By Kansas Masonic Foundation Staff
The Flint Hills Were Alive
With The Sound Of Music!
The beauty of the Flint Hills came alive with the sound of music as the 2016 version of the Kansas Masonic All-State High School Marching Band arrived on the Emporia State University campus to begin preparations for the 43rd Annual Shrine Bowl Football Game. Under Dr. William Woodworth, Director of Athletic Bands for ESU, the 217 members of the 33rd Annual Band had just three days to perfect a pregame and half-time show.
The students who attend this camp are dedicated to their craft and for those returning it is about being able to give back. Chandler Ford, a four-year band member on a Facebook post, said, “It is on the third day of camp, after spending 14-15 hours a day playing your instrument, when you realize why you are here. You get to meet the Shriner (patients) kids who have gone through the hospital. To learn what these kids have gone through makes our lives look like a piece of cake.”
Jazmine Klumpe, a four-year band member, said, “Right from the beginning, you learn why we you are here, because every time the band is called to attention the response is FOR THE KIDS!”
The typical day for a member of the band begins with a 6:30 a.m. wake up call from their advisor, which is really the advisor banging on their door until they are out of bed, then breakfast and then the next four hours are spent on the practice field learning their routines. Lunch at noon, followed by four hours of sectionals, which is where they perfect the music. Dinner at 5 p.m. followed by another three hours on the practice field, a social event and it’s lights out at 11:30 p.m. When the week was over, the band spent over 30 hours either on the practice field or in sectionals perfecting the show.
The camp isn’t all work though. Social activities are planned for each night; on Tuesday is a social mixer where band members can reconnect with old friends and make new ones. On Wednesday evening, Emporia Lodge No. 12 rented out the aquatic center and the band spent two relaxing hours in the water. On Thursday, the band was treated to a pizza party and spent the night singing and dancing. On Friday, after the banquet, they spent the evening at the bowling alley.
A special thanks the members of Emporia Lodge, who not only paid to rent the aquatic center, but who also provided the Tuesday evening hamburger feed. Also joining Emporia Lodge at the picnic were members of St. John Lodge, PHGL of Kansas and Boy Scouts from Troop 165.
The highlight of the week continues to be the opportunity for band members to spend Thursday morning with the Patient Ambassadors from the St. Louis Hospital. The band members go to eight different stations where they learn not only about the services provided by the Shrine Hospitals, but about the patients and how they cope on a daily basis with their disabilities. This year, band members met a 13-year-old young man who lost his leg at a young age and was told he would never be able to do the things young boys get to do. Thanks to the doctors at the Shrine Hospital in St. Louis, he will be a member of his Junior High football team in the fall.
As Klumpe said, “I come to this camp year after year because I get to help kids by doing the one thing that I love; I get to play music to help these kids get the surgeries they need, prosthetics and the best doctors at no cost to their families.”
First-time band Avisor Riley Fritz appropriately summed up the experience: “For the last four summers, I have heard numerous stories, some funny and some heartfelt, but most importantly they were all memories. I never really understood what Kansas Masonic band camp meant to Brady before I got to experience it for the first time this summer as an advisor. As we went through the hospital visit, it gave 
me more of an understanding what Shriners Hospitals do for kids with medical disabilities. The life that was given back to each of those kids showed right through them. The understanding that their lives will be altered but they have made it work just amazed me. The hospital visit by far was my favorite thing from band camp. One thing I took home with me from band camp was the bond between the advisors. Going there, I had an idea about the kids making friends, but I wasn’t aware that I was going to make friends. The bond we all had was a special one and it makes me ready for next summer. Kansas Masonic band camp was a great experience for me, and throughout the week it was a constant reminder that it’s all FOR THE KIDS.”
On Friday afternoon with the assistance of Most Worshipful Lyn E. Beyer, Grand Master of Masons in Kansas, several band members were recognized for their efforts. The ESU band staff recognized one individual from each section who stood out as musicians, for enthusiasm and for leadership. Also during the awards ceremony, three special awards were given out by the Kansas Masonic Foundation, with valuable input provided by Dr. William Woodworth and the ESU band staff. This year, as in other years, selecting three individuals proved to be difficult but in the end and after several votes the $500 Masonic Pride Award, conceived to honor a student distinguished by “random acts of kindness and service to all band kind,” was presented to Kyler Cain, from Emporia High School.
The second award is the $1000 Jeff Atherly Inspiration Award, which is given to a multi-year band member who is seen as instilling spirit and camaraderie throughout the band. It went to Cierra Brumback of Girard High School and Elliot Huels of Shawnee Mission South High School. Both Cierra and Elliot are patients at the St. Louis Shrine Hospital and have been facilitators during the hospital visit program the past several years. The final award is the $1500 Outstanding Musician, which is awarded to the student who stands out in leadership, enthusiasm and musicality. This award went to Ian Adams of Olathe North High School.
Each year, to the amazement of all,
the show comes together and the band rocks the stadium and puts on an A+ performance. Dr. William Woodworth stated during the Friday practice at Welch Stadium that he “hopes to put up a wall of sound that will be heard for two miles.” Although we have no way of knowing if the band’s sound traveled two miles, we do know it traveled a half a mile to the Emporia Country Club where the golfers playing the Annual Shrine Bowl Golf Tournament were serenaded by the band.
According to Mike Tavares, President of the KMF Board of Trustees, “The band sounded awesome from the golf course, I can’t wait to hear them in the stadium on Saturday night.”
