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THE PIPES ARE CALLING Jefferson Pipe Band sets sights on World Pipe Band Championships Group hopes to put region on the map at Glasgow contest Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 1, 2016 at 12:01 AM By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 1, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Social News A local band with a penchant for pipes and plaids is setting its sights on world domination next year. Or at least having a ridiculously good time together. The Jefferson Pipe Band, made up of nearly two dozen bagpipers from Southern Oregon and Northern California, is raising money for the Holy Grail of competitions — the World Pipe Band Championships in Scotland — in 2017. And it's ready to "go big or go home," says Becky Saraceno, who's been playing the pipes since her high school days in the 1960s. "I think we stand a good chance at putting ourselves on the map," she says. Members, whose occupations range from doctor and Army sergeant to mechanic and salesman, have been playing together since the 1990s. They started competing in the Western U.S. Bagpipe Association in the early 2000s, but had to quit after a few years because of a lack of drummers available to accompany them. But they continued to play for local events and anywhere else they could find people willing to listen. In recent times the Jefferson Pipe Band has been invited to competitions around the region and along the West Coast, earning accolades at the Reno Celtic Faire. Member Dion Williams believes the band has a good shot at international fame. "We're excited to see how we stack up against other groups and we want people to know that there is a good-sounding bagpipe band in the Southern Oregon-Northern California region," he says. The World Pipe Band Championships has been held in Glasgow every August since 1930. "There is no higher honor for a pipe band than to win their grade, and for an unknown band from our area to make the trip is quite an accomplishment," Williams says. He says the band is made up of members of all ages. He started in the group when his son wanted to blow the pipes. "I signed him up for a class. There weren't enough people in class to keep it going — it was only fifty bucks — so I figured, since I was going to be there anyway ... that was 15 years ago and here I am," Williams says. Fellow members played for his wedding last year. "It becomes an obsession pretty quickly," he says. "I fell into it almost by accident and now it's a huge part of my life." Saraceno says the world competition features more than 75 bands playing five categories. "As soon as we decided to go to Worlds, we started going like gangbusters and getting the band ready to play more locally," she says. Williams says Worlds is something every competing pipe band should experience at least once. "We just have to go," he says. "There's Scotch over there that you can't find in the U.S. And haggis!" For more information, visit www.facebook.com/jeffersonpipeband or www.gofundme.com/jeffersonpipeband . Reach Medford freelance writer Buffy Pollock at [email protected]. By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Feb. 1, 2016 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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