Interesting Facts about the Red Stars…

*Founded in 1972 in Plaistow, NH. By Gina Branley Hutchinson, who was then Majorette Coach for Timberlane High School Marching Band

Red Star name originated because of the trim on the first team’s costume. Costume was white, red stars were added for color-thus “The Red Stars”

Red Stars came to Derry in 1976 when Hutchinson transferred teaching jobs to Gilbert H. Hood and took over coaching the Pinkerton Academy Majorettes from former coach Patti Mills

THIS IS OUR 34nd Year in Derry;the first Red Star Team started in Plaistow, NH in 1972

The first trip to the National Championships in 1979 was with the PA majorettes, using the PA  mini van. Eight girls were on the team- they cme home with TWO gold medals in duet- twins Lisa and Linda Barnett

Last summer, in 2007, The Red Star College Team did what no previous Red Star team had done in placing THIRD in THREE events- behind The Wheaton Majorette and the Dynamics all of Maryland. Our previous best in ADVANCED DANCE TWIRL had been four fourths in the last twelve years. The Senior team won dance-Line and the College team WON Halftime , defeating Penn State with our Las Vegas Show

1985 began the European Touring Teams( see resume)

practice facility started at Westside Community Center in 1976

23 years were spent at The Upper Village Hall in East Derry

Current home is Veterans’ Memorial Building , Broadway, Derry

Memorable moments:

Standing in Red Square, Soviet Union, 1987-there will never be another moment like performing for 1000 Russians who had never seen Americans in Leningrad

Meeting the Lord Mayor of Derry-Londonderry, Ireland and seeing my twirlers present him with an album of Derry and Londonderry, NH-he traveled from Northern , Ireland to meet us in Limmerick

Marching up O’Connell Street in Dublin, Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day

 1989-Hearing the first Red Star College Twirler, Mrs. H’s daughter  Lori’s name announced as the new Feature Twirler for Penn State University at her first home game and seeing her come out of the tunnel and onto the field in front of 90,000 people. Two years later, hearing Lisa’s and Rebecca Fowlers named as the Orange twins at Syracuse

Hearing KeriAnn Lynch’s name being announced as Juvenile Miss Majorette of America at age nine- and seeing her today -still a passionate baton twirler and my Assistant Coach

After more than twenty years of having teams compete at The University of Notre Dame and finally getting to see two of them twirl on the Notre Dame field leading UTennessee in 2005 and University of Connecticut in 2009.

Marching in the Macy’s Parade-1993- in awe of the crowd and the fact that my team was part of it.

Touching the Berlin Wall-who knew miles of it still strands?

Marching in Washington, DC Fourth of July Parade 2007- amazing!

STILL to Go: A RED STAR MISS NEW HAMPSHIRE!!
                     CREATING   A TWIRLING PRO SHOW
                     SEEING the creation of RED STAR TEAMS all over the country and
Seeing our best and brightest become the judges of the future
MOST OF ALL
Seeing that with hard work, having big dreams The Red Stars have been the vehicle by which young women have had their world opened  wide. This was never a life plan of mine. It simply evolved way beyond  anything I  ever imagined. I, my family and many other families are richer today because dreams and hard work have paid off. It is my hope that Red Stars will be paying dividends for each girl who ever came here to train, no matter how long, for the rest of their lives.  ALL thanks to a BATON!