Donor support from the “Hometown Team” made fielding champions more than a possibility. A string of Kansas State American Legions titles and regional appearances would springboard the Argonne Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps onto the national stage. Taking the field with the nation’s best quickly advanced the understanding that the youth from a rural community in Central Kansas could compete with - and conquer – champions from every corner.
For more than 30 years, the Argonne Rebels would take the field at state, regional, and national competitions. Whether competing at Hutchinson, Washington D.C., Casper, or Toronto – or appearing before live television audiences in halftime performances in the largest sporting venues, the “Rebels” from Great Bend and Barton County were the area’s de facto “Ambassadors of Goodwill.” The corps consistently out maneuvered competitors while entertaining packed stadiums and spectators lining the curbs of the nation’s streets. Often, exemplary behavior off the field was as equally impressive to that of a performance on the field.
A small youth activity which began in a garage behind a local church evolved into a community supported youth program that instilled in each of its members the value of perseverance and the pursuit of excellence. The impact of the corps program on a group of unassuming kids from Great Bend and Barton County would endure long after every champion exited the field of competition. Lessons learned taking the field, were lessons learned for life.
Learn more about the history and heritage of the corps, and its rise to national prominence. Explore the current exhibition: The Argonne Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps / The Hometown Team / How Our Community Championed Its Youth. Through September 5, 2015. Great Bend Public Library. The exhibit is part of the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum on Main Street Program, sponsored by the Kansas Humanities Council.