For four years, K-Park Color Guard has been run by a dedicated volunteer. This year, the group has been lifted off the ground with the addition of a full-time director.

Color Guard doesn’t just spin flags. The full-fledged experience consists of spinning, tossing or dancing with flags, rifles, sabres, swing flags and sometimes boutons.

It is an “artistically designed and theatrical sport of the arts,” says Meagan Young, K-Park’s first official Color Guard director.

Young has been in color guard for 10 years, dance for six and teaching overall for not even a year. This is her first year teaching and forming a guard together.

Color guard has played a big part in Young’s life. When she first picked up a flag, she seemed to catch on and master it quickly.

K-Park Color Guard and Band spent most of their summer working on football season’s halftime performances, finding ways to wow the crowd.

Football season’s halftime band performances couldn’t have been done without the direction of Robbie Sitka, Danielle Emerich and Meagan Young.

The transition from volunteer-led to staff-run hasn’t been easy.

There were both minor and major changes, which affected everyone as a whole.

But everyone worked together to make it work.

“I think for all the setbacks we went through,” says Young. “I feel good about it. There was a lot of progress individually and as a whole team and I’m proud of it.”

Even though football season is over, K-Park Color Guard will still be performing and competing in indoor season.

Indoor season, or winter guard, is a color guard performance without the football field and the band. Instead, judges will evaluate them  as they perform indoors.

“Personally it’s my most favorite thing in the world,” said Young.

Young sees indoor season as a way to challenge herself and for the guard to set goals and push themselves to make those goals and have fun doing it.

For the team, Young sees it as an exciting experience.

”It’s a whole new world,” says Young. “There’s so much talent in such a small ‘sport’ that is so unknown to most people — it makes you want to push yourself.”