After two years of not being able to participate, the marching band performed at the annual St. Patrick’s Day parade on March 17 in Downtown Indianapolis. 

Director of bands Mrs. Kathy McCullough said, “This was possibly the biggest St. Patrick’s Day Parade I’ve seen in Indianapolis in 20 years. There were tons of people there.” She said people of all ages attended. They were happy and spirited, and they enjoyed the weather, the music and the parade. 

Cathedral’s band is invited every year, but due to a year of bad weather and a year of Covid, they were not able to march for the past two years. This was the first parade at which the juniors, sophomores and freshmen performed. The route took the band about 40 minutes to complete. 

McCullough described many of the benefits of joining the band, including developing confidence and learning leadership skills. She shared that by being a member, one gets a lot of pride in representing their school. There is also a lot of camaraderie among members, especially when performing in a parade. She said, “It is fun to do a parade with so many people watching and cheering for you.” 

McCullough has many goals for the future of the band program. She hopes for growth in the number of members as well as even more musical achievements. She wants to continue traveling, whether it is citywide, statewide or across the country. Finally, she hopes to continue providing fun and educational experiences for her students. 

McCullough said, “From start to finish, the band was amazing. I cannot say enough about this great group of students who not only are tremendously talented, musical and energetic, but are also dedicated to each other and to our school. They truly were the Pride of the Irish (on March 17).”