Royal Columbians

Chicopee, MA United States
Founded: 1951

Inactive Junior
Division II/III
YearPositionScoreTheme/Songs
1991 West Side Story - Jet Song (from West Side Story) * Maria (from West Side Story) * Tonight (from West Side Story) * Gee, Officer Krupke (from West Side Story)  
1992 314 62.800 A Fantasy of Space and Flight - Superman * Love Theme from Star Wars * War Theme (from Return of the Jedi) * Bicycle Chase from E.T. * Selections from Close Encounters of the Third Kind  
1993 308 75.300 The Second Hurricane - The Second Hurricane  
1994 304 88.800 A Game of Strategy - Mars (from The Planets) * Agincourt Hymn  
1995 311 80.200 Evolutionary Dances - Pagan Dances * Arabian Dances * Dance Panels * Country Gardens * O, Clap Your Hands  
1996 309 84.100 On The West Side - Rumble (from West Side Story) * The Jets (from West Side Story) * Scherzo (from West Side Story) * Cool (from West Side Story) * One Hand One Heart (from West Side Story)  
Position 200+ indicates Division II, Position 300+ indicates Division III, Position 400+ indicates Mini Corps.

CORPS Photos

The Royal Columbians was a junior marching and maneuvering corps based in Chicopee, Massachusetts.

The corps traced its roots to the Fairview Fife and Drum Corps, formed in 1951 by Thelma Ragazzi and sponsored by the Women's Auxiliary of the American Legion. When the group came under the sponsorship of the local Knights of Columbus in 1960, a name change to the Royal Columbians seemed appropriate.

It was not until 1974 that this parade group added trumpets, and not until 1990 that the fifes and trumpets were traded in for bugles, when the decision was made to transform into a drum and bugles corps. The innovators behind this change were Valerie Duprey and Pierre Guertin. This sharp restructuring, in only one year, was not without its critics. Some students were asked to put down a fife and pick up a bugle, outsiders wondered if the corps knew what it was getting itself into, and the bill for the transition was about $100,000.

The Royal Columbians' premier appearance in DCI was a 14th place finish in Division III competition in 1992. Their highest finish was a fourth in Division III in 1994. Their last DCI appearance was in 1996, after which they merged with the RC Cadets, also of Chicopee, to form Knight Storm.

[DCW, 6/22/90, p.12]

Members (8)

Member Name Section Years Involved
Belliveau, Dave DrumLine 1972 to 1977
Fournier, Mary Fife 1973 to 1983
Hoover, Jim Percussion Arranger & Caption Head 1993 to 1996
Kelly, April CG 1992 to 1993
Rodney, Rob Color Guard 1996 to 1997
Senk, Karen Guard 1990 to 1992
Weichel, Donnie drumline 1997
Yu, Melissa Percussion 1986 to 1993
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