Manatee mini-reunion in nation's capital

It is a small world, all right.
Just ask Mary Jane Shiplett.
The Manatee County High Class of ‘51 alum was among a contingent of Bradenton folks who were visiting Washington, D.C., last week during a five-day tour.
On Saturday they visited the World War II Memorial where she and pal Pat Russell heard a marching band.
So they went over to check it out.
“I thought, hmmm, those uniforms look awfully familiar,” Shiplett said.
Russell thought so, too.
“I think that’s Manatee High,” she said. “Why, it is Manatee High.”
Sure enough, it was the Marching Canes performing at the Memorial as part of their own four-day tour of the nation's capital.
“We were clapping and carrying on like a bunch of kids,” Shiplett said. “To go that far and see them. Such a proud moment.”