Week of October 15, 2024
Norcross Bands Newsletter
This newsletter includes:
- Upcoming Dates
- 8th grade Band night/HOCO
- Raffle Update: Week 7
- Meals on Game days
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
- Trunk or Treat!
- Alumni Raffle Challenge
For your reference:
- Where to find Band info
- Help us promote Sponsorship
- Meet the Band Booster Board
- Meet the Band Committee members
- Marching Season Google calendar link
- All about CutTime
- All about RaiseRight
- All about the Band App
- Sponsor Spotlight
Upcoming Dates
Dates to remember:
Mon (10/14)
- Fall Break
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser (see flyer below)
Tues (10/15)
- Guard practice begins at 4:30pm
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (5:30-8pm)
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
Thurs (10/17)
- Guard practice begins at 4:30pm
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (5:30-8pm)
- 9th grade vs Seckinger (5-8:30pm) Concessions opportunity!
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
Fri (10/18)
- Report to NHS at 4:45pm
- Homecoming game & 8th grade Band Night vs Berkmar Concessions opportunity!
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
Sat (10/19)
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (9-12pm)
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
Sun (10/20)
- Lazy Dog Fundraiser
_____________________________________________
Mon (10/21)
- Guard practice begins at 4:30pm
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (5:30-8pm)
Tues (10/22)
- Guard practice begins at 4:30pm
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (5:30-8pm)
Thurs (10/24)
- Guard practice begins at 4:30pm
- Marching Band/Guard rehearsal (5:30-8pm)
Fri (10/25)
- Report to NHS
- Away game at North Gwinnett HS
Sat (10/26)
- LaFayette Marching Classic
8th grade Band Night/HOCO
Raffle Update: Week 7
Congrats to Drawing #4 winners: Jason Katz and Eric Banks!
They each get to pick out a gift card!
459 tickets have been sold!
Meals on game day
What are my kids eating before and at the game?
Every football game, we provide your student with a 3rd quarter meal (pre-order), and for home games they also get a pre-game meal.
Pre-order meals for HOME games are always a choice of hamburger, cheeseburger, hotdog, pepperoni or cheese pizza with chips and a drink. Away game choices are determined by the hosting school. Ms. Nelkin always posts a google form on the band app for all games. If you are curious about the choices, check with your child or check the band app regularly.
Pre-game meals used to be pizza, but the school recently received a grant that provides meals to our band students on Fridays. Each students must scan a QR code even if they choose not to eat the meal that week as meals are provided based on numbers who eat them the previous week. Scanning the QR code ensures there is enough food for all students the following week.
We may get info on what the meal is a couple of days in advance at the most, but it is not guaranteed. If your student is a picky eater or has food allergies, we cannot guarantee the meal would be to their liking. It would be best to plan an alternative meal for them.
Lazy Dog Fundraiser
This fundraiser begins during the last part of our Fall Break and lasts a whole week so it’s perfect for families who are in town to go to lunch or dinner. Make sure you bring a printout of the flyer so the Band gets credit (or use the code below for online orders)!
Trunk or Treat!
Join us on Tuesday, October 29th at 6:15PM for the Friends & Family Show! The marching band will perform the entire show (props and all) just for us at the Blue Devils Stadium.
After the show, join us under the portico outside the commons for Trunk or Treat!
We invite Band families to decorate their own table and provide the goodies for our families. We will set up your table and provide a tablecloth. Sign-up for your table here: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E48A4AE23ABF9C25-52369601-trunk
We hope to see you there!
Alumni Raffle Challenge!
We've kicked off a fun challenge to reach our alumni who attend UGA or Ga Tech! See below for more details and share these four slides on social media! If you sell tickets to Norcross Band alumni who go to UGA or Tech, make sure you write the college they attend on the ticket you turn in!
Save and use this graphic on social media!
😃
The info below is for reference
Where do I find Band info?
There are 3 important places you can find specific Band info:
Our website https://www.norcrosshighband.org/ has newsletters & the google calendar for the year
CutTime has volunteer sign-ups, student account info, and will alert you to a new newsletter
The Band App has any last minute changes to schedules, important reminders, photos from practices & games, and you can post any questions you have!
Help promote Sponsorship!
Games & Competitions
All about CutTime
New CutTime options! (texts vs emails)
We heard back from CutTime and for those of you who would prefer email notifications for the weekly newsletter, you can change your preferences! CutTime uses SMS texts as the primary mode of communication, but if a member or guardian has both a cell phone AND an email, they can reply "STOP" to CutTime's phone number(s) to opt out of receiving text messages and designate email as their preferred communication method.
Note: An individual's preferred communication method currently cannot be designated in CutTime - they must reply STOP or START to toggle their preference. Hope this change is helpful to some of you!
All about RaiseRight
New Way to Earn Money for Your Student Account!
RaiseRight has introduced a new way to shop and earn money for your student account! Visit the website or update your app and you will see a new option to “Shop Online.” When you select this option, you’ll see a list of online stores and the rebate that you will earn when you visit one of these online stores through your RaiseRight account. This is a great option for those of you who prefer not to pay the credit card transaction fee or connect your checking account to your RaiseRight account. Once you click through to your choice of store or brand, your online experience should be the same as when you go directly to the store site – but when you make your purchase, a percentage of your purchase will be added to your student account. No need to purchase a gift card before shopping! You can read the terms and conditions on the RaiseRight site – there is a good FAQ with additional information.
RaiseRight Gift Card Program
RaiseRight is a gift card program that you can use to help fund your student’s band account. When you create your account & link it to the NHS band program, the rewards you earn will be credited to your student’s band account to help offset band fees. Anyone can join, so you can also invite grandparents or other family members to set up their own accounts & help fund band activities.
