Purdue News
Purdue News
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August 16, 1991 Solo Twirlers SelectedWest Lafayette, Ind. – Last year's Golden Girl and Silver Twins, along with a new Girl in Black, have been selected as the famed solo twirlers with the Purdue University "All-American" Marching Band for the 1991-92 academic year.
Returning as Golden Girl XVII, the lead solo twirler with the band, is Holly Fehrman, 20, a junior majoring in restaurant, hotel, and institutional management from Aurora, Ind. The new Girl in Black is Alisha Bane, 19, from Oxford Ind., a secondary-education major. She succeeds Angela Sue Sword of Adrian, Mich., who graduated last spring. Identical twins from Peru,Ind., Lisa and Renee Rhodes, 19, are returning as the Silver Twins. Both are sophomores in elementary education. The four were named after annual solo-twirler auditions were held on campus Thursday (8/15). "I think over the years we've been very fortunate here at Purdue to get young ladies who are at the peak of their twirling capabilities, and this year was no exception," said David A. Leppla, director of the "All-American" Marching Band. "I'm confident that the soloists we've selected here are the best in the country, if not the world." Fehrman and the Rhodes twins, returning from last year, said first-year nerves will be behind them now, and the upcoming performing season will be even more enjoyable. "We had a lot of fun last year, but I think that with the experiences we had last year, we'll feel a lot more comfortable going into the first game," Fehrman said. Bane noted, "Now that I'm Girl in Black, I'm going to try my best to represent Purdue Bands and Purdue University this year." Fehrman has been involved in competitive twirling since the age of 9. She was runner-up in the Indiana state one-, two- and three-baton championships and placed in the top seven in national competition. A hometown feature twirler for six years, she also taught a baton group of 40 girls in Aurora. As a Purdue freshman, she received a Presidential Academic Award and has been named to the distinguished-student list. Fehrman also is a speaker on drug and alcohol abuse and goal-setting. Bane began twirling competitively at age 7 and has won more than 400 state, regional and national twirling awards, including the Grand Champion Scholarship Award at the Indiana State Fair in strut and dance twirling. She also is a twirling instructor for young students. On the distinguished-student list her freshman year, Bane has been named to the Purdue Teacher Education Council for 1991-92. In 1990, she was selected as Indiana's Young Woman of the Year (Junior Miss). The Rhodes twins have been twirling and competing together since they were 5 years old. As a duet, they have won several competitions, including Indiana state titles and top 10 finishes in regional events. The internationally recognized Golden Girl position was created in 1954 as the band's counterpart to legendary Boilermaker football quarterback Lenny Dawson, who was dubbed by the press as Purdue's Golden Boy. The band has had sets of Silver Twins since 1960, and the Girl in Black position was created in 1962. Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu
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