Published Saturday, Oct. 2, 1999 Jason Cheskawich, Sharon High School band director, said all of the eight bands set to perform, except Sharon, pulled out of the show.
The original date of Band Night was Sept. 22, but it was canceled due to inclement weather and the lack of electricity at Sharon Tiger Stadium, and the rain date for the event, Sept. 29, was rained out.
Cheskawich said he was told the event, which was to be rescheduled for Oct. 6, was canceled because it was a busy part of the school year.
Pamela Corini, an organizer of the event, said it was a bad time to cancel because Fred Boles, local musician and teacher, was going to be honored. "This was a special night," she said.
Mrs. Corini said she heard schools were upset because the event was supposed to rotate from school to school each year. She said the event has always been held at Sharon, and she thought it was an original Sharon Band Boosters event.
Cheskawich said this is only his second year as band director at Sharon, and if there are other reasons the schools backed out, they have "probably been brewing for years."
Cheskawich said if money is an issue, a solution can be found. He suggested looking at having a co-host school every year. "Something needs to be done," he said. He added the cancellations seemed like a "silent protest."
Travis Weller, Mercer County Band Directors President, said the area band directors canceled because there were many conflicts of interest with the students. "We, as directors, meant no disrespect to the Sharon Band Boosters, the Sharon Area School District, to Mr. Cheskawich and to the honoree of the night Fred Boles," Weller said. Boles is a "wonderful man and teacher ... and a great friend of music in our county," he said.
Cheskawich said Boles will still be honored at a football game; possibly the Oct. 15 game with Hickory High School.
