“This band has seen many obstacles in the past. God gave us a challenge… and today He won.” Mr. Joseph Massaro, band director, stated at Ayala High School’s Field Tournament, Music in Motion, on Saturday, October 18th. The Arroyo Knights Band and Colorguard trailer was in an accident on the way to Ayala. This was Arroyo High School’s 1st Field Show Tournament of the season and this wasn’t what anyone planned or expected.

At around 5:00 p.m., three busses with Arroyo Band members arrived at Ayala High school to check-in only to find their trailer with all the instruments and equipment absent upon their arrival. Band members passed this off as a mere traffic delay and expected their trailer to show up later. Everything continued as scheduled and the band prepared for its show with stretches and exercises. During warm-ups, Mr. Massaro came to the warm-up area to tell the band that, “Our trailer is not accessible at this time and we will not be performing tonight.” Having found out later that their trailer toppled on its side only a few miles away from Ayala High School, band members were even more miserable.

A Booster parent was in charge of driving the trailer to and from the competition that Saturday. Accompanied by two other parents, they all rode in the cab of the truck when the trailer began to take mild swerves to the left and right of the freeway. With this loss of stability, the trailer hit the side of the embankment on the freeway. This resulted in the breaking of the hitch, the connection between the truck and trailer, causing the trailer to collapse on its right side near the interchange of the 60 Freeway and Phillips Reach Rd.

The Band Boosters immediately phoned 911; only minor cuts and scratches were reported. Along with police cars, fire trucks and an ambulance at the scene. Members of Ayala High School’ band were courteous enough to help Arroyo and were sent to the scene in order to attempt to unload the instruments and send them to Ayala. However, the status of the trailer was beyond help and there was little that could be done at that moment. In the end, a total of 3 tow trucks were needed to haul the warped trailer back to our Home of the Knights; All the while, depressed Arroyo band members watched other high schools from the stadium bleachers, striving to show the other schools what they’ve got, knowing their equipment was out of reach. Thankfully, no lives were taken by this ill-timed calamity, and there is now room for the birth of a newer, stronger band.

Little is known about what can and what can’t be salvaged, but this marks a very devastating point in the Band’s journey. The damage has been estimated at $80,000 for the instruments alone. It’s not impossible for this band to rebuild itself because we’ve seen it before. This band has worked hard to represent the City of El Monte and Arroyo High School with excellence and the loss of their trailer just gives them a chance to show off what they are capable of doing.

In times of adversity, the Band and Colorguard look on the bright side, keep their heads held high and march on. Now, the Arroyo Band asks our community to stick together and support them. Donations should be sent to Arroyo High School, Attention Joseph Massaro, 4921 Cedar Ave., El Monte, CA 91732. Any assistance is greatly appreciated to give our band an opportunity to get back on their feet and continue such a wonderful program that benefits so many students.