`Doesn’t get much better than this’ for Nokomis

The Nokomis Regional High School band of Newport will be representing Maine as they march down Pennsylvania Avenue next Wednesday in the 1993 Inaugural Parade.

When the school announced the news that the Warriors had been one of 25 high school and college bands in the country selected from thousands of entries, the entire student body erupted with cheers.

The experience of performing for the new president in Washington, D.C., has student performers very excited. Nokomis serves eight area communities — Corinna, Dixmont, Etna, Hartland, Newport, Palmyra, Plymouth and St. Albans — and more than 180 students fill the band and auxiliary ranks, representing 25 percent of the student body.

Now that the days are drawing nearer to the parade and all the Secret Service forms have been filled out, band members are looking forward to the three-day trip.

“I’ve never been to Washington,” said Lynne Dorman, 17, of Newport, “and I’m very excited. Some people in this school have never been to Portland and yet I’ve been a lot of interesting places with the band — an experience I may not have had with any other Nokomis program.”

“Being involved in band gives us a chance to experience new places, to be involved in travel. It’s just an amazing honor, a high honor. We will be able to sightsee while we are there and have hands-on experience in Washington. We won’t just be sitting in a classroom learning about Washington, we’ll be living it,” said Danielle Schweitzer, 16, of St. Albans.

Rhonda Erskine, 17, of Dixmont, said “We’ve been to New York, Switzerland, Paris and Boston, but this trip is by far the band’s most important. I look at it as a way to show the school board, the students and the SAD 48 taxpayers that we real ly are something valuable. A quarter of Nokomis students will not be just taking a sightseeing fun trip, we will be representing the school and doing something for the school.”

“It proves to the administration and the taxpayers that music can be a source of higher education,” said Erskine.

“The most wonderful thing about this is it is the main city in the United States, the capital,” said David Turner, 15, of Palmyra. “You know how they say a picture is worth a thousand words? Well, I think this visit is going to be worth a thousand pictures. It is really going to be great to experience Washington, a marvelous opportunity for us.”

“I’m a Clinton fan,” said Jessica Tardy, 15, of Palmyra, “and I play tenor (saxophone) just like he plays. I’m hoping he’ll look right at our section. It doesn’t get much better than the Inauguration.”

Jorma Spaziano, 19, of Newport, is spending his senior year in Newport after transferring from Rhode Island. “This is my first time involved with anything of this size and quality. They really have their stuff together here, that’s for sure. Can you imagine this is my first year in the Warriors band and we’ve been selected for the Inaugural? Life is grand!”