Dear Winter Park Band families,

What a fun first week of school! All the classes had a productive week and did great work setting up our routines for the school year.

This week is our first football game of the year! The SOTW will travel to Jones HS and perform both in the stands during the game and at halftime on the field. Students will wear their Summer Uniform for this week's game - same uniform as the pep rally this past week. Each week, a full itinerary will be sent for our football game performances. That itinerary can be found on the Band website, linked above in the football game event, and attached to the message sent out to students and parents/guardians.

Water Bottle Donations Needed: The Band is in need of water bottle donations. We provide bottles of water to our students at many events as well as providing water bottles to visiting marching bands at our home football games. Donated water bottles need to be 12oz, no smaller. This year, we will be giving a prize to the section of the marching band that brings in the most water donations. Please clearly mark a donated pack of water bottles with the student name and section. Water donations can be dropped off at any time in the Band room, and donations are due by Friday, 8/23. Thank you in advance!

This week continues our regular Tuesday evening and Thursday after school rehearsal schedule for the Sound of the Wildcats. Tuesday evening rehearsals are scheduled from 6 - 8:30 PM and Thursdays from 2:45 - 5 PM. This schedule rarely changes so our families are able to consistently plan their weeks. On Tuesday evenings, students must be dropped off to school between 5:30 - 5:45 PM so they can have enough time to prepare for rehearsal and be on their spot at 6 PM. All of our Band events start promptly at the time indicated on the calendar, and as the old adage goes:

"To be early is to be on time, to be on time is to be late, to be late is unacceptable."

Keep up the great work selling Sponsorships! An update on the fundraiser is located below from Julie Capps.

If you ordered extra show shirts, they will be sent home with your student Tuesday, August 20th after practice. More information in the update from Andrea Rediske and Jenniffer Randolph below.

Next Monday, 8/26, we will hold a Chicago Tour Information Meeting in the Band room from 7 - 8 PM. During the meeting we will discuss the preliminary itinerary of the trip, the events students will perform/participate in, and the preliminary quoted cost. We'll also talk about how to utilize fundraisers to offset the cost of your trip. The trip is open to all Winter Park Band students regardless of grade level, instrument, or ensemble placement, and all instrumentalists on the trip will have at least one performance opportunity.

Together, let's make it a great week!

Mr. Clemente

The Winter Park Band Sponsorship and Student Dedication Program is off to a strong start! Thank you to the families and local businesses who have already contributed and CONGRATULATIONS to the students who have earned credit from those sales.

As a reminder, students have two options for earning that financial credit:

• Sell a multi-level Sponsorship to a local business
• Sell a Student Dedication in the band program

Students can earn up to 60% credit or $1000 max from each sponsorship they sell. Students will earn the same 60% credit for any Student Dedication sold. For additional context, a parent who purchases a full-page Student Dedication will earn enough credit back to their student’s account to cover their annual fair share payment of $255, minus $15.

Sales close September 27, 2024, so we can have all ads in for the first concert of the season in October.

More information can be found on the band website here: http://www.winterparkhsband.com/band-boosters.html

If you have any questions, contact Julie Capps at wpbandprogram@gmail.com or 704-258-3306.

Thank you for your partnership in supporting the Winter Park High Band!

Please keep reaching out to businesses for sponsorships or donations. Remember that your personal contacts are the best way to encourage companies to sponsor or individuals to donate.

We launch Widdy-Up fundraiser in one week!! August 26-Sept 9

This is our second fundraiser that out of town family and friends can participate in!

The first is our student dedications that can be purchased by anyone until Sept 27th for any grade, section or the whole band. Your student keeps 60% of the value in their own band account.

Our second fundraiser, Widdy Up, uses a video pitch to send to friends and family asking for donations. Donors receive a special video thank you that's unique for donors. It's a very personal way to connect with donors instead of only an email. Please start making a list NOW of who your child will send their Widdy-Up pitch to. If you need to ask friends and family in advance if your student can send them this fundraiser info, please find out ahead of the kick-off date.

I asked Widdy Up and was assured that they DO NOT sell, rent or share any of the contact info that students upload into their Widdy Up account. Please feel confident to share contacts for this fundraiser, as it has the potential to raise a lot of money.

If you have other fundraising ideas for the band, that you know to be successful and not too much planning involved, please email or reach out to me.

Robyn Fodor

wpbandfundraising@gmail.com

Hello Parents!

We are busily getting your students fitted so that they will look amazing on the field and in the auditorium, but still have about 95 students to fit, and we need your help with a few details:

• Please send compression shorts with your student to practice on Tuesdays and to school on Thursdays for after school practice. This will help expedite the fitting process.
• Here are the upcoming fitting events for students who have not yet been fitted:
• Tuesday, August 19th at 5:00 pm before practice
• Thursday August 21st at 5:00 pm after practice
• **If your student has not been fitted, please either plan to drop off your student early on Tuesday or pick them up a little late on Thursday, it would help us a lot!