Saturday – game day –begins with the group picture, followed by the Shrine parade in downtown Emporia. Before you know it, the band is headed to the stadium where
they perform a pregame show dedicated to veterans. It has long been the tradition of the Kansas Masonic All-State High School Marching Band to perform the songs of the five branches of the military, Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and Marine Corps. Another fan favorite is the Ceremony of Allegiance, which is the prelude to the national anthem. A special thanks to our flag bearers, Brothers Tim Fowler, Ralph Streit, Danny Hendricks, Doug Hawkins and Takoda Eckert.
The band rocked Welch Stadium during half-time on Saturday night, playing three top 40 songs, Fall Out Boys’ “Light em Up,” Demi Lovato’s “Confident” and Taylor Swift’s “I knew you were Trouble.”
“It was an absolute pleasure directing this fantastic ensemble!” Dr. Woodworth said. “All of the students in the band blew me away day in and day out. Their drive and desire to achieve excellence was awe-inspiring and their performance seriously gave me and our staff chills! My sincere thanks to the Masons for making this possible, to all of the advisors for their assistance whenever we needed it, and a major thanks to the entire band staff for their dedication, leadership, and hard work throughout the camp!”
Each year the band is supported by 15-20 volunteers, who give up a week of their life and many using vacation hours, to assist with the camp. They spend six days and five nights living in the college dormitory, eating cafeteria food and working 18-hour days serving as the “road crew” for the band. Their duties include getting the band members up in the morning, having ice, drinks and medical supplies at the practice field, assisting them with any issues that may arise and, in some instances, becoming personal shoppers to make Wal-Mart runs to purchase items that may have been left at home. Most of the advisors were in their high school band and have a passion for music.
This year’s advisors were Laura Bosserman – Oakley (9th year), Mike and Susan Carnes – Ft. Scott (4th and 20th year), Takoda Eckert – Manhattan (2nd year), Tim and Joni Fowler – Solomon (3rd year), Dale and Riley Fritz – Topeka (1st year), Doug and Joan Hawkins – Fredonia (11th and 8th year), Danny and Shanda Hendricks – Emporia (1st and 11th year), Randy Mahan – Olathe (3rd year) and Ralph and Lynn Streit – Larned (1st and 2nd year). If you are interested in serving as an advisor to next year’s camp, contact Dave Hendricks at (785) 357-7646.
Preparations are already being made for next year’s band in El Dorado at Butler County College.
A special thanks to all the Masonic Lodges, Eastern Star, Scottish and York Rite Chapters and Shrine Units that sponsored the members of the band. Needless to say, without your continued support there wouldn’t be a band and the Shrine Bowl would just be a game not an EVENT.
SUPPORT FOR BAND CAMP
We recognized Masonic Lodges, Affiliated Bodies and Special Donors in the Fall Issue of The Kansas Mason and unfortunately missed three Lodges. We appreciate everyone’s support and apologize to those we failed to list:
- Lawrence Lodge No. 6
- Paola Lodge No. 17
- Sharon Springs Lodge No. 417
Twenty Years Of Dedication And Love
For 20 years, Susan Carnes has packed a bag, driven to one of several Kansas university campuses, and spent hours and hours, battling the heat and the varied Kansas weather to support the efforts of the Kansas Masonic All-State Marching Band.
“Spending a week with high school students from across the state who are working hard to prepare for their Kansas Shrine Bowl performance has been a highlight of every year”, Carnes, of Fort Scott, said.
Her first year of involvement was something of an accident. A sponsor had an emergency and couldn’t fulfill the commitment at the camp. Carnes was called at the last minute, and since her husband volunteered to stay home with the kids, she was willing to step in.
“It was such a neat thing because these kids come together on Tuesday, they don’t know each other, they’ve never seen the music before. It’s just like watching the story unfold right in front of you,” she said. “Every time they go to the field, and every time we would go over there to watch, you could see the progress every single time.
“Then when it all comes together at the end on the field, you’re so proud,” Carnes said. “It’s like they’re your kids, you know. I just loved it. So it’s something that I’ve just done every year since.”
Carnes said the people she sees every year at the camp have become friends. “I’ve made so many friends. Gosh. It’s like an extended family, and you look forward to seeing each other that one week out of the year every year,” she said.
Carnes is impressed every year with the hard work and dedication of the youth who attend. “The kids practice approximately nine hours a day, and it’s very, very hard work,” she said. “It’s so rewarding.”
Her daughter played in the band for four years, in fact, and “loved every minute of it,” Carnes said.
“It’s really a cool thing because they’re not there because they have to be,” she added. “It’s not a school-sponsored event. They’re there because they want to be. They’re just really kind to each other. You’ll see that one kid on the first day that will be sitting all by themselves at lunch or whatever, and by the end of the week, they’re surrounded by all these kids and they’ve made all these friends. And they’re not alone anymore. They just make an effort to reach out to include each other.”
Her daughter and many of the band members over the years have made life-long friends. In recent years, Carnes said children who have been helped by Shriners Hospitals for Children attend the camp and band members get the opportunity to meet them. That’s been meaningful because the youth get to see the how important their hard work is to those former Shriner patients.
“You tell them what they’re doing, and you tell them what it’s going to go for, but until they actually see those kids and see what they’re doing – it means a whole lot more to them,” she said.
