BIG SEASON AHEAD FOR SUMMERTIME MARCHING BAND. MARY CHOATE TELLS ME THAT NEW MEMBERS ARE BEING SOUGHT
Bernie Marvin
March 05, 2026
It has been many years since I first saw that unusual group appear in front of me. I was covering the Woodsville-Wells River July 4 Parade in the area of Montibello Street in Woodsville, one of my places to get some good views of the parade as it passes by on its way down Central Street, stepping out well and headed to Wells River.
The mirage image I saw amongst all the marchers, walkers, and floats was a band with a fairly large membership banging away on their drums and instruments and MARCHING DOWN CENTRAL STREET AS PART OF THE PARADE! I was really surprised at this. A new band, marching (and in step), and looking like they were having a fun time of it.
As usual on July 4, it is hot in the North Country. Maybe too hot for some of the band members to be marching. But there they were, in step and playing some mighty fine music along the way. I caught the name on the banner. It was the "Summertime Band" and was now an object of my interest.
Now, for the past several years until I retired from it, I had the pleasant task of helping to organize the Piermont Memorial Day Parade. It is a wonderful patriotic event, and everyone in town participates. However, I was told just a few weeks earlier that the main music source could no longer participate due to schedule conflicts, and I needed a new band for the townwide Piermont event.
My search that began that July 4 day at the Woodsville-Wells River July 4 Parade led me to band co-founders Mary Saucier Choate and Perry Williams, and from then on, this wonderful, talented band agreed to take on the Piermont Memorial Day Parade and has been doing so ever since. They are wonderful performers, they show up with big numbers, and their music is outstanding and popular.
Mary tells me the band is beginning seasonal practice sessions and they are looking for additional talent to join them. She said some of the younger members are headed off to college, and some of the older members are no longer marching, so they need new members.
This 25-member band was founded, she said, in 2014, and their first performance was in 2015. They are looking for members to perform various jobs, such as carrying flags or banners, playing music, and engaging with the communities around them.
The band is an active and fun group, she told me. But because I got to know the band so well, I could see each performance and see that they were enjoying themselves and really liked what they did when they paraded down the street, looking so cool in their summertime marching band hats and flowery shirts.
Mary Choate said the band brings together local musicians and volunteers to celebrate "community spirit through music, tradition, and joyful performance." The band is based in Littleton and performs in parades across northern New Hampshire and Vermont.
She said for those interested in joining the summertime Marching Band, contact Mary Choate at 603-638-4903 or send them a message on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thesummertimemarchingband.
The mirage image I saw amongst all the marchers, walkers, and floats was a band with a fairly large membership banging away on their drums and instruments and MARCHING DOWN CENTRAL STREET AS PART OF THE PARADE! I was really surprised at this. A new band, marching (and in step), and looking like they were having a fun time of it.
As usual on July 4, it is hot in the North Country. Maybe too hot for some of the band members to be marching. But there they were, in step and playing some mighty fine music along the way. I caught the name on the banner. It was the "Summertime Band" and was now an object of my interest.
Now, for the past several years until I retired from it, I had the pleasant task of helping to organize the Piermont Memorial Day Parade. It is a wonderful patriotic event, and everyone in town participates. However, I was told just a few weeks earlier that the main music source could no longer participate due to schedule conflicts, and I needed a new band for the townwide Piermont event.
My search that began that July 4 day at the Woodsville-Wells River July 4 Parade led me to band co-founders Mary Saucier Choate and Perry Williams, and from then on, this wonderful, talented band agreed to take on the Piermont Memorial Day Parade and has been doing so ever since. They are wonderful performers, they show up with big numbers, and their music is outstanding and popular.
Mary tells me the band is beginning seasonal practice sessions and they are looking for additional talent to join them. She said some of the younger members are headed off to college, and some of the older members are no longer marching, so they need new members.
This 25-member band was founded, she said, in 2014, and their first performance was in 2015. They are looking for members to perform various jobs, such as carrying flags or banners, playing music, and engaging with the communities around them.
The band is an active and fun group, she told me. But because I got to know the band so well, I could see each performance and see that they were enjoying themselves and really liked what they did when they paraded down the street, looking so cool in their summertime marching band hats and flowery shirts.
Mary Choate said the band brings together local musicians and volunteers to celebrate "community spirit through music, tradition, and joyful performance." The band is based in Littleton and performs in parades across northern New Hampshire and Vermont.
She said for those interested in joining the summertime Marching Band, contact Mary Choate at 603-638-4903 or send them a message on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thesummertimemarchingband.
The Summertime Marching Band appeared in the Woodsville-Wells River July 4 Parade several years ago. The popular Summertime Marching Band is signing up additional members and may contact Founder Mary Choate for more information found in the story. The Bridge Weekly file photo/Bernie Marvin
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