We are excited to announce our visual team for the 2018 season, with many familiar names of the Oregon Crusaders in new roles.

Ryan Springler returns as the Visual Caption Head and for his third season with the Oregon Crusaders. Based somewhat in Mesa, Arizona, he works as a freelance designer and instructor year-round with many scholastic and independent ensembles across the nation. Those associations have included Lawrence Central HS, Homestead HS, Casa Grande HS, OCI Winds, Blue Knights Indoor, Lux Winterguard, Pacific Crest, and The Academy.

Also returning this year is Matt Ray as the Assistant Visual Caption Head. Currently, Mr. Ray is the band director at Damien High School in Southern California where he has taught for 7 years. Matt has instructed a number of academic and independent programs in both movement and music including Nogales High School, Upland High School, BOA Grand National Finalist Ayala High School, and the internationally recognized Riverside Community College Marching Tigers. In addition to his stateside endeavors, he has also worked extensively in Japan as a staff member for such groups as Hamasho High School, Ohtani High School, Yamato Drum and Bugle Corps, and Yokohama Scouts, and as a performer for the theatre production “Collab,” which premiered in Osaka.

Dan Hoffman returns for his third summer as a Visual Instructor. Hailing from Syracuse, NY, Dan marched as a contra with the Boston Crusaders in 2012, 2013, and 2015. To supplement his marching education, he began to study dance in college, leading him to graduate from the University of Rochester in 2015 with a B.A. in Music with a Minor in Dance. He has been a visual technician for both his alma mater West Genesee High School in Camillus, NY, and with the Medford High School Marching Mustangs in Medford, MA, where he currently serves as visual coordinator and drill writer.

Returning for his third year, Carlos Martinez hails from Mesa, Arizona. Carlos was a performing member of The Academy and then transitioned to a visual technician at Pacific Crest for two seasons before migrating up to OC. Carlos is currently the visual caption head at Chandler High School, while also serving as a visual instructor at both Casa Grande and Desert Ridge High School. Carlos is working on his music education degree as a horn player at Ottawa University.

Sara Myers returns for her second year, switching from the brass side to the visual. Sara has a bachelor’s degree from University of Central Florida in Music Education and is a Math teacher in Orlando. She marched six seasons on trumpet with the Boston Crusaders, during which she was I&E Champion in 2008 in the Trumpet category. Also in 2008, she traveled to Japan and toured with an all-female stage show called Brass Angels: Odyssey with our brass caption head, Lisa Tatum! Since aging out, Sara has spent time with Teal Sound, Troopers, and Boston Crusaders before coming to the Oregon Crusaders.

Izzy Montoya is back for his second year as a Visual instructor with us. Izzy has recently moved to Syracuse, New York as a working writer and artist. He received his degree from Arizona State University, while also teaching for the Casa Grande High School Marching Band.

Another returning Visual Instructor for this season is Dave Loughin. Dave has been with a part of the Oregon Crusaders organization since 2007 when he marched his first year of drum corps. Since then, he has continued to march, or teach, the drum corps as well as OCIndoor.  This will be his fourth year on staff with OC. He spent four years on active duty with the Marine Corps prior to studying at Portland Community College and the University of Pittsburgh in pursuit of a degree in creative writing. He currently lives in Pittsburgh, PA and is the visual caption head of Mars Area High School.

Coming back for his third summer, Robert Peterson has performed with Cadets2 and The Cadets during the summers for 2013, 2014, and 2015. During the fall, he teaches music and visual at Roxbury High School and Bridgewater-Raritan High School. In the Winter, Robert is a visual technician and choreographer for the Roxbury High School indoor drumline. Robert has graduated from Seton Hall University with a B.S.E. in Music Education and is currently a full-time elementary music teacher in Trenton, NJ.

Caleb Pifer is back for his second year of teaching with the visual caption. He is excited to see his home corps of eight years continue to grow.

 

You can read more about the OC18 visual team on the Staff page.