Four Inductees to be Enshrined in the Spirit of Atlanta Hall of Fame During Special Ceremony on June 17th
Four Inductees to be Enshrined in the Spirit of Atlanta Hall of Fame During Special Ceremony on June 17th
Atlanta, GA - The Spirit of Atlanta drum and bugle corps is pleased to announce its 2023 class of inductees into the Spirit of Atlanta Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony will take place on Saturday, June 17th in the Atlanta area, where the newly enshrined members will be honored for their contributions to the organization. Tickets for the fundraising event will be available for purchase starting in April, with all proceeds going towards supporting the Spirit of Atlanta drum and bugle corps.
This year's inductees include John and Brooke Howe, a husband-and-wife team, professional trumpet player Clark Hunt, and Kassi Gulliford, a former board member and alumna. Ross Iddlings, Chairman of the Spirit of Atlanta Hall of Fame Committee, expressed excitement about the class of 2023, stating, "We're thrilled to welcome these outstanding individuals into the Spirit of Atlanta Hall of Fame. Celebrating those who have played a vital role in the growth and success of our organization is what makes the Spirit of Atlanta truly special."
Background on this year’s inductees:
John Howe marched contrabass with Spirit of Atlanta for four years from 2000 through his age out in 2003. After aging out, John served as vice president of the Spirit of Atlanta Alumni Association for 6 years and president for 2 years. During this time he also served as a board member of Spirit of Atlanta. He created and ran multiple fundraisers for the drum corps, and volunteered in several roles such as working the DCI Atlanta regional and selling souvenirs on tour. John has been the coordinator for multiple SoA history nights for the current members, and served as a part of the instructional staff in 2016, 2017, and 2018.
Brooke Howe marched four years in the color guard for Spirit of Atlanta from 2003 through her age out in 2006 where she was color guard captain. After aging out, Brooke began volunteering with the drum corps including going on tour to sell souvenirs, cooking at camps and on the food truck, selling concessions at the Talladega fundraiser twice a year for multiple years, and serving as the lead volunteer coordinator for the DCI Atlanta regional -- a role which she has served in for more than 10 years.
Clark Hunt is the Assistant Professor of Trumpet and Assistant Director of Bands at Campbellsville University and currently a Doctoral Candidate at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University in trumpet performance. Clark received his Master's in Jazz Studies from Georgia State University, where he was the recipient of the Graduate Assistantship. Before his graduate studies, Clark received a Bachelor's degree in Music Education from Jacksonville State University. Clark formerly served as the trumpet teacher at Reinhardt University in Waleska, Georgia, and Visiting Assistant Professor of Trumpet and Director of Jazz Studies at the Crane School of Music, SUNY Potsdam in Potsdam, New York.
Hunt was a marching member and soloist for Spirit of Atlanta from 2001 to 2005. In 2006, he was selected as a member of the inaugural cast of INergy in Indianapolis, where he served as a featured trumpet soloist. Hunt was also a soloist for the Atlanta CorpsVets in 2009 and 2010 and was on staff as the Trumpet Instructor from 2011-2014. In addition to working with Atlanta CorpsVets, Hunt was the High Brass Coordinator at Spirit of Atlanta from 2011 through 2013 and has served as the Co-Brass Caption Supervisor in 2016-17.
Clark has performed with many jazz greats, such as Joe Lovano, Gregory Porter, Wycliffe Gordon, Carl Fischer, Terrell Stafford, Alex Iles, Paquito D' Rivera, Jerry Weldon, Kenny Werner, Eddie Daniels, Duffy Jackson, and Vince Gardner. Clark is the band leader for the Drive-By Big Band, founded in Atlanta, GA. He has also performed with many groups around the country, such as Salsa great, Orquesta MaCuba, the Joe Gransden Big Band, Columbus Indiana Philharmonic, Buselli-Wallarb Jazz Orchestra, Macon Pops Orchestra, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Glenn Miller Orchestra, Orchestra Kentucky, the Louisville Orchestra, and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. Clark has been a clinician, instructor, adjudicator, and guest artist all over the county. Clark is a Powell Trumpet Artist.
Kassi Gulliford is from Orlando Florida. She was on Spirit's euphonium line for seven years, from 2001-2007 and has spent every year since as an elated fan and proud alumna! Kassi organized the “Fielding Your Delta” program from 2009-2016 and was on the SOAAA board as a member at large or vice president from 2008-2018. She attended Jacksonville State University where she was a 20J and a Marching Southerner graduating with a degree in Music Education in 2008.
For the next decade, she shared her favorite thing with middle school musicians. In a career shift that gave everyone whiplash, Kassi joined the Army in 2020. After completing all necessary training, she commissioned in April 2021 and is currently a Mounted CBRN Reconnaissance Platoon Leader stationed at Joint Base Lewis McChord in Washington State.
About Spirit of Atlanta
Founded in 1976, the Spirit of Atlanta is Georgia based performing arts organization whose primary mission is to provide young musicians and artists with opportunities to develop life and personal skills through affirmative, high-quality, challenging arts and athletic education programs emphasizing character building, a strong work ethic, teamwork, and the pursuit of performance excellence. Its primary program, Spirit of Atlanta Drum and Bugle Corps, is a 20-time Drum Corps International World-Class finalist. Comprised of 165 members between the ages of 14-21, the group travels across the United States each year to compete and perform for hundreds of thousands of fans. Performers spend hundreds of hours perfecting a 12-minute show performed on a football field using brass, percussion, color guard (flags and rifles), dance, and other exciting performance elements. The organization is sponsored by Friends of Spirit Inc., a nonprofit 501(c)(3).