The classic Model High School "patriot" band uniform debuted in the fall of 1974. They were used primarily for performances by the marching band (they may have been worn for concert performances before 1982, but we cannot find any photographic evidence of this happening). By the time Mr. Stephens became Band Director in 1982, the uniforms were already considered "old" and "out of date," but Model Lab School, in its infinite funding wisdom, could never quite come up with the money for new uniforms (the money would have had to come from the students themselves, but this would mean that the students themselves would have to own the actual uniforms, and that wasn't going to happen). And so, the band had to make do with what they had. Miraculously, they were able to stretch the uniforms out for another seven years.
 Homecoming 1983 |  Marching in 1986 |
At the very least, Mr. Stephens was going to ensure that the band members, in their uniforms, would have a (for lack of a better word) uniform appearance. In letters sent home to the parents, he would outline his stringent requirements:
 Taken from the letter dated September 24, 1984, for the "Pigasus" Parade In spite of these rules being clearly spelled out, oftentimes there would be mistakes on the parent of the students and an assortment of uniform violations would take place, most notably at yearbook photo time. Some variations to the basic setup would be introduced over the next few years. New tri-corner hats (with snappy white trim) came in the fall of 1985 (interestingly, as the marching band became increasingly padded with middle school band members over the years, the tricorner hat was oftentimes worn by high schoolers while the older hats were worn by the younger students). The bow tie was replaced with a white ascot in the fall of 1986, which eliminated the need to wear a white shirt underneath the coat (much to the relief of many a band member). Additionally, percussionists, for some of the time, were allowed to wear berets instead of the hats. |  Seventh grader Donna Pierce "models" the last version of the uniform, September 1987 |
 Debut of the new tri-corner hats (and tails) at Miami Band Day, Oxford, OH, Fall 1985 | |
 Marching in Miami, OH, Fall 1985 |  The hats were so new, they were still wrapped in plastic! Actually, they were so new that they were wrapped to protect them from the rain in between the parade and the halftime performance |
 The stylist berets worn by the percussion section, in this scene from the EKU Homecoming Parade of 1984 | |
 Answering the question nobody asked: "What do band members wear under the uniforms?" The answer is shorts, which were, in fact, worn by just about everybody, to avoid the uncomfortable sensations caused by decade-old polyester. Photo taken at the University of Louisville, Fall 1986. |  Marching in the Homecoming 1987 parade. Note that the uniform pants of Morgan Schulz (far left) and Donna Pierce (center) do not have the white and red striping down the side as the others do. In fact, there was a shortage of properly-fitting pants and so the two had to resort to purchasing their own uniform bottoms. |
The uniforms were also standard attire for concert performances, from the fall of 1982 to the spring of 1989. The only exception came for the Student Concerts, where the students were allowed to conduct a piece of their choice -- since this concert was "for" the students, Mr. Stephens rationalized that they could wear dressy clothing instead of the uniforms.
 The Spring 1985 Student Concert, the first time since Mr. Stephens took over as band director that uniforms were not worn at a concert performance. | |
 The usual care and concern demonstrated by band students for their valuable uniforms ...   The May 1989 Concert, the last time that uniforms were worn at a concert performance. |
| Starting in the fall of 1989, the uniforms were replaced in marching appearances by a white sweatshirt and blue jeans. After years of complaining about the uniforms (namely, their age), band members rejoiced at the concept of wearing anything other than the uniforms at performances. The most common version of the new "uniform" was the white sweatshirt with "MLHS" on the front and "The Band" on the back. |  Undated yearbook photo ('92? '93?) of Adrian Allen in the new marching "uniform" |  Donna Pierce in 1991 wearing the "MHSB" sweatshirt |
However, invariably, "what is old is new again," and in the fall of 1996, a concerted effort was made to bring back the old "classic" uniforms for marching band.
The band members did, in fact, repair the uniforms in time to march in that year's EKU Homecoming Parade.
The return of the uniforms, at the 1996 EKU Homecoming Parade!
After that performance, however, the uniforms were hung neatly on hangers and stashed in the back room of the band room. No one is really sure what happened to the uniforms after that. The back room has since been taken away from the band, once again due to the infinite wisdom of the Model Lab School administration, and transformed into a computer lab. Where the uniforms went, no one can say (possibly donated to the drama club or something). And so comes to an end the saga of some 20 year old pieces of clothing.
Additional information and images courtesy of Donna M. Pierce, Andy Johnstone and Scott Zarzycki
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