnasium at Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School where 40 young men and women march 8’s and 8’s, twirl the flags, learn the street beat, and play the opener for the drill they are about to learn. The road to the 100-yard field has many dips, turns, and caution lights, but the dedication to the dream conquers each obstacle.
When asked to write a piece for the newsletter I thought about expressing how it felt when I was a Drum Corps member so many years ago, but many of you already know the feelings of kinship, challenge, elation and love that stay with you for a lifetime. So instead, I want to share with you what we could not have known as a Drum Corps member of the 60’s 70’s and 80’s, and that is the dreams of our founders, our chaperones, our parents, our instructors, and our supporters. Each time Herb Tiffany, the Shastany’s or Bill Fargo came through the door to a meeting or practice they brought the inspirations to stay the course and make Drum Corps happen. How could we have known the long hours of fundraisers, hundreds of meetings, search for equipment, or the hope for sponsorship? We didn’t then. . . But we know now. The road to the 100-yard field requires patience, it creates emotions you never thought you had. Turn the corner and you’ve just past your 2nd Golf tournament, take a left and the first drum has arrived, down the hill is a rejection letter for a grant, but remember in the stretch - everything, the good and the bad, matters. Our Drum Corps family began in 1964, Forty years ago. It continues to grow and will be celebrated this June 30th with a 2nd Annual DCI Competition, along with a fun family weekend. And now all of the fantastic volunteers of this outstanding organization will have the privilege to feel the pride and joy of watching their “baby”, The 7th Regiment, take the home field in exhibition in 2004. Now you know what it must have felt like for our fathers and mothers before us, so many years ago. (Continued on Page 3)
Drum Corps… Memories U Make 4 Ever…