Name: Samantha Gremler
Year: Junior
Major: Applied Developmental Psychology
Hometown: Perrysburg, Ohio
HC: First off, thank you so much for agreeing to be interviewed, because this is really exciting! I’m going to jump right in with my first question: what activities are you involved in around campus?
Sam: So, obviously, I’m involved in Pitt Band and Kappa Kappa Psi, the band service fraternity, and then Cornerstone, which is a University Ministry on campus.
HC: So, Pitt Band! I know that you are Pitt’s first female Drum Major; what has that been like for you?
Sam: I was really expecting, not backlash necessarily, but something that showed that people weren’t sure that I could do the job, whether that was just being disinterested or not paying as much attention if I was a part of things, but I have not experienced any of that, surprisingly! I’m definitely happy it happened because I know girls that were kind of on the fence about going for the position have talked to me about it, and they feel more comfortable because they know that they will be looked at as a potential candidate for Drum Major. In reality, it doesn’t mean a lot to me personally, the position itself, but it means so much to other people which I think is really good.
HC: Gotcha, gotcha. It’s a really great thing that we finally have a female Drum Major! So what is the most rewarding part, and what is the most challenging part, of being in band for you?
Sam: Well, I’d say the challenging part is just knowing inside that there are people above you. Even though you might have a position of power, you just have to understand that there are a lot of people who could do it better and are doing it better. Coming in I had no idea what the role really entailed, except conducting at games and leading the traveling band during the game, so I kind of had to fit myself into a role that I just didn’t really know about.
I’d say the most rewarding part is just conducting during game day and watching the field, watching all the band. It’s just a really overwhelming feeling to see all of the accomplishments. It’s hard to see it while you’re playing and marching because you see the final product, but you don’t see it from beginning to end, whereas when you’re in a position like mine when you see the work that goes into creating the drill, putting the drill to music, and then seeing the finished product on game day, you see the accomplishments. I wasn’t able to appreciate that while I was playing, but now I can appreciate that and be really proud of what the band has done overall.
HC: It seems like it’s really changed your perspective! Now this is a really interesting question for you—what was your favorite thing about band before you became a Drum Major, and is it the same now?
Sam: Well, I did marching band in college because I wanted to extend what I had done in high school because I had always had music as a part of my life, so I was like, “Yeah! Of course I want to do this!” But when I got to college, band changed because it became about being a part of a group and doing well and working together, and it really became about making friends in that group. I would say that hasn’t changed, but I definitely appreciate the smaller things. Now with the position I’m in, I see the smaller things and the things people are willing to do for each other, so my perspective has just been shifted, not really changed.
HC: So, obviously band is huge for you, but so is Kappa Kappa Psi. Can you tell us a little more about your involvement with Kappa?
Sam: Yeah! I’ve been a brother for a year now; I joined at the end of last fall. I’m currently Ceremony Chair and I’m a Sergeant in Arms, and the positions kind of go hand-in-hand. We have three ceremonies throughout the semester that allow the new members to become official brothers, so that’s my position. But overall, it’s a service organization, and we do a lot of outreach community service, not just service within Pitt Band, so I’ve been able to see some local high schools and participate and volunteer at some band events, which I don’t really get to do in my home state. And it’s been great because I’ve been able to meet people who aren’t in my section and branch out to meet new people, and I’m just able to meet a lot of other people in Pitt Band.
HC: And you also mentioned Cornerstone as another program you’re involved in on campus. What is that exactly?
Sam: It’s a university ministry, and it’s non-denominational but it’s associated with a Presbyterian church on campus. We meet once a week to have a worship service, and really it’s basically just a church on campus for college students. I got involved right away in my college career and then I became a prayer leader during my freshman year, and this year I became a bible study leader. The problem was, with my involvement in band and particularly my position in band, I was less able to do things at Cornerstone, so I’m actually doing a bible study with the Pitt Band students (just some of them, two nights a week) and that makes me able to overlap the two, because I haven’t been involved much this semester, unfortunately, just because of the time that I have to spend on work, and then Kappa and Band. But Cornerstone is a great, great place to come because there’s undergrads at every age level, plus some grad students that are involved, so you get to meet more people that have the same faith and are going throughout that together at college.
HC: We’re friends on Facebook, and I notice that you post a God Sighting every day. Can you talk about that a little bit?
Sam: (Laughs.) 260 days ago, the leader of one of the bible study groups I’m in challenged us to do something for Lent, and I’m not Catholic so I’ve never really done a full-blown Lent before. It really made me think about what I could do instead, rather than giving up something. I’ve seen people do a picture a day, and I didn’t really want to do a picture a day, so I thought, “Well, what if I did something a day that involved a God Sighting?” The whole thing kind of evolved from there and then I just decided to do it for a year to continue the process, so today will be my 261st day.
HC: So you just pick something you see around that inspires you?
Sam: Yeah, it started out as basically just evaluating my day and figuring out where I saw God’s presence. One of the first days I did it, there was just a blue, cloudless sky and I just thought that was really pretty so I talked about God’s handiwork in our weather and the beauty of nature, or like yesterday (laughs) was that I sneezed for the first time in a week. It sounds so dumb, but I’ve been so sick and I needed to sneeze to kind of flush everything out and I haven’t been able to in over a week and finally I was able to like twice in one minute and it just felt like a big relief to my sinuses. Again, it sounds so dumb! But I feel God allows us to get healthy and I felt that that was a way He was able to help me out.
HC: And for a more general question, what has been your favorite part about Pitt so far? I know that’s kind of a broad question, but is there any one thing you can nail down?
Sam: Well, I’d say that one idea, and one concept, is that I didn’t expect a lot from college. I knew what I could do in college, but I didn’t have any expectations coming to Pitt because it was never my number one choice, it was never even on my radar until I really visited and applied (at the same time). So, coming here, I’m really grateful that it has been able to offer me more than I was expecting. I knew I wanted to do band but I didn’t know what that would entail. I knew we had a Kappa chapter but I wasn’t sure if I was going to join it. I knew colleges usually have campus ministries but I didn’t realize Cornerstone was there and I was able to get so involved. So Pitt’s just been able to give me all these opportunities I never would have thought looking for at college before I entered it, particularly in the fact that I’ve been able to meet people that connected me to others. I think it’s just exceeded my expectations and was able to provide me more than I thought possible.
HC: So, on a lighter note and for my last question, which Disney princess do you think defines your personality?
Sam: Rapunzel! I think I look most similar to her, and even though I would never be able to grow out my hair that long, I can dream! I think she’s the most carefree, fun one, and definitely the most cheerful.
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