This month’s indoor calendar can be downloaded and printed by clicking this link. Our Google Calendar and BAND App have been updated as well!
January Indoor Percussion schedule – updated
The January 2019 indoor percussion schedule has been updated, please note that the Sunday January 20th practice has been moved to the 27th.
Families can download the updated January calendar by clicking this link. It has also been updated on the Google calendar as well as on the BAND app. Thank you!
Thanksgiving football game itinerary for November 22, 2018
The itinerary for the upcoming Thanksgiving football game has been emailed out to all families, and can also be found by clicking this link.
Itinerary for MetLife, mattress sale & raffle calendar info, parent meeting, and more!
This week’s itinerary was sent out to band & guard families via email today, and can also be found at this link. Please be sure to download it, print it, and post it in a prominent place!
MetLife parent meeting
We’ll be having a parent meeting to go over the MetLife itinerary and details on Tuesday, November 6 at 8:30pm. All parents should plan to be there to speak with your child’s assigned chaperone and exchange contact details. We’ll also have information on activities the following day.
Mattress fundraiser
Our mattress fundraiser is back for another year! A fundraising representative will be at our parent meeting on 11/06 to discuss the fundraiser in detail, and the DSMA will receive $10 for every family that signs in when they arrive at the meeting! With 115 kids in the band/guard, that should be some easy funds to raise. A referral flyer for the mattress sale can be found on our Fundraising page.
Chance calendar fundraiser
This month our students can sell chance calendars for $10, which will draw winners throughout the month of December. For more information, and to download calendars to sell, please visit our Fundraising page.
Itinerary for 10/31 – 11/3 – football, Danbury show, & NESBA Finals
An updated itinerary for the remainder of the week went out today to all of our marching band & guard families, and can also be downloaded by clicking here. Here’s a quick rundown!
Football – the game originally scheduled for Friday has been moved to Thursday night at 7pm due to weather concerns. If you are available to volunteer in our concession stand, please email davemeatty@dsmahome.org!
Competitions – on Saturday our band & guard will be performing at US Bands regional championships in Danbury CT, and on Sunday we’ll be in Lawrence for NESBA finals. Performance times are listed on the itinerary, and tickets for Danbury are still available for $15 from the DSMA. Tickets will be available at the Thursday football game as well as during dropoff on Saturday morning. Due to some weather-related rescheduling, we had some chaperones who aren’t able to help on Sunday so if you have a CORI on file and you would like to help chaperone NESBA Finals, please email russbenoit@dsmahome.org.
MetLife meeting – the plan is to have a parent meeting on Tuesday November 6, time TBD to go over US Bands Nationals at MetLife. We’ll also have a representative on-hand to go over the upcoming mattress fundraiser and the company will donate $10 for every family that attends the meeting!
Finally, we wanted to extend our thanks to all of the parents who traveled with the band to New Britain on Tuesday, or met us in the lot there to help out with the props and pit. Due to the mid-week show, an extremely rare occurrence, we did not have a number of staff and parents available to build our trees and help move our pit equipment. Our kids, our staff, and the DSMA board greatly appreciate you taking the time to help make sure our kids had a successful show!
Tuesday 10/30 update – middle school uniforms, instruments, and more
Here are a few more updates with info on the timeline tomorrow for the special event taping, and the rescheduled New Britain competition.
-After rehearsal this afternoon, the truck will be loaded with the pit instruments, and instrument cases. Students will take their instrument directly on the bus tomorrow to the event taping. High school students will help bring the instruments used by middle schoolers, so they don’t have to worry about bringing them on the bus to school tomorrow morning without a case.
-High schoolers should have their uniform bag with BOTH uniforms at the high school for the end of rehearsal today. Middle schoolers should bring their uniform bags to school with them tomorrow (Tuesday). They will change into their GREEN football uniform at DMS, and the buses will pick up all middle schoolers after leaving the high school, on the way to the special event taping.
