The students also performed at a concert outside the USS Missouri, walked on the beaches, attended educational sessions and enjoyed the “incredible” weather, he said.
For many of the students it was their first time flying, and it turned into an educational experience as they learned about the diverse culture of the Hawaiian islands, Dixon said.
Several students said they will never forget the trip, especially seeing the Pearl Harbor memorials. There, Dixon said, the students watched a Pearl Harbor documentary, loaded a boat and toured the USS Arizona Memorial, then gave a concert outside the USS Missouri, all in full uniform.
Some of the students placed flowers at the Arizona Memorial where 1,102 of the 1,177 sailors and Marines killed on the ship are still buried 75 years after the attacks that drew the U.S. into World War II. Accessible only by boat, it straddles the sunken hull of the battleship.
“That gripped them,” Dixon said of standing on the memorial.
The students agreed.
Jahlyn Simmons, 15, a sophomore, said the emotional tour of the Pearl Harbor Memorial gave her “insight how big of deal this event really was.”
Seeing the “black tears,” what the oil rising from the Arizona is called, was “very emotional” for Varrick Bippus, 15, a sophomore.
“The whole trip was phenomenal,” he said. “It was breathtaking and very somber.”
The students also learned that the night before the Pearl Harbor attacks, bands from each ship held a band competition. A few hours later, many of the band members were dead, and their names are etched on the memorial.
Marching in the parade was a highlight for 14-year-old freshman Keith Coffey, a last-minute replacement for another student. He remembers marching at night and seeing the thousands of people lining the streets. There were 30 high school bands in attendance, and Hamilton was the only Ohio representative.
At the end of the parade, in a deep Hawaiian accent, a woman screamed: “Go Ohio! We love Ohio!”
Dixon said he started planning and fundraising for the trip 18 months ago. Through donations from local businesses, each of the 70 band members paid $2,500, or $500 less than expected, he said.
Despite the logistics of the travel party, Dixon, high school band director for six years, said he’d “do it all over again.”
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