Random End of Summer Thoughts

FUNDRAISING

Since we are an Illinois band, we do not have the hefty transportation costs normally associated with a Midwest Clinic performance. We do, though, have several needs associated with our Midwest performance and preparation:

– Design, photography and printing of our Midwest Concert Program (3000 copies)
– Salaries for staffing a special band camp we are having for our students
– Additional masterclasses and clinics for our students as we prepare for Midwest

We are also working on a special project, one that I’m not positive that will work out, so we’ll keep that secret for now. How’s that for a teaser?!?!

Basically, we’re looking to raise $15,000. Not much compared to what the other groups have to raise, but still significant, and definitely the most “per mile” of the groups performing this year…we’re only 15 miles from the Chicago Hilton and Towers.

While I’m anxious about it, I’m confident that we’ll be successful. Our parents are working really hard to make sure we have what we need for our preparations and performance. They are committed to the ideal that our students’ Midwest experience should not be diminished because we are local. This is the most we’ve tried to raise in such a short amount of time. We’ve gained a lot from visiting some of the other performing groups websites to see the types of things they are doing to raise money and promote their accomplishment.

The bulk of the summer was spent planning several things that we hope will raise the necessary funds. Our typical fundraising projects are usually fairly modest. These fundraisers will be expanded and redirected to pay for our Midwest expenses. They include a summer Market Day order, our donation/sponsorship program, carwashes, a book fair through our local Barnes and Noble, and some small grant writing projects.

Our website is outstanding. I would think it is about as popular as a middle school band website can get with about 2700 unique visitors each month. At least through the next several months, we’ll give the $$$ a little more presence on our site. We’ve started accepting online credit card donations on a trial basis. This is new for us, so we’ll see how it works out. Until now, our online fundraising has been subtle through a support page and by participating in affiliate programs recommending books and recordings. It doesn’t bring in a lot of money each month, enough to purchase a CD or two every few months for our listening library, but it’s also zero work.

We’ll be expanding our donation/sponsorship program with a three-pronged letter writing campaign to alumni, out-of-state relatives of performing band members, and Skokie businesses. For the later, we’re borrowing an idea from the Winter Park High School Band by selling ads space in our concert program. We’ll also be thanking the larger contributors ($250+) in our Midwest Concert Program, on our website, and through a full page ad in our local newspaper.

PROGRAM
I’m feeling pretty good about where our program is right now. We’ve changed one work in recent weeks. We’re at 10 pieces. One of them I still go back and forth on, but at least right now, the program is pretty set. I have to keep some other pieces reserved though, just in case a publisher doesn’t get a piece printed in time. It’ll get done, but the last thing I want to be doing is scrambling at the very end because of some unforeseen circumstances cause a delay.

The day before school starts we have a two hour rehearsal to read through our anticipated Midwest Program. Mostly, I want to be sure that the program plays as I expect it to with this group of kids. This will give me time to make some switches if there are any major issues. Hopefully, though, I’ll be able to submit our program by the end of August, a couple weeks before the deadline.

I’m excited about our program. It should not only showcase our kids, but will hopefully highlight several outstanding works that our audience will want to program with their groups.

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