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Staff

Rebecca Belveal - Director of Color Guard

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Rebecca has been the Color Guard instructor at Pace High School for over 30 years. Under her leadership, the Guard has achieved great successes on both the marching field and within the Indoor Guard circuit, medaling every year in both local and regional Winter Guard International events.

Her abilities as an instructor, choreographer and visual staff member for the award winning “The Pride of the Red, White, and Blue” Marching Band enable the program to truly come to life on the field and on the floor, and for the crowd to come to their feet in the stands.

Rebecca is frequently utilized as a consultant for many programs in our area, due to her recognized levels of excellence and leadership in her work with the Pace High School Color Guard program.

Rebecca is a Past-President of the Gulf Coast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit.

Rachel Belveal - Color Guard Staff

Rachel Belveal is a native of northwest Florida and is a graduate of Jay High School and the University of West Florida, where she received a Bachelor of Arts in Middle Level Education.  She also holds a Masters of Education in Administration from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. Rachel is a highly qualified teacher in the fields of middle grades mathematics, secondary social studies, secondary language arts, elementary education, and elementary and secondary exceptional student education in the Santa Rosa County School District.

Rachel was a flautist in the Jay High School Concert Band for one year before becoming a five-year-member of the Jay High School Color Guard. She was also a charter member of the winter guard program at JHS. Throughout college, Rachel 

assisted with the color guard and winter guard programs at both Jay and Pace high schools.  After college, Rachel became the Assistant Band Director at Jay High School, with a focus on the guard programs.  While working with these programs for over a decade, her main responsibilities have included writing, teaching, and cleaning equipment work for the guard units.

Rachel’s work with the guard programs at Jay and Pace have led to her involvement with guard on a more competitive stage.  Both of her guard programs are members of the Gulf Coast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit and Winter Guard International.  Her programs have earned multiple superior ratings at marching contests and have been finalists at several Winter Guard International Regional Events.

​Rachel is a former Executive Treasurer for the Gulf Coast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit.

Leo Finuliar - Color Guard Staff

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Leo Finuliar is from Santa Clara, California and currently resides in Milton, Florida.  Leo earned his Bachelor’s Degree from the University of West Florida and currently works at Bennett Russell Elementary in Milton.

​Leo’s Color Guard marching experience expands throughout the West Coast.  He has performed with San Jose Raiders, Orion Independent, and Northern Lights. 

​Leo has been a part of many successful programs in the Gulf Coast area.

Christopher Mills - Color Guard Staff

As a native of Northwest Florida, Christopher Mills graduated from Jay High School and Pensacola State College, where he earned his Associates of Arts degree.  He plans to attend the Culinary Institute of America where he will pursue a career as a pastry chef.

Christopher began as a trumpet player and then becoming drum major for the Jay High School Marching Band. He was also a part of the winter guard program where he was a performer for 6 years.  After high school, Christopher was both a performer and choreographer for Jay Independent.
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Christopher has choreographed along the coastal region, working with teams from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida.  He has also designed shows for multiple groups in the Gulf Coast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit.

Beyond his duties at Pace High School, Christopher has worked as the Visual Coordinator, Choreographer & Staff Member at Tate High School, Jay High School, Pensacola High School & Choctawhatchee High School.

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Garrett Lambert - Director of Percussion

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Garrett Lambert is a percussion educator, performer, composer, and arranger from Tampa, Florida.  As an educator, he has worked with several high school percussion programs across the Southeastern United States.  He earned his Bachelor of Music Education Degree from the University of West Florida. Currently, he resides in Pensacola, Florida and is the Percussion Director at Pace High School and has been a Middle School Band Director in Escambia County, FL.
  
He has performed with various ensembles including The Teal Sound Drum and Bugle Corps, The University of South Florida, and The University of West Florida. Garrett currently arranges and composes for many ensembles in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Arizona.
  
Garrett is a member of the Percussive Arts Society and has participated in the Northwest Florida Day of Percussion as a clinician every year since 2011.  Garrett is a proud endorser of the Pearl/Adams Corporation, Innovative Percussion, and Zildjian Cymbals. 

Garrett is a former Percussion Representative for the Gulf Coast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit.

Elanders Frazier - Percussion Staff

Elanders Frazier is an educator, designer, and creator based in Pace, FL. He has served as a percussion instructor, percussion arranger, visual designer, adjudicator, caption head and clinician for grade schools, secondary schools and independent ensembles throughout the Gulf Coast area since 2002. 

