In This Issue
- Important Message from Mr. Mangleson
- Rehearsal Schedule for Friday and Saturday
- Competition and Camp Food Help
- Water Bottles for Competitions
- Extra-curricular Activity Policy
- 2018-19 Preliminary Schedule
- First-Year Parent Questions
- Booster Meeting Minutes
- Volunteers Needed
- Registation Clean-up
- Rose Parade Video Competition
- Parking Reminder
- Upcoming Events
- Upcoming Rehearsals
There are 112 days until the 2018 Rose Parade. Rose Parade fun fact of the week: More than 1,100 women typically audition to be Rose Parade queen each year.
Important Message from Mr. Mangleson
Students and parents,
Over this weekend, I’ve taken a lot of time to reflect on what has transpired so far this season. I found it not coincidental due to recent world events how important and inspired the Tournament of Roses president was when he came up with the theme “Making a Difference” for this year’s parade. I felt so strongly about the message of the theme that I wanted our field show this year to coincide with that theme.
We chose to do a show with uplifting music and a heartfelt message that everyone really can make a difference if they choose to. I’m so excited to share our show with the audiences and judges. I truly believe that the music written this year is the best we’ve ever had and that the visual design is truly superior as well.
Westlake’s school motto is “light and excellence.” I feel that it is always important that whatever product you put in front of the public must always be top notch and our very best representation of the school, its mission, and the legacy of others that have come before that helped build this band program.
Our show is progressing, but after the limited things we were able to accomplish Saturday due to the late start; soggy, wet field; sporadic rain; as well as the rehearsal time we lost this week due to all the homecoming activities and bad weather, the staff and I have decided that we are not going to perform at Weber this Saturday. Instead, we will be taking the two days this weekend we have scheduled to get where we need to be to represent ourselves well at Nebo, our first actual judged competition, the following weekend.
We are not asking for any more time than what we have scheduled already, but would rather use the time on Saturday scheduled for loading, unloading, travel to and from Ogden, etc. for learning music, doing pass-offs, practicing, and cleaning drill instead. We still want to put on a performance for the parents and provide an opportunity for the students to perform as well, but we will just do it at the high school instead of at Weber State.
In summary, we want the first impressions of our show to the public, other bands, and the judges to be our absolute best! This time will allow us to do that the following weekend at Nebo in Payson.
Below is our schedule for Friday and Saturday. Rehearsals for the rest of the week are normal as indicated on the regular calendar.
Please continue to encourage your students to pass off their music and to do everything necessary so that they can be prepared for this final week of rehearsals before our competitions begin. If your students have expressed frustrations about the season so far–about it not being fun and rewarding, for example–I encourage you to have a discussion with them and ask if they are truly doing everything they can to be prepared and as positive as possible. Are they being uplifting to those around them and encouraging them, and offering their assistance to help those who are struggling?
I wholeheartedly believe that there’s nothing more fun than being really good at something. They’ve all been given bracelets that have that exact message on it to be a reminder. We just need to keep working on our show to get to that point and the rewards will come!
I’m truly looking forward to sharing our message and show with the rest of the state and circuit. I’m excited to see how it all comes together. Good things are yet to come and it’s absolutely not too late to finish strong and come out just as prepared, if not more prepared, than any other season before. Our show is a winning show. All the elements are there, we just have to believe that first and make it happen! “Everyone DOES Make a Difference.” Let’s start first by believing in ourselves.
Take a few minutes to watch this short clip with your child. https://youtu.be/qCzgK_DoKB4. I love the message. I think it is very relevant right now to our current status in the season. It’s time to make music and have some fun!!
Mr. Mangelson
Rehearsal Schedule for Friday and Saturday
Friday
- 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Sectionals, music pass-off time for those who haven’t passed off all of their music yet (everyone as of right now)
- 6:00 PM to 6:45 PM – Dinner break (pizza being provided by the boosters)
- 6:45 PM to 7:00 PM – Warm up and tuning
- 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM – Full ensemble in south parking lot
Guard will be working on their own as a section on Friday during the same times.
Saturday – Cleaning Camp
- 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM – Drill cleaning block – everyone – part 1 and 2
- 12:00 PM to 12:45 PM – Lunch break (bring your own sack lunch)
- 12:45 PM to 2:45 PM – Warm up and sectionals (all percussion on field together, guard separate from band)
- 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Full ensemble on field including guard, drum break
- 5:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Dinner provided by boosters
- 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM – Full ensemble on main football field
- 8:00 PM to 8:40 PM – Practice getting on and off field with parent help
- 8:45 PM to 9:00 PM – Full performance run with parents
- 9:00 PM – All done! Put equipment away
All parents and family are invited and encouraged to come watch our final performance.