-The DSMA still has tickets for sale for tomorrow night’s US Bands competition in CT. If you are planning on heading to the show, PLEASE purchase your tickets in advance from the DSMA for $15/each. Sue Benoit will be at rehearsal today from 4:40-5pm with tickets.
UPDATED ITINERARY – NE States show rescheduled to 10/30
All families should have received an UPDATED itinerary via email tonight… yes it’s an update to the updated itinerary that went out earlier today.
You can find the update to the update by clicking this link!
Our band & guard kids will be rehearsing at the stadium from 12-2:30 on Tuesday, with the special event taking place from 9:30-11. Middle school kids will be included in the special event – BK and Mr Sousa are still working out the logistics for that due to last-minute schedule change with the special event in the morning. The band will depart for CT at 3:15 from the stadium and are still due to return around midnight.
If you have any questions, please feel free to email russbenoit@dsmahome.org!
Itinerary for Week of October 22 – US Bands NE States show (New Britain)
This week’s itinerary has been emailed out to families, and can be downloaded by clicking this link. This Saturday will be our first of two shows in Connecticut as the season ramps up to Nationals at MetLife Stadium! Our online Google calendar has been updated to reflect the rehearsal, performance, and return times as well.
The DSMA has tickets on sale for both shows for $15 each. US Bands requires us to sell 90 tickets for the New Britain show, so buy your tickets from us and save $5 on each ticket! You can pay in person, or you can easily pay online by clicking this link.
Don’t forget about our wreaths and poinsettia fundraiser! This is always one of our most popular fundraisers, and is a hit at the holidays.
Itinerary for week of Oct 15 – US Bands Somerset, CT show tickets, and more!
Itinerary
This week’s itinerary was emailed out to all band and guard families, and can also be found by clicking this link. We have a football game on Friday, and a US Bands competition in Somerset on Saturday.
CT Regional tickets for sale
The DSMA has tickets for both upcoming Connecticut US Bands regional events- 10/27 in New Britain, and 11/03 in Danbury. Tickets are $15 each, and you will save $5 by purchasing them through the DSMA. We ask that if you plan on going, that you buy the tickets in advance as we are required to sell 90 tickets for the New Britain show. Tickets will be available during pickup at the end of every Tuesday and Thursday rehearsal, please see Russ Benoit to purchase them, or pick them up if you purchase them online.
Uniform care
Our marching band members are wearing white uniforms and white shoes, and they can become dirty quickly. It is extremely important that the uniform pants be cleaned and ironed before every competition! As the season starts to reach it’s most important shows, every little thing counts. Please have your student remove their uniform from the bag after every competition to wash it, and also clean their white shoes.
THANK YOU Parents!
The DSMA would like to thank all of the parents who have stepped up to volunteer at our football games, chaperone competitions, and help with props and pit equipment. It’s on us as parents to ensure everything is taken care of behind the scenes, so our students can confidently take the field and put on the best show they’re capable of. If you would like to volunteer to help with equipment or chaperone any of the remaining competitions, please email Russ Benoit.
Itinerary for Week of October 8 – Cranston (US Bands) and New Bedford (NESBA) Competitions
This week’s itinerary can be viewed & downloaded by clicking this link. It has also been emailed out to all marching band and color guard families. Our students will have a busy weekend, with a football game on Friday night, a competition on Saturday night in Cranston, and an afternoon competition on Sunday in New Bedford. Please have students bring their football uniform (green pants and jacket) to rehearsal on Thursday night.
REMINDER – The Cranston show takes place at Stebbins Stadium, not Cranston East High School. The address on the itinerary and our online calendar will bring you to Stebbins Stadium.
NE States tickets will be available for purchase shortly! We’ll send out an announcement with more information shortly. Tickets are $15 and we are required to sell 90 tickets. If you purchase your tickets from the DSMA, you will save $5 per ticket (they are $20 at the gate).
Finally, THANK YOU to everyone who attended our Chipotle fundraiser on Tuesday night! It was a huge success for us last year, and we’re hoping it’s just as successful this year as well.