Six Black Thunder students participate in Rose Parade

WORLAND – Thanksgiving week, 154 musicians and color guard members from the 2018 Wyoming All State Marching Band (WASMB) headed to Philadelphia and participated in the country’s oldest Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Out of the 154 participants, six of them were from Worland High School’s marching band, Black Thunder. These students were Kaci Bentley on clarinet, Cameron Cabarett on TC baritone, Wyatt Douglas on trumpet, Caleb Fraser on clarinet, Joshua Kelton on trombone and Tatum Zimmerman with the color guard.

The 1.4 mile Dunkin’ Donuts Thanksgiving Day Parade is the oldest Thanksgiving parade in the country; it is seen as a true Philadelphia tradition. Massive floats, giant balloons and local performers fill the streets for the parade. Even Santa himself shows up, bringing Philadelphia into more of a holiday spirit. According to the parade website, the parade is nearly 100 years old and promises visual and celebratory feasts year after year.

“It was a great experience working with other students across the state who love marching band like I do,” Tatum Zimmerman commented. “I loved that we were able to perform in front of an audience of a much larger scale than we’re used to. I also enjoyed that we were given the opportunity to tour around both New York City and Philadelphia.”

“I would like to participate in some sort of music activity in my future college career,” Zimmerman said. Currently, though she has yet to decide where exactly she wants to go to school, Zimmerman plans on eventually attending medical school to study emergency medicine.

“I was also given the opportunity to participate in the All-State Choir my freshman year, but this was different setting seeing as the event took place in the state rather than being able to travel across the country.”

High school senior Cameron Cabarett went to the parade playing the TC baritone. “It was honorable to be representing our state,” Cabarett said. He found the experience incredibly fun, but “dreadfully cold” during the parade. He said his favorite part was probably running up the stairs where Rocky ran up. Though this wasn’t his first time being a part of WASMB, this was his first time he marched in a Thanksgiving Parade. After graduation, Cabarett plans on joining the military and eventually attending school for welding and construction management.

“I was really excited to be a part of the Wyoming All State Marching band for a second time,” said senior Wyatt Douglas. Douglas was lucky enough to have been a part of the 2015 All-State Marching Band when they drove to California to participate in the 2016 Rose Parade. “It was definitely fun getting to meet people from all over the state. My favorite part had to have been walking around Times Square with my girlfriend and group of friends,” Douglas said. He is looking to attend the University of Wyoming to study computer science.

According to junior Caleb Fraser, it was a “really cool experience to be a part of WASMB, and I was thankful to meet so many new people involved in music across the state! The experience was always interesting,” Fraser said. “Summer rehearsals were very warm, but of course the Thanksgiving day parade in Philadelphia was the complete opposite! My favorite part about the trip would probably be being able to go to New York, because I always love to go to bigger cities!”

Fraser plans on continuing music after high school but has yet to decide whether he would prefer to major in musical performance or something in science while getting a minor in music.

“I do plan on attending college, and my options are still open. I’ve been looking at a lot of places from the University of Wyoming to the University of Kentucky, or to other colleges that have good music programs,” Fraser said. Though this was his first time being a part of WASMB, Fraser has made it into the All-State Orchestra three times now.

“You couldn’t have picked six better students to represent Worland High School,” student director and Worland music teacher Chad Rose said. “All six kids are great, I’m very proud of them.”

According to Rose, the students performed in Sheridan, Cody, Rock Springs and Cheyenne this summer in preparation for their trip. They had a week long camp prior to the Cody parade to train for the performances.

In order to attend, a student that is recommended by their instructor and pays their fees can attend. “It isn’t rare,” Rose said. “But it is a wonderful experience to travel the country representing Worland and our state.” According to Rose, there is not an audition process in order for students to attend. Instead, they are to let their band director know that they’re interested and “they’ll hook them up” with the information they need.

According to the Wyoming All State Marching Band website, WASMB was first formed during the summer of 1990 to help celebrate the Wyoming state Centennial. That summer they had performed around the state of Wyoming for cheering crowds. On New Year’s Day of 1991 they had performed in their first Tournament of Roses Parade with 180 musicians. In November of 1994, the band was put back together with a whole new group of student to perform in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.