September 5, 2026 Local Stories in and Around St. Joseph, Illinois

Get to know to know SJO Senior Marching Band member Maya Hewkin

My favorite thing about marching band is the connection between the students. Being in band is like being a part of a huge family, and I’ve met all of my best friends from being involved in marching band

My favorite memory from marching band was a competition last year where we won every award for our class. I forget which competition it was exactly, but we received the awards for best winds, best percussion, best color guard, and first place for our class.

My favorite piece to perform was last year’s marching show, “Captiv.” The music wasn’t necessarily better than any other I’ve performed, but last year’s show was the first one where I got the chance to march the bass clarinet. The music felt special to me because it was very different from what I had played before.

Last year’s show had my favorite costume. I liked the way that it looked more than other costumes, but it also felt like the most practical in a way. The costume wasn’t very hot, so there weren’t many issues with people overheating in costume, but it was very easy to layer under it and stay warm during cold performances.

The biggest misconception people have about marching band is that it isn’t very physically taxing. It’s hard carrying an instrument around! Especially for people like me who play big instruments, being able to march in time, while carrying an unwieldy instrument, and also having enough breath support to sound good is physically very difficult.

in Life, People
Banner
Related Posts

10 things you don’t know about me… Bobbi Busboom

February 27, 2020

February 27, 2020

Every week we ask an area resident to share 10 facts about themselves. This week we talked to Bobbi Busboom,...

Eagle Scout project by Smith set to help bikers on Kickapoo Rail Trail

June 30, 2020

June 30, 2020

Will Smith wants to help bike riders along the Kickapoo Rail Trail. His Eagle Scout Project will do just that....

Giving back: Short wins St. Joseph Chamber Citizen of the Year

April 16, 2019

April 16, 2019

Tim Short loves St. Joseph. He and his wife, Amy, moved to St. Joseph in 1992 and never thought of...

Food pantry in need of donations

August 23, 2019

August 23, 2019

The shelves are almost bare at the St. Joseph Community Food Pantry. The pantry, housed in the St. Joseph Church...

SJO Alumni Association Banquet to be held June 8

May 13, 2019

May 13, 2019

If you haven’t already marked your calendar, please save Saturday, June 8, 2019, for the Annual SJO Alumni Association Banquet....

SJO grad McElroy blossoms at Millikin, both in volleyball and in life

October 3, 2019

October 3, 2019

Marissa McElroy loves volleyball. And in turn, the sport has helped the St. Joseph-Ogden graduate love herself. The 6-foot-3 senior...

‘He was the kind of person everyone was happy to see’

July 19, 2025

July 19, 2025

Sam Shonkwiler was full of life. He would walk in a room and people would call his name. He had...

Senior Spotlight… Anna Wentzloff

January 27, 2020

January 27, 2020

What are your plans after graduation?My plan after graduation is to attend college to become a Child Life Specialist concentrating...

10 things you don’t know about me… Cliff Hastings

October 14, 2022

October 14, 2022

We asked the owner of Prime Time Volleyball and the Parkland Head Volleyball Coach to tell us 10 interesting facts...

‘Her heart was golden’ — Short loses battle with cancer

June 10, 2019

June 10, 2019

Nine years ago, Sarah Logan Loomis raised her hand at a meeting of parents. The meeting was for her daughter,...

10 things you don’t know about me… Beth Mills

April 10, 2019

April 10, 2019

Beth Mills, the owner of Travel by Beth in St. Joseph shared 10 interesting facts about herself with us! This...

Kids Say

October 22, 2019

October 22, 2019

Every week we ask area students questions about being a farmer. This week we spoke to kids at PVO South....

Kids say…

May 27, 2019

May 27, 2019

Every week we ask five students from a local school to answer a question on a worksheet. This week the...

Local meteorologist’s love of weather started as a child

February 7, 2019

February 7, 2019

While the Internet may have people believing anyone with a computer can predict the weather, the former Director of the...

Ask the doctor: Which internet resources can I trust for medical information?

March 3, 2021

March 3, 2021

By Jeanelle Murphy, DO In this age of technology it is important to know what websites will give you accurate...

Comments
Leave a Reply