Grapevine High School Mustang Band
Newsletter for October 14th-19th
Director's Notes
Upcoming Events
Monday: No school, Stadium rehearsal 1:00-4:00 PM. Students MUST wear a white shirt (logos on the shirt are okay), black shorts, and their marching shoes.
Tuesday: UIL Region 31 Marching Contest at Pennington Field. Itinerary linked here. Parents are welcome to attend, tickets can be purchased on-site for $5 CASH ONLY
Wednesday: Rehearsal from 6:30-8:20 AM. HOMECOMING PARADE itinerary linked here. Additional information regarding the homecoming parade can be found below.
Thursday: Rehearsal from 6:30-8:20 AM. TAMALE ORDERS DUE
Friday: Rehearsal from 7:00-8:20 AM
GHS vs. The Colony (Homecoming). The band will not be performing the show at this game due to homecoming festivities.
Friday-Sunday: Bands of America Waco
The schedule for Bands of America Waco is linked here. A more detailed itinerary for the homecoming game vs. The Colony and the trip to Waco is available here.
Reminder that students will go outside during their band classes and should dress accordingly.
Performance Opportunity
Hello! The Grapevine MS Band has their Fall Concert on Wednesday, October 23rd at 7pm in the GMS gym. We would love to have any former GMS students, or any HS student who would like to come and perform our Grapevine MS Alma Mater and Fight Song with us for the final portion of the concert. We have had some students perform the All-State music for the audience and it was a big hit. If you can attend, please email Mrs. Gish at jennifer.gish@gcisd.net and music will be emailed to you. Report time is 6:30pm and we should be complete by 7:45ish pm. Attire: HS Show Shirt.
Passport Reminder
Sign-ups for the Ireland trip are now closed. If you are traveling with us to Ireland be sure to double check your passport! It can take weeks or months to have one made or to have one renewed!
Music Pass-Offs Are Happening!
By this point all members should have parts 1 and 2 passed-off and be working towards passing off part 3 for a director. Music pass-offs started on the first day of summer band. The Fight Song, Alma Mater, National Anthem, and Fillie Entry will also be passed off from memory. These assignments are grades and are being entered into Skyward. Students are allowed to re-attempt pass-offs for a director for full credit. If you are looking for music click here
All-Region Music
Access your instruments All-Region music here. This music will be used to audition for the Region 31 High School all-region bands. It will also be used as your Spring band placement and your Fall semester exam.
Freshman Cuts for All-Region Music
Freshman cuts for the All-Region are available here. These 9th grade cuts are also used for determining GHS spring band placements. Auditions will be held towards the end of the fall semester. Happy practicing! 😁
Leadership Meeting
Leadership team, we will have our next meeting Tuesday, October 15th at 4:10 PM. The meeting will be held in Mr. Rees' office.
Photos
The photos that were captured of the band during picture day are ready to be viewed and ordered!
TSS Photography offers a wide array of photo packages and photo items (like those fun photo pins, and necklace charms!).
Here is the link to order those fantastic pictures of your band member!
Volunteers
Concession Volunteer Opportunities Available
Mustang Band families run the concession stands during all Freshman, Junior Varsity and Varsity home games. It takes many volunteers to make sure we are covering all the shifts available to us in order to maximize this revenue opportunity. Volunteering in the concession stand is a great way for band families to get involved and meet new friends and is the biggest fundraiser for the band. Please remember we are asking all families to cover at least FOUR shifts this year.
Please use the SignUpGenius links below to choose your volunteer opportunities.
Freshman/JV Concession Stand Sign Up Genius
Varsity Concession Stand Sign Up Genius
We look forward to seeing you in the concession stand, serving with you and contributing to our GHS Band’s success this year!
Tamales
It’s time for our annual GHS Band Tamale Fundraiser! Our goal is to raise $20,000 for our program with this fundraiser. Tamales are sold by the dozen and the cost per dozen is $17. GHS Band receives a percentage of each dozen sold that goes directly to our band program! Each student is required to sell 20 dozen tamales. There is a buy out option below if you’d prefer to buy out of the fundraiser.
Tamale orders are due Oct 17. Tamales will be delivered to school on Wednesday, November 13th just in time for Thanksgiving. (Side note for our new band families: Tamales come frozen and so can be used past Thanksgiving into December, New Year, etc).