§ Here are the sections that have not yet been fitted: Trumpets, Trombones, Mellophones, and Sousaphones, along with new students and students who didn’t make it to band camp

• If you have time and are available to help with fittings, please click here!

We have our first football game on Friday, August 23rd. Here’s a reminder of what the students will need to wear on the field:

• Current Beatlemania show shirt
• Khaki shorts
• Brown or black belt
• Athletic shoes and socks

If you ordered extra show shirts, they will be sent home with your student Tuesday, August 20th after practice.

We have some uniforms that need professional tailoring. If you have professional tailoring experience and/or equipment OR if you’d be willing to help us find one, please email us.

Finally, we want to give a special shout-out to all the uniform volunteers who have helped us so far! Curry Browne, Lissette Dennis, Robyn Fodor, Vanessa Irons, Beth Lybarger, Jen Martin, Jen Mullins, Yessenia Ortiz, Harlika Watzman

Thanks for helping us make your student look great!

Andrea Rediske (andrea.rediske@gmail.com)

Jenniffer Randolph (jenrandolph13@gmail.com)

Good news volunteers! I am lifting the restriction on signing up for multiple games; please sign up for whichever games you are interested in helping out with. We still need a few adults for the first game. I encourage you to try and volunteer at least one game! It is a lot of fun to see how hard the students work both on and off the field, and get to know the other students and parents better. There will be descriptions of duties when you arrive but if you have questions feel free to reach out to me at wphsbandvolunteers@gmail.com

The uniform team is still looking for help during Tuesday rehearsals. There are spots for fitting kids and spots for light sewing repairs.

Both Sign Up Genius links are here: http://www.winterparkhsband.com/quick-links.html

If you have not tried to log in as of yet, CUT TIME (our data management platform) is moving to an updated software. Our WPHS Orchestra program has already made the switch, and I've heard many good reviews from Mrs. Bitters.

You should be receiving a text message soon that looks like the message below. Please DO NOT reply "STOP" to these messages. Setup your account as soon as possible to be able to view announcements, calendar events, inventory assignments, and most importantly financials.

August 23: Away Football Game, 5 - 10 PM, Jones HS

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August 29: Home Football Game, 5 - 10 PM, Showalter Field

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September 2: No School, Labor Day Holiday

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September 13: Middle School Night Home Football Game, 4:30 - 10 PM, Showalter Field

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September 21: All-State Auditions, Ocoee HS, 9 AM - 4 PM

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September 27: Away Football Game, 4:30 - 10 PM, Freedom HS

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October 1: Away Football Game, 5 - 8 PM, Edgewater HS

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October 10: Home Football Game, 5 - 10 PM, Showalter Field

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October 11: Jazz Ensemble 1 @ WPAAF, 8 - 10 AM, Downtown WP

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October 14: No School

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October 16: Homecoming Parade, 4 - 7 PM, Downtown WP

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October 17: FALL BAND CONCERT & 85th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION, 7 PM, WPHS Auditorium

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October 18: Homecoming Football Game, 5 - 10 PM, Showalter Field

PAST DUE BAND PAYMENTS

• BAND
• Wednesday, July 31, 2024
• Fair Share Payment - $225 OR Fair Share Payment 1 - $100
• Marching Band Shoe (if needed) - $45

• COLOR GUARD
• Wednesday, July 31, 2024
• Fall Fair Share Payment - $325 OR Fair Share Payment 1 - $100
• Marching Band Shoe (if needed) - $45

Whether a student is learning a musical instrument to pursue a career in music, or simply for personal musical fulfillment and recreation, private lessons are one of the best investments that a parent can provide for their musical child. When working with a private teacher, students receive one-on-one instruction from a professional musician who specializes on that instrument.

​Unlike a full band rehearsal experience, studying with a private teacher focuses in on the student’s individual needs. Students who study privately once a week from a professional musician are usually those who excel and find Band more enjoyable. These students frequently earn positions in honor groups like All-State and All-County, and make entry into our more advanced bands like Wind Symphony and Jazz Ensemble I. Some even go on to earn college scholarships, even if they are not majoring in music!

Below is a link to a list of local private teachers. This list is not exhaustive, and there may be other individuals who are not on the list. If you are a private teacher who would like to be added to our list (or deleted), or know a private teacher who should be added, please contact Mr. Clemente at michael.clemente@ocps.net.

http://www.winterparkhsband.com/private-teachers.html

We've been posting lots of photos our social media platforms, and we will continue to post updates, photos, video, and other media to those pages throughout the year. Follow the Band!

• Facebook: @winterparkhsband
• Instagram: @winterparkhsband @wphs_flutes @wphsclarinets @wpsaxes @wphs_trumpets @wphs.trombones @wphstubas @winterparkhspercussion @winterparkcolorguard @wphs.drumajors
• YouTube: @winterparkhsband
• Twitter: @wphs_bands
• Tik Tok: @winterparkhsband

Email: michael.clemente@ocps.net
Website: www.winterparkhsband.com
Location: 2100 Summerfield Road, Winter Park, FL, USA
Phone: 4076223200
Facebook: www.facebook.com/winterparkhsband