“If you have a talent for showmanship, dancing, twirling baton, teamwork and coordination, and being a part of a great band program, the LCHS Color Guard is the place for you,” Ms. Martina Norman, the assistant director to the Color Guard and Piano and Choir teacher, said.

 The LCHS Color Guard, also known as the Flag Corps or offhandedly as the Flag Girls (though boys are welcome to join, much like cheerleading), adds an element of performance and variety to the Marching Minutemen Band’s halftime show during football and marching season.  

Taught by Norman and Ms. Krista Adkins, instructor, the corps members dance and perform to choreographed routines along to tunes played by the band, and occasionally perform with wooden rifles. If they progress to feature twirling, they may use batons safely caught on fire—as is the case with Senior feature twirler Briana Kraus, who twirled with multiple batons, knives and fire last year’s competition season during parades and field shows alike.  

“I ended up progressing to two batons,” Kraus said. “Then I moved on to flag baton, twirling knives, and during my senior year I started twirling fire batons.”  

Kraus said she started out in gymnastics at eight years old, then moved on to cheerleading. She was a woodwind in band for three years at the middle school and the start of her ninth grade year before progressing to her Color Guard career during 9th grade.

Scholarships for Color Guard participants are open for the application process as a part of athletics, regardless of years of experience.  

Senior Captain Brooke Williams has been in Color Guard for two years.

“It’s an honor to be captain this year. Color Guard is something that is not for everyone; it’s difficult and stressful at times, but it’s so rewarding and fun. I’m excited to see what the girls come up with next year, and I hope the program continues to grow,” Williams said.

“I think that Brooke is an excellent section leader,” Norman said. “She runs practices with great competence and confidence.”

Color Guard, though an additive to the band’s show, is in its own category entirely. Last September at Tyler Consolidated High School for the 50th Annual Oil and Gas competition, the Color Guard captured a bronze medal. Color Guard judges’ grades are based off of the members’ collective coordination, the intricacy of each routine, and how their routines compliment the show’s music.

“I’d like to see the Flag Corps grow in members just as the band does,” Norman said. ““Any of us who feel connected and dedicated to a group want to do our best. I think the Color Guard adds a lot of expression to what the band plays. We’ll be looking for new members for next year in spring.”

Members, in addition to Kraus and Williams, are: Leah Fallo, sophomore and Maycee Ferguson, freshman.

For more information about the Flag Corps, contact Norman or any member of the corps.