Every four years, the AHS band takes a trip to Washington D.C. to play in the 4^th of July Parade. Normally, they would march, take some days to sightsee in D.C. and New York, and either fly or ride the bus home. This year, some changes were made, and this trip for the band will go down in the books.

Our band director, Jerrold Heide, and his wife recently had a baby. Their child’s birthday is around the time that the band would take their trip to march. With this in mind, the band students and Heide decided to shake things up a bit. This year, the band is no longer go to march in the 4^th of July parade. They have decided to go earlier this year and march in the National Memorial Day Parade. This trip is a whole 5 weeks earlier than all of the other previous years.

This band trip is only taken every four years for one reason, the money. The students and the chaperones have to pay a high amount to be able to attend. The money that each participating member pays includes paid for hotels, airfare, museums and other sightseeing costs, the bus that travels from D.C. to New York, the tour guide, and for the instruments and uniforms to be hauled across the states.

With the amount that the participants have to pay, a ton of fundraising must be done. In the 2015-2016 school year alone, the band has sold Deli International, noodles, Krispy Kreme Donuts, spaghetti feed tickets, and are holding a silent auction. The most recent fundraiser is the spaghetti feed. This is an annual fundraiser for the students. The students sell the tickets, and the buyers attend and enjoy a meal. This year, they have added a silent auction to the feed. Students who are benefitting from the event have either made, bought, or asked for a donation for an item to sell. With the trip coming up in 5 months, this is one of the last chances for the students to make money, unless they are fundraising individually.

This year, there was a rule set in place that stated that any activity, whether it be sports, fine arts, or clubs, they are only allowed to hold one fundraiser. With the band trip coming up, the band students and parents had to take over the fundraising. The one fundraiser that the band will hold is Deli International. Becci Zurn held the noodle fundraiser, the Parent Group held the Krispy Kreme fundraiser, and the spaghetti feed and silent auction have been organized by parents and students, with the guidance of Mr. Heide. The band was very thankful that the parents were willing to step up to help fundraise for such a costly trip.

The band has many opportunities to perform before they leave on their trip; they play at the varsity home games, perform in concerts in March, and May, and host district music in April. We wish the band luck on not only their performances, but also when they travel and perform in a national parade!