Of all the skills that marching bands nurture, memory development is among the most essential. As an extracurricular activity, band positively impacts both short-term memory and long-term memories.

In band, students memorize music, steps and patterns. But they also create relationships, experiences and traditions that can stay with them for a lifetime.

The 2025 fall season promises to be a memorable one for the Ephrata Marching Unit.

"We're a band community. We're like a family," said Stephen Goss, who will be retiring after this year, his 24th as the director of the Ephrata Marching Band. "The things that you're going to remember about your time in high school are things like this. Some of the friendships forged in this environment remain. There are several students who will go on to college and be in the marching band. Others who don't tell me how much they miss marching band."

For the musical Mountaineers, the fun has just begun. The Ephrata Marching Band debuted its 2025 show on Aug. 22 during the pre-game festivities at the football team's home opener against Red Lion.

In addition to helping to create ambiance at all of the football team's home and away contests, the Ephrata Marching Band will participate in three showcases: at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 20, at Manheim Township; at Owen J. Roberts High School on Saturday, Oct. 4; and at the Central Pennsylvania Coalition of Bands Showcase it is hosting at Ephrata War Memorial Stadium at 5 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 25. The band will also perform during a trip to Disney World in Florida on Thursday, Nov. 6.

"With the marching arts, there is no other subject where you're teaching perfection," said Goss. "The goal with any marching arts program is trying to get as close to perfection as you possibly can. The other goal is the entertainment factor. We're teaching our students to be performers. That's the other value they're getting from this."

This year's edition of the Ephrata Marching Band is made up of 64 emerging performers: 18 seniors, nine juniors, 10 sophomores, 16 freshmen and 11 eighth-graders. The group includes four flutes, eight clarinets, three alto saxophones, three mellophones, five trumpets, four trombones, two tubas, a pair of baritones, 16 percussion players and 17 members of the vision ensemble.

The Ephrata Marching Band is captained by Rebecca Foard and James Moore. Other student leaders include Sarah Baum, Jeshuah Bautista, Braelyn Beyer, Elliot Boyer, Kay Capwell, Ethan Garman, Nathan Potts, Milla Saenz, Todd Weist, Noah Williamson, Ryan Woolard and Sophia Schlinkman.

"This year, (the band members are) incredibly hard working and dedicated," said Goss. "They are students who push themselves to be better. We strive for excellence. Character, community and creativity, those are the three Cs we live by. That's who these kids are."

"(Marching band is) pretty important to me," said James. "I'm decent at it, and I've been doing it a long time. I've got a lot going on, but I like being part of the band."

The Ephrata Marching Band's 10-minute, four-song field show is titled "The Butterfly Effect." The band will challenge audiences to explore how seemingly insignificant outcomes can create monumental results.

"We say all the time that excellence is in the details," said Goss. "When you strive to be excellent, small things matter. And when you take care of the small things, the big things will take care of themselves."

"I'm in the role of section leader, and that means my job is to see what the band director doesn't see and bring it to his attention," said Rebecca. "I feel like we have a lot of younger kids, but I'm really impressed with their talent and how hard they are working. A goal is to get the show as close to perfection as we possibly can and create a show that people can enjoy."

Over two weeks this summer, members of the Ephrata Marching Band spent over 50 hours together in preparation for the fall season. Hard work is an Ephrata Marching Band tradition that spans more than 50 years.

"We have a very strong program that has only gotten stronger in the last 20 years," said Goss. "It's about how we've laid our program out, the support of our administration and the support of our community. We support our school in a variety of ways. In our larger community, we play in the parade and support the VFW. We're part of the Ephrata community."