-by Anna Cooper & Lucianne Shoffner

Photography by Shane Hall

One of the biggest achievements a band can accomplish isn’t measured in the size of the band or the number of trophies won. It’s not measured by a number or score, it’s measured by the achievements of the band members, the directors of the band, and, of course, the support of its community. 

When the Gibson County Mass Marching Band was presented with an opportunity unlike any other, Lead Director Jeremy Tate took a moment to consider his options. Because, well, it was a little hard to believe that they might get to go to the Tournament of Roses Parade. Director Tate said, “We actually got a random email probably in the spring of 2019. It was from one of the recruiters from the Rose Parade asking if we would be interested in applying. And so that kind of got me thinking.” Tate laughed, “I thought it was just just a random email, the blanket email that they send out to all the bands across the country. So curiosity killed the cat, I had to respond back and I said, ‘is this just a blanket email or is this specifically for us?’ He emailed back and said, ‘No, I'm in charge of the Southeastern region of the United States for the Rose Parade and I saw some YouTube videos. of the band. I really wanted you guys to apply.’”

The Gibson County Mass Marching Band is unique in itself.  It’s made up of the Marching Bands from Humbodlt, Peabody, Milan, South Gibson and Gibson County High Schools. Those bands come together to form the Gibson County Mass Band and perform in the West Tennessee Strawberry Festival in Humboldt. It was their 2016 performance that caught the attention of Tournament Roses President Bob Miller.

Just how special is this?  They are the only high school selected from the Southeastern Region.  In selecting the participants for the parade, the whole world is split up into 14 areas, we are in the region with Maryland, Kentucky, North & South Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia.  “We were the only high school band out of all seven states to be selected for this year’s parade,” said Tate, about the president’s announcement. “I thought that was a true testament of the honor of being selected. I was amazed at that. I’m proud of our accomplishment.”

The mass band joined more than a dozen bands from across the world, including: Bands of America Honor Band (United States), Georgia State University Panther Band (Atlanta, GA), Los Angeles Unified School District – All District High School Honor Band  (Los Angeles, CA), Tennessee State University Aristocrat of Bands (Nashville, TN) and United States Marine Corps West Coast Composite Band – MCAS Miramar (MCRD San Diego and Camp Pendleton, CA).

“Miller said we represent the heartland of the United States because we are rural West Tennessee and our primary means of income for a lot of families is agriculture,” Tate said. “And he said so many depend on that for livelihood and their individual lives. That was another thing that drew him to us because he wanted to have that representation from an area such as this.”

Not only their performance from the 2016 Strawberry Festival’s You Tube Video drew the attention of the Rose Parade, but their story, “From an outsider looking in, which I thought was a great perspective, he said that all of these communities compete against each other in sports, but the mass band symbolizes the communities coming together.” Tate added, “The band is a family within itself, and our friends down the road within the county are our extended family.”

As we watched the parade this year, we noticed that communities coming together was a theme that was represented by several bands. Tate also told us that he had been told that “there was about a 10% chance that they would get in.” He accepted that challenge, and committed himself to putting the national spotlight on Gibson County. “Pete Evans was the founder of the Mass Band, and he had said that he regretted not taking the band out of Gibson County. That was my challenge, as director of the band, and we did that this year!”

Another challenge they faced was COVID which actually moved back their date by postponing their original performance from the 2021 parade to the 2022 parade. “It actually helped,” Tate supplied, “It gave us more time to get the financing to take all of the kids who wanted to go to Pasadena.”  A monumental task, it couldn’t have been done without the giant support of their community. Going to California from Dec. 27 until Jan. 2 required $2,529 per student. Plus you had the chaperones responsible for all of these students. 

We talked with Shane Hall, a chaperone, and the photographer for this story, “It was awesome to see something come together that's been in the works for years. And I could see it in the eyes of the directors, especially Jeremy, that, you know, we finally made it! And these kids really got to prove what they could do. They got out there. enjoyed themselves; we actually had warm weather. And they performed very well.”  Hall laughed when asked about chaperoning in California, “I had a good group of kids, they cared about everybody, they were tired, they were tired after everything they did each day. But if they were ready to go, they were ready to do something else. So it was good, a really good experience.”  

Hall walked the entire parade route, taking photos and interacting with people along the way, “Like I said, it's just amazing seeing the different cultures, and then not realizing how far you actually walk, because I think total, from leaving the hotel to getting back to the hotel, getting ready for bed. I think I had over 16 miles that day.”  So yes, the kids and adults were really tired!

The experience was so good for the kids, “I think I like seeing some of the passion in the kid’s faces. I think a lot of the pictures from practice were my favorites because I caught a lot of the rain that was falling on them as they played, and it was pouring down. And for them not to flinch and just keep on going. That really means a lot,” Hall finished

The Band had a good friend go with them as their ‘tour guide.’  Barry Trobaugh, who had taken the Munford Band to the 2019 parade, when he was their director, went with the band to help.  I’m just glad the Rose Parade loves West Tennessee small-town bands!