Back and Better than Ever!

After a year without marching band, the Pride of Rock Island came back better than ever. This year’s show, “Rocky’s Toy Shop” was “a day in the life of toy maker Rock in his shop,” explained band director, Mr. Carlin. The band was excited to be back on the field and competing. Carlin stated, “The goal for this season was simply to put the best show on the field we could achieve and work to build the program back to before the 2020-2021 school year. Yes, the band achieved this goal.”

The band had to adapt quite a bit this year, as they understood circumstances could change quickly due to COVID. The band was led by many student leaders, and especially the junior and senior classes. Carlin is also proud of the underclassmen, stating, ” The freshmen and sophomore classes were the ones who really impacted the season. They jumped in with both feet and bought into what we were doing. They were new to this activity and had a great drive to their best.”

The band did well in many competitions, including earning the title of Grand Champions at WIU, where they also won 1st place in Class 4A and best color guard. However, Carlin’s favorite memory from the season. was “My favorite memory this year was seeing the band grow with quiet confidence throughout the last month of the season, knowing that their show was becoming one that people were excited to watch.”