MOLINE, Illinois — Music filled the air along Moline's riverfront Friday morning, as the Wandering Patriots Harmonica Band played some patriotic tunes.
Catherine Long started the band back in 2014, to bring something different to local parades on Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day.
"I sat at so many Fourth of July parades and there were politicians and cars and people walking, but not a lot of music," she says.
This year, those parades are put on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, but the joggers and bikers along Ben Butterworth Parkway got to enjoy some of the band's crowd favorites like 'Yankee Doodle' and 'This Land is Your Land.'
For Jim Reynolds, drumming in the band holds a special place in his heart.
"My son (is) a member of the National Guard, and I support him," Reynolds says.
The band also plays a medley of military songs, which Long says is another crowd favorite.
"We've been at performances where when (the song) reached (a veteran's) branch, they stood up," Long says. "It touched them and that's important to us."
Long and Reynolds say it's disappointing to not play parades this summer, but they're happy to be back together as a band.
"It's like a big family," Long says. "We enjoy every minute of it."
The band is made up of 14 people, and is always looking to recruit and teach new members.