FARMINGTON, W.Va. — The North Marion High School Marching Band has been selected to perform in the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade coming up in December.

On WAJRs “Talk of the Town,” Band Director Matt Morgan said when he opened the letter and read the news, he was in complete shock. Morgan said the first person he shared the news with was his wife. While sharing the news with his wife, it occurred to him that the principal needed to now and he was the second person to hear the news.

“He was blown away as well,” Morgan said. “This is an opportunity of a lifetime, and I immediately jumped at the opportunity when I received the letter.”

The parade is held in Waikiki on December 7 and will observe the 84th anniversary of the unprovoked attack by the Japanese. The parade starts at Fort DeRussy and goes down Kalakaua Avenue for 1 mile, then takes Monsarrat Avenue to the Waikiki Shell, where an evening concert is planned.

“On December 7 they have their big Pearl Harbor Parade,” Morgan said. “So, it’s their big celebration to commemorate what happened there.”

Morgan said their immediate challenge is to raise more than $100,000 for the trip and the cost of new uniforms. The uniforms have been mostly black for decades, and Morgan wants the new uniforms to be more silver.

“For about 45 people to go on our trip, it’s going to cost about $110,000 for the plane ride and the stay,” Morgan said. “It’s going to cost about $2,600 per person, and I’d like to get that down to about $1,300 per student.”

For the students, this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to walk the site of the battle that signaled the entry of the United States into World War II.

“A lot of history teachers will be very excited there will be students inside the county and the high school that will actually be able to see and understand what happened on that day,” Morgan said.

The fundraisers for travel and uniforms have been separated into two separate fundraisers, giving people the flexibility to support the cause that’s most important to them. All of the donations made by the public will go toward making a once-in-a-lifetime trip a reality.

“This way they know exactly which one is going where,” Morgan said. “There is a Facebook page for the North Marion High School, and it has both of those websites online there.