Competition and Camp Food Help
As you know, we will be serving dinner for the cleaning camp on Friday. We will need some help to get them through the line quickly to give them as much time to eat as possible. We will be doing prep work, serving, and clean up. If you are willing to help, please sign up through this link: http://www.signupgenius.com/
We still have a few items needed for the meals and snacks for our first two competitions. Here is the signup for that if you are able to donate. http://www.signupgenius.com/
Please take careful note of the times for dropping off food items at the band room. If you are not able to make these times, please coordinate with Becky Barney by email at beckybarney6@gmail.com or call or text 914-439-7534 to arrange another time.
Thank you!
Water Bottles for Competitions
This year we are asking students to bring their water bottle with them to competitions. We will provide water cups to the students when they are in uniform going on and off the field, but for meals and times they are not in uniform, students will use their own water bottles. We are hoping to cut down on the number of cups we use for each event and hope this will save us a little money and a little waste over the long run.
Extra-curricular Activity Policy
We have been advised by the Westlake administration that the following policy will now be in effect:
We will be monitoring extra-curricular excusals during school time. Students who have excessive tardies that result in an “NC” will not be excused to leave school during school time until the NC is made up. Additionally, if students are currently failing a class, then they will not be given the privilege of being excused for extracurricular activities during school time until they demonstrate that they are passing their classes. This may mean that some students miss field trips, meets, and games.
Teachers, if you have a student that appears on an excuse list and they have an NC or a failing grade in your class, then please notify the administrator over that student. Being excused from class for a school-related activity is a privilege and students need to understand that “School Comes First”.
2018-19 Preliminary Schedule
We have had questions about potential blackout dates for the 2018-19 band season from families who are trying to schedule family reunions and camps next summer. We are providing this information with the specific disclaimer that these are best guess dates and they are subject to change. They should be pretty reliable, but we haven’t even completed this season yet, so we are going out on a limb to provide dates for next year. Thank you for doing all you can to avoid conflicts, we hope the following info will be helpful.
- After school rehearsals will start the second week of May (excused absence needed to miss)
- Basics camps weeks of May 12th and 19th – Mandatory and cannot be excused
- City parades in Eagle Mountain on June 2 and Saratoga Springs on June 9
- Drum camp week of June 4 – Mandatory for percussion
- Off weeks June 11 to July 16, rehearsals start July 9
- Band camp week of July 30 – Mandatory
- Pregame camp week of August 6 – Mandatory
- No Days of ’47 parade, but we will likely do the Draper and/or American Fork parades
We have done our best to estimate the schedule, but please remember that these are preliminary dates.
First-Year Parent Questions
An email came in this week from a first-year parent asking a number of questions that a probably on the minds of other first-year parents, so here is a Q&A with hope it will help others as well.
Q: Are families allowed to come to competitions? A: Yes! We LOVE to have a cheering section. Details on performance times are added to the calendar on the website as we get them–usually about a week or so before each competition.
Q: How much do competitions cost per person to get in? A: The regular season competitions usually cost around $5 per person to get in. Even if you volunteer with the band, you will have to pay to get in. The only exception is those who pull props on the field and we know who those are before we get there. If you would like to help with this, please contact Charlotte Ducos and she will forward your name to the volunteer who oversees pit and props at competitions. The competitions in St. George usually charge a slightly higher fee, between $7-10.
Q: Where are competitions held? A: Most of our regular season competitions are held at high schools, but we also have one at Utah State and one at BYU. We march on the football field at these locations, so when you show up to a competition, you are looking for the stadium.
Q: What times do competitions start and end? A: This depends on the competition. We get the majority of the details usually a week or two before each competition and the details are added to the calendar on the band website as soon as we receive them. Go to the calendar, click on the competition date, and the details will be in the description. We will also include the details in our Monday emails as soon as we have them.
Q: When should we expect our children home after the competitions? A: This depends on our performance time and where the competition is held. They will be home very late, possibly after midnight when we travel to Logan to perform at Utah State. The Tuesday evening BYU competition is also a very late competition. The more help we have loading and unloading, the sooner we get them home. Most local competitions will get them home by 9:00 or 10:00 PM, if not earlier. Again, check the calendar details online as each competitions approaches, we also post an anticipated time that we will arrive back at the school.
Q: What are the details regarding the St. George trip? A: We will not have schedule details for St. George until we get much closer to those dates but you can plan your travel with the details we do have. Students will leave on Thursday so they can rehearse that afternoon and get settled in St George. Our first competition will be on Friday during the day. We also anticipate performing that evening. We also perform Saturday morning and anticipate performing in finals Saturday evening as well. We travel home on Sunday. The band will be staying at the Best Western Coral Hills in St. George. We do not have rooms available for parents through the band, but you are welcome to call the hotel or another hotel in that area to book a room. We love to have family and friends there to cheer us on! Detailed times and locations will be available as we get closer to the scheduled dates.
