On Sept. 5, the Utica and Stevenson marching bands marched together for the very first time. The two marching bands participated in the Romeo Peach Festival side by side. This is a monumental event, as nothing similar has ever happened before in the history of either schools.

Marching band is unlike other team activities. The four high school bands support each other rather than view each other as rivals.

“It’s nice to know that theres another school that we can do stuff together in the future with,” sophomore Giovanni Ricciuti said, “and have a relationship with.”

Another Utica marcher shared a similar opinion on the fact that rivalries in marching band are non-existent.

“I’m a very competitive person, but when it comes to band I’m not that competitive against the other schools,” senior Zoey Lawrence said. “It’s just so nice to have a break from that. Everyone supports each other. Everyone wants you to do good, and no one wants you to fail.”

The Utica marchers were thrilled to march alongside the Stevenson band.

“Stevenson and Utica marching together was fun,” junior Alex Miloian said. “Coordinating the drumline was really cool, and meeting the other quads was fun.”

The marchers had different takes on what the best part of the parade was.

“The best part was seeing how everyone was so different in the sections,” Lawrence said. “There are six trombones at Stevenson and 11 here, and even with the small difference there’s such a difference in sound. It’s just amazing to be around all the differences even though it’s the same section.”

The Stevenson marchers shared similar thoughts to Utica’s marchers on the experience.

“I had a lot of fun marching with Utica,” Stevenson senior Gwendolyn Whetstone said. “It’s definitely an experience I enjoyed and wish I could do again. I think the most fun thing about it was meeting the Utica flutes and learning Utica’s cadence.”

Both Utica and Stevenson students alike loved the event, but one student had an especially unique experience. Lawrence was originally in the Stevenson marching band, but transferred to Utica at the start of her junior year.

“It was really nice to see the familiar faces,” Lawrence said. “I didn’t ever expect to be able to march with my old band after transferring to Utica, but it was a really nice experience and I’m really glad it happened.”

With all of the time Stevenson has been a part of the Utica Community Schools district, Utica and Stevenson marching together for the very first time is an event that will go down in both of the schools’ history.