Published: May 16, 2008 03:05 pm            

Alumni band to perform

By Lisa Magers

cisd community services



The Golden Pride Alumni Band will be among the performers at Saturday’s annual Picnic in the Park, featuring members of the Wheat and Smith Middle Schools and Cleburne High School bands in concert.

The music will begin at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at Hulen Park, with the middle school students taking the stage first. Food booths, including homemade ice cream, and a cake walk will also be featured.

This is the first year the alumni band has participated in Picnic in the Park, which organizer Robert Carroll believes had a positive effect on the number of former Golden Pride members who are coming back to perform.

“My goal is to have 100 people there, and I think we’ll be close,” said Carroll, a member of the CHS Class of 1984, who will play in the trombone section on Saturday.

“We had some alumni come back for a couple of years to perform together at homecoming,” Carroll said. “We talked then about finding another date because it was a hardship for several who didn’t live in Cleburne to get here by Friday afternoon to rehearse for the performance that night. We think the move to Picnic in the Park is a great one and appreciate Band Director Jason Jones, who is also a former member of the Golden Pride, to include us in the program.”

The alumni band will close the day of music and is scheduled to perform at about 1:45 p.m. But for all former Golden Pride members, the activities begin Saturday morning with a come-and-go reception set for 9:30-11:30 in the CHS Band Hall.

“The Band Boosters are graciously hosting this for us,” Carroll said. “They are still taking care of us, long after we’ve graduated from CHS. And David Beans, who has been the official photographer of the Golden Pride since 1978, is putting together photos from the ’80s, ’90s and forward. He’ll also show some films from past shows, so it will really be a walk down memory lane for many of us.”

After the reception those who plan to perform, and those who are still in the undecided stage, will put in a little rehearsal time. Carroll has put together a playlist of 10 songs but is making no promises.

“I do think we’ll play ‘Georgia on My Mind,’” he said. “That song was big for those of us who were Golden Pride members in the early ’80s. It was our warm-up song.

“I think we’ll also perform ‘El Cumbanchero,’ which has a lot of beat and was another song that the band played for years. It was always Ben Oefinger’s favorite when he was our assistant principal.

“Really, performing as alumni is really secondary in all this. We know a lot of people have hung up their horns for good. We just want to bring back as many former members as we can.”

Leading the Alumni Band on Saturday will be two familiar faces, retired directors Dick Helmcamp and Alan Reed.

Those planning to attend Picnic in the Park are reminded to bring their own lawn chairs. Admission to the event is free, and proceeds from the food booths will benefit Golden Pride activities.

For more information on the Alumni Band, contact Carroll at 817-219-0620 or e-mail dstrohm@tarleton.edu or robertkelleycarroll@gmail.com.

        

• Click to discuss this story with other readers on our forums.