[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 135 (Friday, August 11, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E772-E773]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         RECOGNIZING THE EXCELLENCE OF THE MARCHING CENTURIONS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MIKE GARCIA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, August 11, 2023

  Mr. MIKE GARCIA of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
and congratulate Saugus High School's 2022-2023 Marching Centurions for 
their selection to represent California's 27th Congressional District 
in the National Memorial Day Parade held in our Nation's capital. Their 
designation as a distinguished participant in this year's festivities 
is a testament to not only their performative excellence, but their 
resilience through several years of challenges from which they have 
emerged stronger than ever.
  It is important to recognize that this distinction is one that very 
few marching bands and color guards across the United States have the 
privilege of touting, and it is certainly one that is earned rather 
than given. For years leading up to their participation in the National 
Memorial Day Parade, the Marching Centurions of Saugus High School have 
distinguished themselves as a benchmark of virtuosity and dedication to 
craft. Time and time again, students throughout the years have

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represented their fellow classmates with unmatched pride and skill and 
it is heartening to see this program be rewarded with such an honor.
  I also want to pay special recognition to the members who graduated 
with the Class of 2023. Since they began high school in 2019, their 
graduating class has faced a gauntlet of trials and tribulations that 
many of their contemporaries or even most adults have not. After the 
tragic shooting in November of 2019, they were immediately confronted 
with the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns, and virtual learning which 
forced them to press on with rehearsals over Zoom. These challenges 
were of course coupled with the typical obstacles a teenager faces when 
navigating high school: homework, crushes, college applications, and 
anxiety about the future. As their representative in the halls of 
Congress, I could not be prouder of their resilience in the face of the 
impossible, and the manner in which they relied on each other to 
overcome the odds.
  Once again, I want to extend my sincerest congratulations to the 
Marching Centurions for this great honor that they had to commemorate 
our Nation's heroes who have been killed in the defense of freedom for 
Memorial Day. As a Saugus alumnus myself, my heart swelled with pride 
seeing these students clad in blue and silver marching along the 
streets of Washington to honor our great country.

                          ____________________