LEWISTON — Val Graffa will be the featured guest speaker at a meeting of the Lewiston-Auburn Rotary Club from noon to 1 p.m. Thursday, June 22, at the Ramada Inn.

Graffa is a member of the Drum Major, Maine Public Safety Pipe and Drum Corps. He joined MPS in 2006 as a snare drummer, while stationed in the Greater Portland area as a U.S. Army recruiter. He was elected as the drum major in 2013 and is the chair of the Uniform and Recruiting Committees and former chair of the Development Committee.

As a drum major, his role is mainly as a figurehead, acting as the conductor of the band while playing and as a ceremonial leader during performances. He is also responsible for the dress, drill and deportment of the organization. Graffa supports the fourfold mission of the Corps, which is:

To honor all public safety personnel, locally and nationally, by providing Scottish music for funerals and memorials without cost; To represent the men and women of Maine’s public safety by participating in a variety of events, including, but not limited to, funerals, memorials, fairs, community events, parades, highland games/gatherings, and competitions; to further Celtic and Scottish traditions in public performances; to teach Highland bagpiping and Scottish style pipe band drumming.

Graffa is a resident of Hebron.

FMI: 207-753-9040; mmillhime@wmca.org; www.lewistonauburnrotary.org, facebook.com/lewistonmainerotary/.

Copy the Story Link