The Emanuel County Institute Spirit of the Dogs, under the direction of Ashley Akridge, has had a strong competitive season and finished on a high note on November 5th. This year's show was entitled: Home: A Tale of Two Soldiers. The field show told the story of two soldiers who went off to war, and then both went home in different ways. One soldier went home through death, and one went home and was reunited with his family.
Under the leadership of Drum Major Jackelyn Hebert, Band Captian O'Zion Reese, Percussion Captain Carolyn Cox, High Brass Captain Blake Librizzi, Low Brass Captain Wallee Kersey, Woodwind Captain Aleigha Ducker, Equipment Sergeant Braeden Hooks, Librarian Sergeant Conner Merier, and Dance Line Captains Caroline Salinas and Toddriana Watson, the band has practiced since mid-July and put in countless hours in preparation for their competitions.
The Band and Dance Line competed in three different competitions this season. They began their year at the Southeast Bulloch Band Blast on September 24th. They received Superior Dance Line, Excellent Drum Major, Excellent Percussion, and Excellent Overall Band. They listened to judges' tapes, took critiques, and made changes for their competition at the Pierce County Sound of Silver on October 15th. They received the following ratings: Excellent Auxiliary, Superior Drum Major, Superior Overall Band, 2nd in Class A Drum Major, 2nd in Class A Overall Band, and 1st in Class Auxiliary.
The Spirt of the Dogs then traveled to Wayne County High School Deep South Classic, where they had very tough competition and more than 14-hour days. They received Excellent Dance Line, Excellent Band, Superior Percussion, Superior Drum Major, 3rd in Class A Drum Major, 3rd in Class A Percussion, 3rd in Class A Band, and 1st in Class A Dance Line. They finished 3rd Overall out of 7 bands in Class A, beating out Irwin County. McIntosh County Academy, Savannah Christian Academy, and Dodge County.
The band and dance line learned to work as a team and love as a family. You will see them in action in the community when they perform in the local Christmas Parades. If you see a band or dance line kid, tell them how awesome they are. They worked hard for this!
Flute: Aleigha Ducker- 12th Grade, Kai Fann- 10th Grade, Leta Kellum - 7th Grade, Jackelyn Hebert - 11th Grade
Clarinet: JoAnna Arms- 8th Grade
Alto Saxophone: ShayLynn Brantley- 8th Grade, Danielle Munns- 8th Grade, Conner Merier- 11th Grade
Bass Clarinet: Aaron Spears- 8th Grade
Trumpet: LizzieBell Swygert - 7th Grade, Braeden Hooks- 9th Grade, Blake Librizzi- 11th Grade
Horn: O’Zion Reese- 11th Grade
Trombone: Wallee Kersey- 11th Grade, Claire Akridge- 8th Grade, Evie Dowd- 8th Grade
Baritone: Maverick Allen- 8th Grade
Percussion: Carolyn Cox- 9th Grade, Mason Oglesby- 8th Grade, Kir Perez- 8th Grade
Dance Line: Selena Allen- 10th Grade, La’Tyra Stone- 11th Grade, Dhahami Salgado- 11th Grade, Mariah Boyd- 12th Grade, Caroline Salinas- 12th Grade, Maggie Smith- 12th Grade, Toddriana Watson- 12th Grade
