100 years of tradition for Davis High marching band By Becky Ginos | becky.g@davisjournal.com KAYSVILLE—Davis High has had a long tradition of strong marching bands and this year was no different. The band placed in both state and the national Bands of America (BOA) competitions Nov. 5-6 in St. George. Davis took third at state and fifth overall in BOA. “Shows are well thought out and designed,” said Band Director Michael Crookston. “It takes about a year for the music writers and for ordering backdrops, etc. We have band camp to work on all of our drills. It's a really slow boulder that gets going. It’s amazing.” The band practices six to eight hours a week leading up to competitions, traveling to several different schools throughout the fall. “Then we hit that (state) in November and it’s all over,” said Crookston. “It’s cool. It encompasses a lot of lives. There’s a lot of happy tears at the end. It clearly means a lot to the kids.” Crookston has been at Davis High for five years and has his own history with the marching band. “I was in the band in 2004,” he said. “I met my wife in band. She was a drum major and I was in the drumline.” The activity of putting a show together has grown exponentially in the last 10
years, said Crookston. “They’re far better than when I was in it.” The coordinator, drill writer and music writer all work together designing it and communicating with each other, he said. “We have to think about what will work well for the community.” The community has embraced the band, Crookston said. “We have multi generational families. It’s fun. It helps with recruiting. People want to be a part of it. A little bit of that plays into students joining the band.” The band dates back to the 1920s, he said. “There are pictures of the band going down the street. We’re marching in the exact same spot. There’s 100 years of tradition there.” Crookston said they marched 145 students total. “Our highest ever was 300 but that’s too many. We’re a healthy size. I want to keep it that way hopefully.” l
Band Director Michael Crookston talks to the band before a performance. Courtesy photos
Connext breaks ground on Kaysville City Fiber Project
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ast September, Kaysville officials authorized an agreement with Connext for the 2021 Fiber Ring Facility Connection Project to construct improvements to its existing city facilities. An Advertisement for Bids was issued, bids reviewed, and it was found to be in the best interest of the city and its residents to select Connext as the contractor for this project (as the lowest responsive and responsible bidder). On December 2, Connext commenced a groundbreaking celebration for construction on the awaited internet service upgrade for Kaysville residents. The Kaysville City Fiber Project will bring fiber optics to over 8,700 households across the city. This is only a part of a much larger initiative that Connext is embarking on that will ultimately connect residents to fiber internet from Willard south through the Salt Lake Valley. Connext is deploying a private fiber opportunity and because of its uniqueness, it would allow the city to have improvements constructed to the City’s fiber ring at a much-reduced cost. This agreement is not to connect fiber to homes through the city but only to extend the city’s existing fiber ring. However, the vendor has shown that they are interested in extending fiber to homes privately and tout they are installing an open network
DavisJournal.com
By Cindi Mansell | c.mansell@mycityjournals.com Participants in the groundbreaking were Connext founders Matthew, Craig and David Brown, far left, along with Kaysville City Mayor Katie Witt and city council members; and Davis Chamber of Commerce President Angie Osguthorpe. Photo courtesy of Connext.
that is open to all service providers. Because the system will be an open network, users will have lots of options when this project is finished. “We are beyond excited to see a private company using private money to make fiber available to all of our residents,” said Mayor Katie Witt. “This service will help families have job flexibility, educational opportunities, and connection with loved ones. We appreciate Connext making this investment in Kaysville.” Connext CEO David Brown said “We are looking forward to connecting the families of Kaysville and all of Northern Utah to provide the best internet experience available. Connectivity is growing more important every day as so many of us have transitioned to education and working from home. Our timeline for completion on the Kaysville City Fiber Project is between 18 to 24 months.” Connext will initially begin construction in the neighborhoods on the west side of I-15 and is on-schedule to be completed
citywide by Spring 2023. These areas were selected for the infrastructure construction to begin first as the residents showed the highest level of interest. Residents are encouraged to visit Connext’s website at connextbroadband. com/kaysville-fiber so their team can gauge the level of interest in each neighborhood, as construction will break ground next in the area where residents are most interested. Brown said this advanced, long-lasting fiber infrastructure will reduce the overall cost
of meeting the City’s internal communication needs; provide a more secure, more resilient infrastructure to support critical public services; and provide far greater functionality and capacity to enable advanced governmental services and maximize efficiencies across a wide range of governmental functions that the city could not otherwise afford. Connext plans to provide regular progress reporting and will closely coordinate its construction schedule with the city. l
December 2021 | Page 5
