Members of the Mountaineer Marching Band perform in the ѲƵs Thanksgiving Day Parade on Nov. 24, 2016. The Pride will be returning to the event in 2024.
Members of the Mountaineer Marching Band perform in the ѲƵs Thanksgiving Day Parade on Nov. 24, 2016. The Pride will be returning to the event in 2024.
CHARLESTON Ƶ West Virginia UniversityƵs marching band, The Pride of West Virginia, will perform during the ѲƵs Thanksgiving Parade in New York City this year and a Dirty Birds baseball game this weekend aims to help support their trip.
The event, sponsored by the Charleston Dirty Birds and the ƵU Alumni Band, will be held from 4-8 p.m. at GoMart Park in Charleston on Sunday, Aug. 4. The game is billed as a family event thatƵs open to anyone who wants to attend Ƶ not just ƵU alumni Ƶ and attendees can pay $36.50 to get their tickets to the game, which also gives access to the private party deck and a buffet meal with soft drinks included.
In addition to the food and drinks, the party deck will include music provided by the ƵU Alumni Band in the form of a ƵDixieland Mini Band,Ƶ and a video tribute to the Pride of West Virginia will be featured during the game. A former ƵU football player will throw out the first pitch and ƵU Athletics sign language interpreter Mary Oliverio Brown will help with the performance of the National Anthem.
All proceeds from the event will go toward the PrideƵs trip to New York City in November. In addition to that mission, Ellen Ramey says the event also seeks to bring more visibility to the ƵU band in southern West Virginia.
ƵBasically, weƵre paying minimum for the Dirty Birds to keep the lights on and pay the food bill that night,Ƶ Ramey said. ƵItƵs going to go directly to help Pride go to ѲƵs and itƵs also because we want to do something in the south. We want this to be a fun, family event for everybody that, you know, enjoys baseball and wants to support the ƵU band.Ƶ
Ramey serves as assistant director of the ƵU Alumni Band and although sheƵs originally from Nitro, West Virginia, she considers Logan to be just as much her home as thatƵs where she began her music education career after graduating from ƵU. She was recently involved with the community band efforts in Logan nearly two years ago when former teaching home of Logan High School was left without a band director for a time.
Ramey said ƵUƵs participation in the ѲƵs Thanksgiving Day Parade is major for both the university and the state. She described the Pride as one of the most visible representations of the Mountain State.
ƵOnly the very best high school and college bands in the country get invited to this event,Ƶ Ramey said, Ƶand the ƵU Band was invited Ƶ I want to say, 2015-2016 Ƶ so for them to ask us to come again and to lead the parade recognizes the state of West Virginia, and the ƵU Band is one of the premier groups in the country, which it has been for 50 years.Ƶ
ƵItƵs just another chance for us to put some good and some joy in the world,Ƶ Ramey added. ƵMaking music fellowship, communing with people Ƶ that trip will be, for a lot of those kids in the band, the only time they ever see New York City in their life. IƵm 64 years old and I remember the trips I took in the band as an undergraduate.Ƶ
For more information about SundayƵs event and to purchase tickets, visit .
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