Mr. Frazier holds an A.A. in Business and a B.S.B.A. with a concentration in Management from the University of West Florida. His collegiate performance credits include Pensacola State College and the University of West Florida Symphonic Band. His professional experience includes Eminence Indoor Percussion, Spirit from JSU (Spirit of Atlanta), and Music City Mystique. He recently served as Co-Caption Head, Battery Arranger and Supervisor for Percussion at Southwind Drum & Bugle Corps from 2017-2022. Mr. Frazier was inducted into the Gulfcoast Color Guard and Percussion Circuit Hall of Fame in 2018. Mr. Frazier is a member of the Percussive Arts Society and proudly endorses Innovative Percussion Sticks and Mallets, Zildjian Cymbals, and Mapex Drums. 

Mr. Frazier is currently the Percussion Manager for Southwind Drum and Bugle Corps in Mobile, AL, a percussion Instructor at Pace High School in Pace, FL, co-host and executive producer of the internationally broadcasted percussion education podcast "Volta Percussion", has educational/performance videos on YouTube under the username “elfsnare”. 

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Josh Rodriguez - Percussion Staff

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Shortly after graduating from Escambia High School, Josh Rodriguez began instructing percussion.  He has worked with multiple high school and middle school programs in the area since 2012.  He has also been a recurring clinician for the Northwest Florida Day of percussion since 2013.  In 2016, he marched with the Sacramento Mandarins Drum and Bugle Corps, where he was a section leader and member of the snare line.

​Josh earned his Associate's degree from Pensacola State College and his Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of West Florida.  When Josh is not teaching Pace High School’s battery section, he offers private percussion lessons for middle school and high school students.

Jacob Sallee - Percussion Staff

Jacob has spent the majority of his life in Pace, Florida and has been studying percussion since his beginnings at Avalon Middle School.  While a student at Pace High School, he performed all four years in both "The Pride of the Red, White, and Blue" Marching Band and Pace Indoor Percussion, earning many accolades alongside his peers. 
 
Currently residing in Nashville, Tennessee, Jacob is pursuing a degree in Music Education at Belmont University, where he continues to study and perform during the school year.  Recently, he has performed on a world-class stage with the indoor percussion ensemble "Music City Mystique", as a member of the front ensemble, the Belmont University Percussion Ensemble, and the Belmont University Wind Ensemble.
 
When not teaching the front ensemble or private lessons, Jacob enjoys gardening, working on cars, and cooking.

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Zack Blessing - Indoor Percussion Staff

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Zachary Blessing is a WGI silver medalist and DCI finalist that has continuously taught and built visual and cymbal programs for over the past 10 years. His world-class instructional experience includes Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps and Music City Mystique.

Zack’s world-class performance career includes Crossmen Drum and Bugle Corps (2011–2013), Infinity Percussion (2013), Oregon Crusaders (2015), and Music City Mystique (2014-2016).

When he is not performing his instructional duties, Zack is working as a graphic designer for the National Naval Aviation Museum.  Feeling blessed to live a creative life, Zack is ecstatic to be working with an extremely talented staff and wonderful music program at Pace High School.

Erik Flury - Winds Staff

Erik Flury is a native of Reno, NV and a graduate of the University of Nevada, Reno. He holds a Bachelors of Music in Trombone Performance.  His marching experience extends 16 years with membership in the “Pride of the Sierra” University of Nevada Wolf Pack marching band where he served as drum major, the Blue Devils ‘B’ Drum and Bugle corps in 2012, and The Blue Devils Drum and Bugle Corps from 2014-2016, earning two Drum Corps International World Championships performing euphonium. During that time, he also has instructed at his alma mater, Robert McQueen High School and also with Damonte Ranch High School. 

His teachers include Dr. A. G. McGrannahan III, Dr. Jean-Paul Perrotte, Dr. Jason Altieri, John Meehan, Tom Gordon, and Dr. William Plenk.  He holds membership with Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America (Xi Delta ‘13), the Marine Corps Association, and the Sport Class air racing association. 

He earned his commission as a Second Lieutenant in the United States Marine Corps from Officer Candidate School in Nov. of 2020, and graduated The Basic School in June of 2021 at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Quantico, VA. He is serving active duty on assignment to Training Wing Five, Whiting Field, and Marine Aviation Training Support Group-21, NAS Pensacola, as a student naval aviator.

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Carson Meadows - Winds Staff

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Bio Coming Soon

Blake Norre - Winds Staff

Bio Coming Soon

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Additional Band Staff

Randy Nelson - Show Designer / Visual and Creative Consultant

Carol Ann Whidden - Music Arranger and Creative Consultant

James Gow - Choreographer and Creative Consultant

Spece Howell - Music Consultant

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