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Community Corner

Ramona Town Hall Brass Band May Be on the History Channel

The brass band took part in a Civil War re-enactment which caught the attention of a TV crew. And Friends of Ramona Library still has commemorative tiles for sale.

Ramona Town Hall Brass Band made the trek to Calico Ghost Town near Barstow over Presidents Day weekend to participate in Civil War re-enactment encampments, an annual event they have been attending since 2002.

Bandmaster Ken Serfass was accompanied by a band of 24 musicians, along with three camp followers from Ramona. They marched uphill in the parade on the main drag through the ghost town, performed on the bandstand and camped in the meadows in Civil War-era tents.

“We marched a band of 18 musicians, fielded a 12-member ‘Marine Detachment’ and eight-person stretcher detail for the battle scenarios,” Serfass said. “I am hard pressed to find any other re-enactor group that can present so diverse and multiple impressions within one organization.”

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The band, which included 10 adults along with 14 students from Ramona High School, was commended everywhere it went on the battlefield and in the town situated on a hillside above the desert. It shouldn’t have come as any surprise when a crew from the History Channel started following them, getting footage for an upcoming documentary on Civil War re-enactments.

“They followed us in our band mode and took a load of footage,” Serfass said.  “To my surprise, they put a microphone on me to record my commands and followed our action in two battles. They did several feature shots of our people that they may use in the finished product. Our ‘Marines’ gave them something worth filming and we all hope to see the finished product around November.”

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Monthly book sales are a thing of the past for the Friends of Ramona Library. The volunteers now staff a spacious bookstore inside the new library where they offer used books for sale at extremely low prices.

Hundreds of books in a multitude of categories line the shelves. Prices start at 25 cents for a paperback and $1 for a hardcover book.

The Friends are also in charge of the commemorative tile wall, leading into the west entrance of the library. Donors can still make donations to the Friends to have their names inscribed on tiles.

Visitors can stop by the Friends Bookstore and talk with any of the volunteers about making a donation, volunteering or becoming a member of the group. The bookstore is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 10 a.m. until noon on Saturday. The new library is located at 1275 Main St.

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