For many, the sound of bagpipes stirs up emotions.
“It’s just special,” Tony Gaynor said. “There’s strong feelings… especially when the band gets together, and you hear multiple pipes going together.”
“It’s the music that would lead the Scots into battle,” said Mark Jenkins. “And if you’re in a bar and you hear us come in, you can kind of feel it.”
Gaynor joined the Greater Scranton Black Diamonds Pipe Band nine years ago and Jenkins started in the early 2000s.
After experiencing a tragedy while traveling home from a parade last year, the band is now back to performing at local parades, weddings, funerals and other celebrations in Northeast Pennsylvania.
One year later
It was March 16, 2025, when the band was traveling home from Milford’s St. Patrick’s Day parade, and the bus lost control.
“I was right behind the driver, and I heard [the driver] say, ‘There’s no brakes, we’re going,’” said Jenkins. “We were going around the curve at such a high speed, went right over the embankment, hit a drainage ditch, went airborne and landed on the back of a parked tractor-trailer.”
Cheryl Kaiser had the most severe injuries.
“I was in the hospital for a week, two of those days were in ICU,” she said.
The band was forced to cancel appearances for the rest of the season and took a break from weekly rehearsals.
“It really knocked the band down for several months,” lead drummer Andrea Leshock said. “We had to really take some time to just heal.”
Luckily for followers, the band was back on the streets this year, marching in parades in Pittston, Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. They will travel to Pike County again for the Milford St. Patrick’s Day parade March 21.
“We’re still not quite back to full strength,” said pipe major Jimmy Losavich. “But I think our resolve and our mental capacities are even stronger than they were before. I think it solidified the group.”
“I decided the best thing was to just get back with my friends and get back on the street and have fun doing it,” Kaiser said. “Because that’s what we do in March. Come rain or shine or snow.”
‘That’s what we do in March’
In the weeks surrounding St. Patrick’s Day, the clan is booked to appear at parades in Pittston, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Stroudsburg and Milford.
The band's presence is a must at the Friendly Sons and Society of Irish Women banquets.
The group rehearses weekly and performs at weddings, funerals and other events throughout the year.
The Black Diamonds Pipe Band started with five people in 1995.
“The camaraderie in the band is terrific,” said business manager Bill Hetherson. “People have come and gone over the years, but the band itself and the culture stayed the same.”
Keith Baylor joined in 1997, first learning to play the bagpipes and then becoming a bass drummer.
“I came into the band not knowing really anybody,” he said. “It’s something I've always wanted to do since I was a kid.”
The band offers free lessons for anyone interested in learning.
“It is work. You do have to learn,” Hetherson said. “We like to sound good when we play, but we like to have a lot of fun.”
Ten-year-old Brigid Baylor, a student tenor drummer, is Keith’s daughter.
“It’s really fun when we get to do parades and stuff because all of our friends and family get to be there,” she said.
Matthew O’Boyle started taking lessons a few years ago and caught on quickly.
“It makes me feel really good being able to play for people,” O’Boyle said. “Everybody I know is really excited that I’m playing the pipes."
“We’re all coming from different backgrounds, but we all have a common love for the music… even people who can’t read music, we’re here to help them learn. So it brings everybody together,” Kaiser said. “I can’t imagine not being part of the group.”
"We're close-knit," said Baylor. "I think the accident we had last year... it brought the band even closer together."
Rehearsals are every Tuesday at Eagle Hose Company in Dickson City. Lessons are offered at 7 p.m., and the full band rehearses at 8 p.m.
For more information, send a message to info@blackdiamondspipeband.com.