Parents/Students will pick up their tamale orders between 4:15-6:00 pm at the Band Hall on November 13th. Orders come frozen, and you will distribute what you sold directly to your buyers. You can collect cash, checks made out to GHS Band, or have your friends/family pay you directly via your favorite method of payment (Zelle, Venmo, Paypal are great options for you to collect payment). When you turn in your order, you can write one check to GHS Band for the full order amount,, or submit your full order using the Cheddar Up payment link below and pay online using a credit card or e-Check.
If you don’t want to sell Tamales, use the Buy-Out Option below:
https://tamalefundraiserbuyout2024.cheddarup.com
If you have friends or family that want to support our fundraising efforts, but do not want to purchase tamales, they can quickly donate using this link:
https://2024tamaledonationonly.cheddarup.com
Pay for Tamales Online:
Booster Notes
Rooms for Waco weekend!
We’ll be staying at the Courtyard Marriott in Waco (linked here). It’s just about a mile from where we’ll be performing on Saturday.
This is where the band is staying, but you can always check bookings.com to see if there are other hotels that are cheaper in the area with availability if you’d prefer!
Don’t be sad about missing the Homecoming Dance! We’ll be dancing the night away instead at GHS on Saturday, December 14th from 7-9pm! So save those mums, and those cute HoCo proposals until then! More details to follow soon!
Spirit Night
WHAT: SPIRIT NIGHT FUNDRAISER/Raising Canes
WHERE: Euless, 2901 State Hwy 121
WHEN: Tuesday, Oct. 15 from 4 - 10 pm
WHAT YOU NEED TO DO: show up, tell the cashier you're with the Grapevine HS Band Fundraiser (or show the flyer, attached), order some delicious Raising Canes, and sit back and help our Band raise $! For every purchase, Raising Canes will donate* to the GHS Band.
*not valid on Mobile APP, Kiosk or online orders
THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT & THANK YOU TO RAISING CANES/Euless!
Sponsorship
SPONSORSHIP PROGRESS:
THESE 4 LOCAL BUSINESSES RENEWED THEIR GHS HS BAND SPONSORSHIPS for the 2024-2025 year. Please show your support by giving them your business or recommending them.
Taco Casa of Grapevine, 525 NW Hwy. Grapevine,
Stellar Smiles Ortho 2800 William D Tate Ave Ste 100
Nerds to Go 2030 Glade Rd #264, Grapevine
Almar Jewelers, 2350 Hall - Johnson Rd # 110
If you own a business or know of one you think would be interested, please let them know the GHS HS BAND needs their support and provides wonderful marketing opportunities!
Want a flyer to help seek out SPONSORSHIPS? Here it is.
Questions? Please contact GHS Mustang Band Parent & Volunteer, Laurie Ackermann. I am happy to deliver flyers to you. Contact Laurie and tell her how many you want.
Sponsorship Flyer
Sponsorship Levels
PTSA
The GHS PTSA gathers all of our parent volunteer hours every month. No time is too little to submit- if you volunteered even a half hour handing out popsicles, they want to know!
This will be the same link you will submit your volunteer hours to every month (by the 10th).
Thanks for all the time you spend supporting our students! We couldn’t do it without your support!
UIL Eligibility
The next UIL grade check occured on Friday, October 11th. Students must be passing all of their classes in order to be eligible to participate in outside of school marching band activities. Going ineligible will result in the inability to participate in football games, marching contests, and marching rehearsals until the student regains eligibility. Students who are ineligible as a result of this grade check must be passing ALL CLASSES in order to regain eligibility, not just the one(s) they failed.
Band Fee Payment #4- Due September 1st
The FIFTH and final installment of band fees was due on September 1st and is now past due. You can make a payment here.
Calendar
Please visit the calendar and familiarize yourself with the rehearsal schedule and event calendar for the entire school year.
Private Lessons
Lessons are available for all members of the band program. Please click here and set up lessons if you have not already.
The Grapevine High School Band has over 90% of students enrolled in private lessons. It is such an important part of our student's musical development!
Check Your CutTime Account
Students/Parents should login and double check their profile on CutTime is correct. Login assistance can be found here. CutTime has replaced Charms and is one of our primary forms of communication and it is important to have accurate information. As we graduate students into the next grade, please verify that your school and grade are correct. CutTime is not an option to make a band payment.
If you have any questions, currently are not receiving the emails from CutTime, or have trouble logging in to your account, please contact Mr. Slate (brandon.slate@gcisd.net)
Raiseright (Personal Fundraiser
Start Raising Money NOW!
RaiseRight is a great way to raise money for your individual band account!