The Hancock Panthers Marching band held their annual picnic and awards ceremony on May 25 in Widmeyer Park. Members of the band were recognized for a number of different awards for their work through out the year.
The Hancock High School Panther Marching Band has been raking in the awards recently.
On April 29, the band marched in the Apple Blossom Festival Firefighters’ Parade in Winchester alongside bands from a number of other states, taking third place. But that wasn’t the only award the band has received recently.On May 20, the band traveled to Hershey Park for the Music in the Parks Festival.
The festival is an event held at many major theme parks in the spring and fall where bands, choirs, orchestras and jazz bands play for a panel of judges and rated for their playing ability, balance, technique and ensemble skills.
The Panther Band scored “excellent” rating and placed third in the “single A” category, competing against other high school concert bands.
The most coveted award of the festival is called the Espirit D’ Corps Award (Spirit of the Corps) and is presented to the ensemble who exhibits the best character, pride, enthusiasm, friendliness, camaraderie, respect for one another and for other ensembles and unity of purpose.
The Hancock Panther Band won the award over 20 other ensembles at the event at Hershey Park.
Then there were the awards from within the band itself.
The band held their annual picnic and awards presentation last Tuesday evening, May 25, in Widmeyer Park.
Following a potluck meal provided by boosters and band families, awards in the form of yearly pins were presented to each grade of band students for their hard work throughout the year.
Certificates for all county band were presented to Jennifer Barnhart, Brooklyn McCusker, Mya Heckert, Eamon
Faith, Chloe Wilson, Emalee Chewning, and Tyler Hart- man; outstanding musician pins were awarded to Mya Heckert and Jennifer Barnhart; Tech awards were presented to McCusker Howe; Most Improved Musician pins went to Makaylah Brown and Jonathan Wood; and Spirit Awards were given to Dominick McKee and Agatha McKee. The Panther Drum Captain Award was presented to Seth Bivens and Drm Major Award went to Skylee Shipley.
The children of former Band Director Herb Young also attended the awards ceremony and dinner and presented current Band Director Susan Mott with a framed 19×13 photo of Young to be hung in the band room.
The photo of Young was courtesy of Leo Murray, Mott said.
The Young family raises funds each year to offer a scholarship to a graduating band senior.
This year, Seth Bivens was awarded the Herbert A. Young Memorial Scholarship. The Young family presented Bivens with a check to be used toward his college expenses.
The coveted John Phillip Sousa Band Award was presented to senior Emma Stouffer.
This award is in the form of a certificate, trophy, and pin.
Both the Herbert Young and John Phillip Sousa Band Awards are given to students for superior musicianship, outstanding leadership, dependability, and loyalty.
After the picnic and awards ceremony, everyone played basketball, volleyball, corn- hole, and water balloon fights.
