Decatur band members are pictured warming up in Hawaii this month.

By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

After months of preparation and securing more than $125,000 in donations, the Stephen Decatur High School marching band has returned from a successful trip to Hawaii, where they performed at the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade in Honolulu on Dec. 7.

On Thursday, Dec. 4, all 37 members of the high school’s marching band and 10 adults flew to the islands to represent Maryland at the event. The parade commemorates the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 and celebrates the end of World War II. This year’s procession was particularly special, marking 80 years since the establishment of peace in 1945.

Jimmy McKenzie, Decatur’s marching band director, said SDHS was the only Maryland school invited. A band from each state with a battleship of the same name in Pearl Harbor at the time of the invasion is asked to perform, and the honor is passed around from year to year.

This year was Stephen Decatur’s turn. As the parade proceeded down Kalakaua Avenue in Waikiki, featuring a variety of performances and acts, the Berlin band played selections from their halftime show lineup titled “American Voices.”

McKenzie added that other works included “Aloha ʻOe,” composed by the last queen of Hawaii, as well as patriotic songs such as “America the Beautiful,” their favorites for football games —“Land of 1000 Dances” — and their usual parade drum cadence called “Birds of Prey.”

In addition to the parade, the Seahawks also played at the USS Missouri Battleship Memorial in a band featuring all the other invited schools and marching ensembles.

“Our performances went spectacularly,” McKenzie said. “I think it’s the best performance they’ve had all year.”

The Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade was not the only meaningful experience the Decatur students embarked on during their trip. The band director said the students and chaperones visited the Dole Plantation and the Polynesian Cultural Center.

The group returned on Dec. 9. Since then, McKenzie noted that the excursion has been the talk of the classroom.

“The kids have been telling me all week that it was a really terrific experience and they had a wonderful time out there,” he said.

The SDHS marching band received its invitation to perform at the Hawaiian event in October 2024. However, the hefty $130,000 price tag was a hurdle they first had to overcome before booking their plane tickets.

Ultimately, however, the island journey was funded through donations. Thanks to the $125,000 the group secured, all 37 students attended, with no cost to their families, except for four meals during the trip.

McKenzie said garnering such a large amount of money was made possible by simply spreading the word. Because the band had the unique opportunity to represent Maryland and the Eastern Shore, many in the community were happy to contribute to the cause.

“We were able to fundraise a lot through just accepting donations,” McKenzie said.

He added that the band also hosted restaurant nights at places like Crimson Coward and Chipotle and sold blankets to help raise the funds.

Despite the steep cost, McKenzie said the experience for his band students was worth every penny.

According to the band director, he used the trip to teach the children more about World War II. These extra lessons came in handy when the Berlin musicians headed to the USS Arizona Memorial, a battleship that was sunk during the Pearl Harbor attack, taking 1,1177 crew members down with her.

“We were able to go to the memorial, which was a special moment for the kids, so that they could be in the exact spot where history was made and maybe become a little more worldly and understand the world around them a bit better,” he said.

McKenzie added that the experience was particularly special for the students whose travels at this point had been limited.

“A lot of the kids had never flown before, so they now have a better opportunity to understand what life is like beyond the Shore,” he said.

While the group may not be returning to Hawaii next year, the band director intends to develop the musical program further. He said he hopes to expand field show productions, perhaps incorporating props into their halftime show. McKenzie also said he would like to attend more competitions next year, such as the state championships in Towson.