Page 4A
THE BEACON
November 2018
Music Makes the World, and our Community, Go ‘Round
Continued from page 1A
“For some kids, sports are not
their thing; they are not the
athlete, so this gives them a
chance. This is their sport. It
gives them self-confidence…
we’ve seen so many kids
come to us their first year;
they are so shy but… it’s
amazing just to see the dif-
ference and how these kids
grow and become a family.
If you ask any of these kids
they’ll tell you, we accept
anybody. For the kids who
don’t feel like they fit with
a sports group or anywhere
else, they fit here because you
can be anybody else as soon
as you’re on that stage - you
don’t have to be you anymore.
You can be anybody that
you want to be, and it is a lot
of fun to come up with that
thought process!”
All professional musicians,
dancers, artists, and creative
people in general, face chal-
lenges. Milan High School
band member Ethan Honnert
says, “Even though you’re
with a group, you can still
feel like you’re playing louder
than everyone, so you have to
overcome your stage fright.”
Alicia Rodiz is a junior
with the Lawrenceburg High
School band. She says, “A
hard thing about it – it’s
not the same for everyone
... everybody has their own
struggles; they struggle with
marching or music, it’s all
different for everyone… for
me, there’s always something
I feel like I can fix or do bet-
ter.” Still, she would advise
younger students consider-
ing band, “If you don’t like
it at first, if you keep with it,
you’ll like it in the future.”
Her friend and band mate
at LHS Emily House agrees.
Now an All-State musician,
she admits to having a less
than perfect beginning as a
flautist, and says, “It’s a fam-
ily. We put in a lot of work,
but band is fun!”
Frequently, band students
participate in a variety of
school activities. Milan High
School band member Talon
Gobel says, “Almost everyone
in the band does something
outside of band like sports,
cheerleading, football, clubs,
anything - like there’re
football players in our band,
they’re managers, they’re
soccer players, they’re student
council members. Anything
you can name.”
A senior at ECHS, Kerala
Carter suggests, “If you like
singing, if you really like
choir, just join. You shouldn’t
care what other people think.
I feel like there are some kids
- and I could be completely
wrong – but I think that there
are some kids that don’t join
choir because they don’t think
it’s cool or doesn’t fit the sta-
tus quo, but just do it, because
you’ll like it. If you never try,
you’ll never know what you’ll
get out of it.”
Senior Josephine “Josie”
Davis says, “I wish there was
more appreciation for us.
I wish more people would
come support us like they do
the football team. I wish more
people would do that for us
because we put so much work
The students of the Milan High School Band blend music with community through food
drives, public concerts, Good Will Tours, and more. (Photo courtesy of Stefani Bedel)
Talon Gobel, Hailey Smith,
Ethan Honnert are enthusi-
astic members of the Milan
High School Band.
Photos by Susan Ray
in …”
Classmate Britney Dole
interjects, “Like blood, sweat,
and tears! It’s a lot harder
doing this than you would
expect!”
Mrs. Zengerling says, “The
discipline these kids have to
go through, learning all those
lines, learning the blocking,
learning the staging, learning
the choreography - it’s pretty
intense. It’s a lot of stress.”
At ECHS, Band Director
Chelsey Thompson works
with many talented students
and hopes to challenge them
One of the differences between ‘show’ choir (ECHS Show
Choir shown here), and ‘concert’ choir is the former
incorporates dance into the voice program.
further. She says, “My goal is
for the Department of Bands
to be robust enough to offer
each student what they need
where they are.” She contin-
ues, “I want them to thorough-
ly understand what they are
playing. To have a true under-
standing of music theory; to
understand what the compos-
ers’ and arrangers’ meaning
beneath the music is.”
Performing Arts Center
Coordinator at ECHS Kevin
Leech says, “I think it’s im-
portant for the students to be
able to show off their talents
Lawrenceburg High School
Band Director Emily Jones
(center) with students Alicia
Rodiz and Emily House.
to the other students as well to
the community itself. There’re
so many talented students
here; I am always amazed by
all the different activities…
Continued on page 5A
Vote Rick Probst
Republican Candidate for
Dearborn County Commissioner
Proven Dedicated Leader
Experienced Manager
Fiscal Conservative Values
Responsible Citizen and
Concerned Taxpayer
Personal/Family
Born and raised in Aurora, Indiana
Married to Sharon for 49 years,
3 daughters, 1 son, 5 grandchildren
Eddie and Evelyne Probst, Parents operated Probst Milk Co.
Army ROTC at Indiana University (1969-1973)
Retired from US Army in 1993 and returned to live on family farm
Member St. John Lutheran Church, Aurora
Experience
Major US Army, Military Police, Retired after 20 years of service
Specialized in Criminal Investigation, Chemical/Nuclear Weapon
Security, Force Modernization and Contingency Planning
Security Director, Grand Victoria Casino
Sales Leader, Ande Chevrolet and Lawrenceburg Chevrolet
Dearborn County Clerk of Courts
Local Service
American Legion and VFW Member
Aurora Lions Club, Vice-President
Aurora Rotary Club Member
Center Township Advisory Board Member, 16 years
Dearborn County Historical Society Member
Dearborn County Election Board Member, 5 years
Indiana Farm Bureau Member
Main Street Aurora, Member
Education
St. John Lutheran