Each year WGI Sport of the Arts presents scholarships to talented guard and percussion performers who attend the World Championships competition. In honor of the organization’s 30th anniversary last year, WGI presented an impressive 30 scholarships. We caught up with Brittany Zwiesler, a performer with the 2007 Open Class Silver Medalist Zydeco Colorguard.
Zwiesler received the 2007 George Zingali Memorial Scholarship. A nursing major at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, Zwiesler has been performing since age six.
Zwiesler says color guard has taught her who she is as an individual, how to be more open and to be more confident. During her senior year in high school, she was enrolled in the Post-Secondary Enrollment Options program, splitting her time between high school and college while serving as the captain of the guard and coming back to help teach the junior and senior guards.
Coach Belynda Frieden calls Zwiesler an excellent student and role model. “Sometimes it is hard for a student right
out of school to come back and teach the following year, but not Brittany,” Frieden says. “She was loved and respected by all the girls and the staff.”
Color guard also introduced Zwiesler to her closest friends whose support helped her through the most difficult time in her life, the loss of her father. “My dad loved watching me perform, Zwiesler says. “He owned his own store, so sometimes he would close early to come and watch me. … Now that he has passed, I know he is able to watch me all of the time.”
Zwiesler serves as a positive example for younger color guard members including her little sister, Ali, also a member of Zydeco. “Brittany has been such an inspiration to me,” Ali says. “She is so dedicated at everything she does in life. She is such an amazing performer, and I am extremely honored to spin with her.”
Photo courtesy of WGI Sport of the Arts.
