The RBHS Emerald Regiment hosted a marching band festival Saturday, Oct. 1. The event spanned from 10:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., with 12 schools participating in the competition. This was the first time RBHS hosted a marching band festival, presenting a new challenge for the band program.

Though planning for the festival started about three years ago, before the COVID-19 pandemic, parent involvement and preparation started one year ago. Jonathan Mallott, Emerald Regiment parent and festival coordinator, along with the parent committee worked to coordinate everything. Mallott said a few obstacles got in the way of planning the event, but they were able to work through them.

“It was very hard because today is a Mizzou home game,” Mallott said. “This means a lot of the resources we needed were already being used.”

Despite the challenges presented, those on the planning committee were detail-oriented and able to anticipate a large number of obstacles, said three-year Emerald Regiment parent Sarah Calhoun. Calhoun felt the event was fun for parents and students alike, and that students were able to learn from it.

“[Students learned] to have an appreciation for all the work going into hosting a festival and also about customer service, being friendly and helping others” Calhoun said. 

In order for the festival to run smoothly, marching band students as well as multiple cheerleaders signed up to work shifts, ranging from 1-3 hours long. Jobs included writing air grams — messages that can be purchased to read aloud to students before they perform — campus beautification and stadium attending. Whitney Farmer, senior percussionist for Emerald Regiment, said students started signing up and preparing for shifts about three weeks prior to the festival. Farmer’s biggest challenge was working to type the air grams in the bright sun, when she could not see.