The Marching Titans stepping up to the front of the bleachers with Wethersfield Director Patrick Wilson, far left, alongside them [Photo by Kendall Vincent]

***This article is written by Joey Drawyer, a participant in The Kewanee Voice Student Journalism Program, funded by the Harry Anderson Memorial Trust.

As the 2024-25 school year begins, so do the football and marching band seasons, and an exciting new change has come to the Annawan and Wethersfield Marching Titans.

Led by new directors, Patrick Wilson of Wethersfield and Quinne Weinzierl of Annawan, the co-oped marching bands debuted on Friday as the fully merged Marching Titans, meaning band students of both schools will perform together during home half-time shows.

Ever since the two schools’ bands’ co-op began, many years ago, band students would travel to either the Annawan or Wethersfield football fields to perform. The traveling band would play The Star-Spangled Banner and the Titans Fight Song on the field and play songs in the bleachers with the entire band, but wouldn’t march during half-time along with the host school’s students.

The decision was made because each band had low numbers, and the schools desired to provide their students with the opportunity to receive a marching experience similar to one of a larger school.

With both Annawan and Wethersfield hiring new band directors, this year seemed like the perfect time to enact the change. The co-op committee and superintendents initially decided to combine the bands completely, and, when the suggestion was made, the new band directors happily agreed.

Along with the change of the Marching Titans performing together in half-time shows, the bands will also march alongside each other in the Hog Days Parade.

Additionally, Wilson and Weinzierl plan to involve the bands in more events in the future, such as festivals, contests and other parades, hoping to provide their students with greater opportunities.

The Marching Titans performing The Star-Spangled Banner before the football game [Photo by Kendall Vincent]

Wetherfield Band Director Wilson said that he wishes to reintroduce the color guard to the Marching Titans team, as well, which will give more students a chance to express their talents. As marching while reading off of sheet music can be quite difficult, Annawan Band Director Weinzierl said a plan for the future will be to teach students how to memorize the music they perform.

Both directors aim to help students grow into leaders, ones who will introduce others to band and teach others about the fun of playing music. They also want to create a fun environment for band members, so they, and future students, can achieve greatness, not just in a performance aspect, but in a way that will benefit their lives after they leave high school.