2018 Vanguard Banquet & Awards

Aug 20, 2018 | Santa Clara Vanguard, Vanguard Cadets, Blog Post

On Sunday, August 12, over 600 people filled a Banquet Hall at the JW Marriott in Indianapolis to honor an incredible 2018 DCI season. And following championship wins by the Santa Clara Vanguard and Vanguard Cadets, there was much to be celebrated!

The first ever Vanguard End of Season Banquet was kicked off with a delicious brunch buffet, followed by a heartfelt message from Dan Acheson, DCI Executive Director. Next, we heard from Charles Frost, VMAPA Executive Director, and Shaun Gallant, SCV Corps Director and VMAPA Director of Programs, who took the time to thank the countless people who have helped to keep our programs running throughout the summer.

Lastly, it was time for the presentation of our 2018 Member Awards. Please join us in congratulating the following individuals on their accomplishments!

Vanguard Cadets:

Director’s Award – Robert and Jennifer Shetland

Color Guard Awards:
Most Inspiring – Tatyana Horoszko
Most Improved – Casey Holt
Outstanding Performance – Emma Kupershmidt
Rookie of the Year – Michelle Mallory
Member of the Year – Lulu Payne

Brass Awards:
Most Inspiring – Ana Gitli
George Brown Most Improved – Michelle Ho
Outstanding Performance – Anthony McKinnon
JW Koester Rookie of the Year – Ryan Gragg

Percussion Awards:
Most Inspiring – Jaylen Matthews
Most Improved – Isaac Morgan
Outstanding Performance – Jenny Truong
Rookie of the Year – Callum Jones

Visual Awards:
Golden Foot (Guard) – Miya & Kimi Uenaka
Golden Foot (Brass) – Matt Engurasoff
Golden Foot (Percussion) – Will Abraamyan

Santa Clara Vanguard:

Gail Royer Memorial Vanguard of the Year – Megan Smith & Carl Huang
Art Velarde Memorial Spirit Award – Izaiah McDowell
Director’s Award – 2018 SCV Admin Team

Color Guard Awards:
Joanna Avilla Memorial Award – Connor Jones
Rookies of the Year – Hilja Stamper & Joshua Marrero
Most Improved – Jacob Zimpfer
Outstanding Flag – Chase Fielder
Outstanding Sabre – Justin Sheedy
Outstanding Rifle – Grayson Schiff-Clark
Outstanding Performer – Connor Jones

Brass Awards:
Mike Korten Memorial Award – Thomas Hubel
Rookie of the Year – Victoria Burnett
Most Improved – Will Hoffman
RAMBO Award – Sean Suarez

Percussion Awards:
Mike LaPorta Memorial Award – Josh Hirner & Sarah Teng
Rookies of the Year – Ryan Willis & Isabell Liao
Most Improved – Henry Grimshaw & Sarah Culbertson
Zildjian Award – Orion Choy

Visual Awards:
Myron Rosander Outstanding Visual Award – Stone Wang
Golden Foot (Guard) – Cheslee Morgan & Justin Sheedy
Golden Foot (Brass) – Elise Denghausen, Thomas Hubel, Sean Suarez
Golden Foot (Percussion) – Josh Baltazar

More Recent Blogs

Celebrating Black History Month With SCVWG’s Story of John Henry

For Black History Month, we are celebrating by revisiting the story of John Henry with Vanguard performance coach and storyteller, Wayne Harris. A freedman during the Reconstruction Era, post Civil War, John Henry was a railroad steel driver and, as legend has it,...

History of The Bottle Dance, In Honor of Pat Pierson

Imagine a long row of dancers, hands interlocked and arms held at an unshakeable ninety-degree angle. As the unmistakable strains of the “Wedding Dance” from Fiddler on the Roof swell, the line moves forward as one. Step. Drag. Step. With the lock of each passing...

In Memoriam

This past year, we lost two important pillars of the Vanguard organization and its history. Don and Ginny Koester passed peacefully on June 27th and February 1st of 2021 respectively. Together they served the Vanguard organization from 1970-1999 and briefly from...

Vanguard Voices: Episode 8

Celebrate Pride Month with our latest episode of Vanguard Voices! Three of our alumni, each of whom proudly represent SCV and the LGBTQ+ community, openly share how the activity played a part in their coming out experience, the progress they've witnessed in each of...