Here’s how it works:
RaiseRight offers electronic and physical gift cards for a wide variety of restaurants and stores. When you purchase a gift card, a percentage of that purchase goes to your student’s account. Each vendor decides on their percentage, and percentages can change - think of it like a sale. So one month, you may purchase a gift card for Home Depot for $100 that offers 2% — that means that $2 goes to your student’s account. The following month, you purchase a $100 Home Depot gift card that offers 3% — and your student account gains $3. Percentages can vary widely - recently,
L.L. Bean offered a 19% reward! Consider downloading the app so that you can easily check on current percentages for your favorite vendors.
These numbers may seem small, but they can add up quickly — and all you are doing is using gift cards to make purchases that you were already going to make. RaiseRight is a great way to fundraise for your student throughout the year, without having to ask for donations.
Ecards and Physical Cards
The program is flexible and allows you to buy electronic cards that you can store on your phone, or physical cards that you can keep or gift. If you choose to buy an electronic gift card, you can use it right away. That means you don’t have to plan ahead, or buy cards that you think you might use in the future.
If you decide to order physical cards, they will be mailed to our RaiseRight coordinator, Mary Gibson. We will provide a deadline for ordering physical cards to be included in our monthly shipment, tied to band booster meetings whenever possible. At each band booster meeting, Mary will be present distributing the pre-purchased gift cards that are part of that month’s shipment. You can pay online when you order these cards, or you can bring cash or check to the booster meeting. The band also pre-purchases physical Publix gift cards and these will be available to purchase from Mary at these meetings.
To learn more about which stores and restaurants accept RaiseRight cards, go to https://www.raiseright.com/brands.
To set up your account, go to www.raiseright.com and follow the instructions to create your account. Be sure to use this enrollment code to link your account to the NHS band: AD2EE1C314469.
If you have questions or need help, contact Mary Gibson at marytgibson@gmail.com.
For those of you using RaiseRight, please be aware that RaiseRight has updated its fee structure:
- RaiseRight has increased the convenience fee for gift card purchases using credit cards, effective on February 1. The current fee of 2.6% will increase to 3% when a credit card is used to make a gift card purchase on RaiseRight.com, and on the mobile app.
- This increase does not apply to debit card purchases (1% per transaction) or to linked bank account purchases ($0.29 per transaction).
This year's RaiseRight ordering deadlines:
Please keep in mind the following ordering deadlines for your physical gift cards from Mary:
Deadlines to be announced soon!
All about the Band App
Do you have the BAND app yet?
To join the Marching Band group, please click: https://band.us/n/a9afA4TfU6Ia0
To join the Concert/Symphonic Bands group, click: https://band.us/n/a4a2A2T6UcIbo
On the app, you can see posts from Directors and parents, ask questions, and share info and pictures. This will be where notifications will be posted for parents (i.e. When are the kids getting home from an away game? Volunteer opportunities? How do I access CutTime?). Photos from Band Camp have been posted here as well. It's a great resource for you to be able to access our Band community. Come band with us!
Sponsor Spotlight
Thank you, Dr. Shyn of Link Dental Care, for becoming a Platinum Sponsor at the $2,500 level! https://linkdentalcare.com/
Thank you, Pond and Co., for becoming a Gold Sponsor at the $1,000 level!
Thank you, City of Peachtree Corners, for becoming a Silver Sponsor at the $500 level!
Thank you, Norcross Dental Associates, for becoming a Silver Sponsor at the $500 level!
Thank you, Ben Choi & Keystone Mortgage, for becoming a Silver Sponsor at the $500 level!
Ben Choi
Broker / Owner | NMLS#: 2408861
Mortgage Loan Originator | NMLS#: 1966661
Peachtree Corners, GA
(678) 860-1190 | benchoimortgage@gmail.com
Thank you, Spalding Animal Hospital, for becoming a Bronze Sponsor at the $250 level!
Michelle Wilson
Thank you for becoming a new sponsor!
Shaw Air
Thank you for becoming a new sponsor!
Planet Smoothie
Thank you for your continuous support!
Cheeseburger Bobby's
Thank you for becoming a new sponsor!
Band Booster Board
Band Committee Members
Lyn Bishop
Lower Concessions
Emma's Mom
(11th/Drum Major)
Amber Coberly
Spirit Wear
Mason's Mom
(11th/Saxophone)
Mary Gibson
RaiseRight Gift Card Rep
Thomas' Mom
(11th/Percussion)
Laurie Gilmore Farley
Uniforms
Patrick's Mom
(11th/Percussion)
Nuria Nelkin
Pre-Orders for Game Meals
Daniel's Mom
(11th/Percussion)
Katie Saleeby
Student Accounts
Dean's Mom
(11th/Percussion)
Jessica Sapough
Chaperone Coordinator
Emily's Mom
(12th/Flute)
Jill Von Hagen
Newsletter/Raffle
Charlotte's Mom
(10th/Flute)
Robin Whitesides
Concert Attire
Caroline's Mom
(11th/Guard)
Ginny Wurtemburg
Pre-Game Meals
Maggie's Mom
(10th/Guard)
Chad Saleeby
Co-Lead of Pit Crew
Dean's Dad
(11th/Percussion)
Rob Whitesides
Co-Lead of Pit Crew
Caroline's Dad
(11th/Guard)
Norcross Bands
Email: norcrosshighband@gmail.com
Website: www.norcrosshighband.org
Location: 5300 Spalding Drive, Norcross, GA, USA
Phone: (770) 326-8066
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NorcrossHighSchoolBand