Purdue
trumpet section has a very special "groupie"
While trumpeter Trae Bobillo, at age 6, might be too young to play in the Purdue "All-American" Marching Band, he’s definitely won a spot in its heart this season. Dressed in a tiny Purdue Band uniform and hat, painstakingly created by his grandmother, Trae found himself in the spotlight on the Ross-Ade Jumbotron and on network television at the Ohio State and Indiana games. With only a minute left in the I.U. game Trae, a first-grader at St. Mary’s Elementary in Lafayette, got so excited he couldn’t wait any longer. He ignored his dad’s admonition to wait until the end of the game, and turned his hat backwards signifying victory the same way the Purdue band members do. Trae’s dad Tim is development director for the Purdue School of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and the Bobillos regularly watch the "All- American" Band practice, and attend Purdue sporting events together. "Trae picks up on what he sees most. We are such a huge Purdue family. We have pictures all over the place of the band and the drum and Purdue Pete. Because of my real passion for Purdue, they love to be around the football team and the band and the basketball team," Tim says. "It’s really a family thing for us, and I’m just thrilled he shows an interest. Last year, Trae told his grandmother he wanted to be a Purdue bandsman for Halloween 2000. Ginny Bobillo of Michigan City found an ally in Natalie Cripe. The Bands’ work-study student took the time to describe the design of the band uniform in detail to Bobillo over the telephone so the expert costumer could replicate it. "Trae doesn’t (yet) play an instrument, but he’s got a plastic trumpet. He loves the marching and the fight song," says Tim. He expects to start Trae on music lessons next summer. Who know what will happen after that. As the ABC network announcer said while looking at Trae’s beaming face on the screen: "Not all kids want to grow up and be football players. Some want to grow up and be the Purdue "All-American" Marching Band.