There is a lot of unseen work that goes into the Pride of Paoli Marching Band, or POP.

Senior Caleb Baumgardner has been a trumpet player for eight years now at PHS and involved in marching and concert band for six. Baumgardner did not plan to be a trumpet player in the beginning, but after discovering his love for the instrument, he decided it was the best fit for him.

“I wanted to be in the percussion line, but it was a little too complicated so I decided trumpet was easier,” said Baumgardner.

A big part of band is all the time spent together. There are hours spent together after school every Monday, Tuesday and Thursday for regular practices which last three hours. Besides hours of practice, there are section parties. These section parties are where certain sections of the band come together to spend some time with one another and share their experiences and skills.

When going into a sport or activity, the newbies always have someone to look up to and only hope they could be as good as them. Adam Smitley, Class of 2015, was a trumpet player for POP and showed Baumgardner the true pride in Paoli.

“Adam was a person who made a huge impression on me, he was the one that I looked up to the most,” said Baumgardner.

As a senior getting all your ducks in a row is hard to do, but Baumgardner has a good idea of what he wants to do.

“I plan on getting my associates degree in trumpet at Ball State,” said Baumgardner.

Story by Alexis DeCarlo