It takes a village to make a drum corps, and at one time or another, John Hannigan has been everyone in the village. An outstanding brass player in the Epochs and then Garfield Cadets (featured mellophone duet in their iconic “Echano” production), he went on to become one of the most crowd-engaging drum majors in their illustrious history (DCW Drum Major of the Year for ’78 and ’79), subsequently reprising that role with the Bushwackers.
For his next act, between 1980 and 2004, John morphed into a Visual Caption guru for the Cadets, Bushwackers, DCUK’s Southern Knights and Poynton Commanders, followed by several seasons with the CT Hurricanes.
Next stop: Corps Administration. John took the fundraising lead for Garfield (’84-’85), moving to their Board of Directors (’92-’93), handled administration and program coordination for the Southern Knights, eventually serving on the boards of both the Bushwackers (as Chair) and Hurricanes, then becoming Leadership and Homecoming Chair for the Cadets.
Then there’s the GE Visual adjudication for DCUK.
Other honors include Cadet of the Year (’79), and induction into the Bushwackers, Cadets, and New Jersey Halls of Fame. (Rumors of his cooking and driving equipment trucks could not be confirmed as of this publication.)
