Royal Columbians

The corps traced its roots to the Fairview Fife and Drum Corps, formed in 1951 by Thelma Ragazzi and sponsored by the Women's Auxiliary of the American Legion. When the group came under the sponsorship of the local Knights of Columbus in 1960, a name change to the Royal Columbians seemed appropriate.

It was not until 1974 that this parade group added trumpets, and not until 1990 that the fifes and trumpets were traded in for bugles, when the decision was made to transform into a drum and bugles corps. The innovators behind this change were Valerie Duprey and Pierre Guertin. This sharp restructuring, in only one year, was not without its critics. Some students were asked to put down a fife and pick up a bugle, outsiders wondered if the corps knew what it was getting itself into, and the bill for the transition was about $100,000.

The Royal Columbians' premier appearance in DCI was a 14th place finish in Division III competition in 1992. Their highest finish was a fourth in Division III in 1994. Their last DCI appearance was in 1996, after which they merged with the RC Cadets, also of Chicopee, to form Knight Storm.

[DCW, 6/22/90, p.12]

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