The Appling marching band also has another special opportunity. About four years ago, the Bartlett Wal-Mart Supercenter had its grand opening celebration and invited our marching band to perform. We marched up and down the aisles playing our patriotic song and the Star Spangled Banner. We had already learned it for our Veterans Day Parade. We had so much fun and they loved us. They have invited us back to the grand opening of the Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market on October 9th. We will give the same type of performance and they are giving us a grant! Mr. Foster has approved the field trip so we should have no problem getting School Board approval. The concert will be in the morning. I will need a firm commitment of the students so we can get started!

The Veteran’s Day parade is an annual event in downtown Memphis. Last year was the first time we were unable to perform because of my pregnancy. I would like to see the band perform again this year, especially with all the patriotism that we are showing in our country since the attacks last September11th. However this year Veteran’s Day falls on Monday November 11 and is a school holiday for both Shelby County and Memphis city Schools. There wouldn’t be a problem getting the trip approved but I have a felling a lot of people will be out of town. I do not want people to back out at the last minute. I am going to wait to make a decision until I speak with students and parents and take a poll. If we decide against this parade we will have more time to prepare for the Christmas Parades.

Attendance, hard work, and good behavior at rehearsals are crucial to benefit the group. If you have an emergency of did not attend school the day of rehearsal, please let Ms. Sanders know in writing in order to be excused. A student who is missing from rehearsal will mess up the entire line in that parade line-up and it is very hard to learn when people are not there. Also, remember that pick-up is from the back parking lot by the gym doors at 4:00 PM. Please Parents, do not be late picking your child up. If students are being picked up late constantly, then that student will be dismissed from the Marching Band. Rain does not automatically cancel rehearsal- we will rehearse inside. Always be prepared for marching with proper clothing and shoes. Behavior and attendance will be graded for marching on a point system. During the rehearsal students with continual poor behavior will removed from the marching band. Also, marching band students may not have F’s or U’s on their report cards. Report Cards will be checked! A student with poor grades will be on probation until the next interim when his/her report card will be checked again. A student who is doing poorly in their classes needs to spend the time after school on other things rather than on Marching band.

I will depend on the 8th graders who marched last year to be student leaders and good role models for music, marching, and behavior. Throughout the marching season and especially at the end of October there will be Bartlett, Bolton, and Cordova High School students coming on their own free time to help the band. As well as band parents, other directors, and musicians from the community. I absolutely expect the band students to listen to and respect these people. If there is a problem then you will be rejected from the marching band.

Students will receive a piece of music for the Christmas Parades, Wal-Mart’s Grand Opening/Veteran’s Day, and Pep band music for pep rallies. This music needs to be kept up with. Extra music costs 15 cents per copy. The bands own 80 uniforms and are very proud of them. We will arrange times for fitting during the marching band rehearsals. A separate information/contract will explain the rules and responsibilities of these. There will be a uniform cleaning fee collected with the signed contract. Students will need to purchase their own black marching shoes, socks, and white gloves, which we will be taking orders for later on. We will be taking a group and individual pictures by a professional photographer in the later months. They should be back in time for Christmas presents. Look for more information.

There will be calendars sent home and on this website in October, November, December. Rehearsal dates are listed on the calendar page. I will try to stick to these dates and keep rehearsals on Monday and Thursdays, but be flexible if anything should change.