Water balloons in hand, the summer heat beats down on Amador’s marching band as they face off across the field. At the sound of the whistle, the Band Olympics start with a splash. The Band Olympics, a summer milestone, is among the many team bonding activities organized by Amador Valley’s Band Council. The Council works hard to coordinate events for the band program, bringing fresh ideas that help the program flourish.
“We’re responsible for cultivating community within the band, so we do everything social-related. We plan a lot of the events in the band, including Band Olympics and [the] band banquet. Recently, this year, we started spirit accessories booths during Friday [football] games,” said Band Council president Celicia Thendean (‘26).
Member Roles
Members of the Band Council each hold unique roles that help the band work effectively as a team. The Council includes standard leadership roles such as the president, vice president, and secretary, but also accounts for unique responsibilities. These responsibilites fall in the hands of Director of Communications and Junior Representatives.
“The [director of communications] manages all the communication, and Junior [Representatives] are a new role that…allow non-seniors to take part in [executive] roles to ensure a smoother transition the next year. Despite our roles, everyone helps out where it’s needed and is not confined to their roles,” said Thendean.
The new addition of Junior Representatives exemplifies the council’s focus on bringing in new ideas. Incorporating non-Seniors in decision-making, ensures strong leadership succession and a steady flow of creative ideas.
“I was motivated [to run] primarily because Band Council is in charge of a lot of logistical things that I really enjoyed my freshman and sophomore years. I kind of wanted to be a part of that,” said Junior Representative and secretary Kari Song (‘27).
For many years, Amador’s band structure has evolved into what it is today because of the foundation laid by the united, motivated students in the Band Council.
“[The Council has] been an important part of the structure of our band program for a long time,” said band director Jonathan Grantham.