Booster Meeting Minutes
Thank you to all who came to the booster meeting on Thursday night. Please see the minutes from that meeting attached to this email and posted on the website.
Most notably, Mr. Twitchell and other administrators were in attendance to announce that Alpine School District has increased our band rotation money to $80,000!! It is divided into $40,000 for uniforms and $40,000 for equipment, but we have been given permission to use the full amount to pay for our uniforms. This is fantastic news and allows us to use funds raised to offset fees. We will have information coming soon to let you know how much we are able to offset.
We originally had to send some of our funds to pay the down payment for the uniforms. We will be able to transfer that money back. Once those transfers have been made and money budgeted properly for competition food, as previously discussed, we will do the calculations and provide an update.
Please take time to thank Rhonda Bromley at the the Alpine School District for working to get this rotation money increased. This is a complete game–changer for our program as this increase will continue in the future.
Please take a minute to glance through our meeting notes and we look forward to seeing you at our next booster meeting on October 5 at 7:30 PM in the band room.
Volunteers Needed
We are currently looking for a couple of volunteers.
First, we are looking for someone who would be interested in being our band booster secretary. Ours is now doing uniforms. The secretary is responsible to help take notes and to do the newsletter and tracking for our alumni group.
We also need someone to head up a service project we will be doing while in Pasadena for the Rose Parade. There will be legwork that needs to be done in the coming months to prepare and then we will carry it out in Pasadena. It would be great if this person will be IN Pasadena, but we could also make it work if they cannot attend.
Please contact Charlotte Ducos if you would like to help with either of these positions. (cdducos@gmail.com)
Registation Clean-up
Sharon Mardesich will be doing another review of RegisterMyAthlete and report cards this week. If you still have any outstanding items, please make sure they are updated right away. Remember that your student can be removed from participation for failing to complete physicals and submit grades and paperwork. Please contact Sharon at smardesich@alpinedistrict.org if you have any questions.
Rose Parade Video Competition
A while back we asked for pictures and video that we could use to create a video that highlights our band and the ways we make a difference in our community. Our video has been created and entered in the Tournament of Roses social media contest and now it is time to go vote for our video.
You can find AND VOTE FOR our video at the link provided below. Go take a look and vote, and then please post the link on social media and ask your friends and family to vote for our video! Go Thunder!
http://www.tournamentofroses.
Parking Reminder
In accordance with Westlake policy and for the safety of your students, please do not park along the curb or driveway areas in front of the band room or the football field. Blocking these lanes creates an unsafe situation where students cross the driving lane with low visibility.
A quick pickup is fine if your student is on the curb ready to hop in the vehicle, but if you are waiting for your child to finish practice and come to the car, please move to the parking lot to wait. If your child is not in sight and heading to the car, please proceed to the nearest parking stall. There are parking stalls available both by the band room and the football field.
In addition to the policy and safety issues, we are heading into the portion of the season where students are moving heavy equipment and props to and from the field each day. This also poses a risk of vehicle damage if equipment comes into contact with a vehicle. The best way to keep our students, equipment, and your vehicle safe is to use the parking lot rather than the driveway.
Upcoming Events
- September 22 – Home football game vs. Bingham
- September 23 – Nebo Tournament of Bands (Payson High School)
- September 29 – Home football game vs. Pleasant Grove
- September 30 – Bridgerland Band Invitational (Utah State University)
- October 7 – Wasatch Marching Band Competition (Herriman High School)
- October 10 – Rocky Mountain Invitational (BYU)
- October 14 – Davis Cup (Davis High School)
- October 18 – Home football game vs. Taylorsville
- October 28 – Mt. Timpanogos Marching Band Competition (Pleasant Grove High School)
Upcoming Rehearsals
- September 11 – 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 12 – 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM – Percussion sectional
- September 13 – 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 14 – 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 15 – 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Percussion sectional
- September 16 – 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM – Cleaning camp
- September 18 – 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 19 – 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM – Percussion sectional
- September 20 – 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 21 – 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM – Marching band rehearsal
- September 22 – 3:00 PM to 5:00 PM – Pregame rehearsal
You are receiving this email because of your association with the Westlake High School band program. If you no longer have a student at Westlake or wish to be removed from the mailing list, contact us at thunderbandnews@gmail.com or reply to this message to be removed from the mailing list.
This email has been sent via Charms Office Assistant on behalf of:
Westlake High School Band
99 North 200 West
Saratoga Springs, UT 84045