| AFM Newsletter
Copies of the AFM Newsletter mailings just in case you've misplaced yours. February 6, 2008 Jon Grantham
*** AMADOR MUSIC STUDENT HONORED!
On January 14th, the Peralta District PTA, representing 160 schools in Alameda County held their annual Reflections Program ceremony. Of the twenty-one entries that Peralta District will send to the California State PTA for state level judging, three students were from Amador Valley High School!
Congratulations to the following students:
Alana McConnell - Photography
Mike Chen - Literature
Ted Newman - Musical Composition
State winners will be announced at the California State PTA Convention to be held May 1-4 in Long Beach.
The Reflections Program, sponsored by the National PTA, is an arts recognition and achievement program for students. It provides opportunities for students to express themselves creatively and to receive positive recognition for original works of art inspired by this year's theme, "I Can Make A Difference By-"
*** AMADOR STUDENTS SHINE AT ALL-COUNTY HONORS BAND!
Congratulations to Jina Choi, Ben Donlon, Matt Donlon, Sammie Flanzbaum, Allison Gehl, Anthony Sanchez, Robbie Sheppard and Chris Todd on earning spots in this past
weekend's Alameda County Honor Band.
*** AMADOR WINTERGUARD SHINES AT HOMESHOW!
Congrats to the AVHS Winterguard on taking home 2nd place honors out of 7 in class at the Amador home show on Saturday. Good luck to the guard as they travel to Ceres this weekend for their first WGI regional of the year. Thank you to all of the student and parent volunteers on wearing smiles despite the weather on Saturday. You were the stars of the evening! And also a special thank you to show coordinators Jill Zollinger and Ginnelle Dowdy for yet another fine show-the two of you were amazing!
*** AMADOR JAZZ BANDS SHINE AT FOLSOM JAZZ FESTIVAL!
Congratulations to the AVHS jazz bands on outstanding performances at the Folsom Jazz Festival. The "B" band earned an overall excellent rating (second highest rating
possible) with one judge awarding them a superior rating. They ranked 5th out of 12 in a very tough AAA division competing against the top jazz bands from several schools. The "A" band earned an overall superior rating (the highest possible) finishing 5th out of 13 in the AAAA division.
*** London Registration :
Wednesday, Feb. 6th 7-8:30 pm
Final Deadlines Below!
*** LONDON PAYMENT INFORMATION
A $200 down payment is due at registration, 2/2 or 2/6, of which $100 is non-refundable. There will be no refunds made after May 1, 2008.
If you have your passport number and expiration date, please bring them with you to registration. (*See passport information below)
London fees may be paid by check or by a transfer from your student's account. AFM is unable to offer financial assistance to students traveling to London.
If you are unable to attend either registration date, please download the registration form from the band website and mail in both form and payment to the address below. Payments must be received by February 28th. (March 15th for incoming freshmen)
Please mail payments to:
AFM
c/o Cindy Gehl
4517 Shearwater Road
Pleasanton, CA 94566
Do not place London Payments in the box in the bandroom!
Payments must be received by the due dates. Late payments may result in cancellation.
A full payment schedule will be available at the London Trip Registration or online at:
amadorband.org,
Important-
Passport information:
Passports must be valid for 6 months beyond time of travel; therefore, expiration date needs to be June 2009 or beyond.
Allow a minimum of 4-6 weeks for passport to be processed.
Passport information can be found at: http://www.usps.com/passport/
*** London Registration Deadlines
The London Committee
We have had a few questions about a final registration date for our upcoming London trip. We are providing these dates to avoid any confusion.
For current students, the last date to submit your down payment is February 28th.
For incoming freshmen, the last date is March 15th.
Once the down payment is submitted, the current payment schedule should be adhered to.
London Trip Chaperone Information
Thanks to all of you who have shown an interest in being a chaperone for the London trip. The following is information that will hopefully allow you to make a final decision as to whether you would like to be a chaperone. Since we do not yet know the exact number of students traveling, it is difficult to determine how many chaperones we will need. Ideally, we would like one chaperone per six students. Chaperones will be accepted in the order in which they make their down payment.
Chaperones must be adults traveling with the band. The job of chaperoning will be a full time commitment; therefore other family members, children or spouses may not travel with the band. Couples may chaperone but may not be traveling with other children. Families are welcome to travel independently and join the band at their public performances or free times. Families will not be accommodated on the band's scheduled sightseeing tours.
At this time, we can offer a $200 discount to adults who travel with the band as a chaperone. It is hopeful that enough money will be raised at The Magic of Music that we will be able to offer further discounts, however it cannot be guaranteed. Chaperones will follow the same payment schedule as the students. Student Account money cannot be used to pay for chaperones.
If you have further questions, contact Cindy Gehl at gehl4s@pacbell.net or 426-1481.
New Chaperone Note:
Many parents have asked if they would be able to chaperone their child's group in London. We will try to make that happen but cannot guarantee it. If 2 students in a single group each have their parents chaperoning, it would not be possible for both parents to chaperone one group. However, the students will have the opportunity to select their own group. If it is important to them for their parent to be their chaperone, they may have to choose their group with that in mind. Also remember that a lot of the sightseeing in London will be done as a large group on tour buses. Even if you were not your child's chaperone, you would be able to spend time with them on these tours.
Air Travel Option to London
Many families have asked if they can travel with their child to London prior to the scheduled trip.
Youth Music will offer a package, which does not include airfare. The fee would change from $2500 to $1700 based on $1.95/pound. You would be responsible for arranging ROUNDTRIP airfare for your child.
Please note that we must communicate this to Youth Music before the contract is signed. Once it is signed, the airfare cannot be deducted. You must commit to this option by March 1.
*** Campana Jazz Festival
Marilyn Palowitch
Wanted: 1 BAND PARENT (Jazz parents need not apply)
The LAST CAMPANA JOB OF THE WEEK for CJF33 is literally the LAST job; all others are filled. (Simply amazed and grateful.)
Job Title: INSTRUMENT CHECK. Ideal qualifications: Book-loving, non-jazz parent, with 2 hours to spare this Saturday, Feb. 9, from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm.
Description: You will be sitting in the Wrestling Room, making sure the instruments stored in there are attended. While the students store instruments at their own risk, we provide monitors to be sure there is no loitering.
Special circumstances: This job has been hard-to-fill, because it is during the awards concert, where both of the Jazz A and Jazz B kids are playing. All the Jazz parents do want to see their kids perform. Consider this a special favor to your friends in jazz.
Benefits: You may pickup your volunteer ID badge early in the day, allowing you to see all of the Performances prior to your assignment. No wristband purchase required! Please let me know: marilynpalowitch@comcast.net and thank you!
The 33rd Campana Jazz Festival and the Campana Jazz Weekend is just days away!
Top ten things you can do to get ready and get psyched!
1.Play some jazz this week to get in the mood.
2. Tell someone about the festival.
3. Place these Pleasanton Emergency numbers in your cell phone. (911 on a cell phone experiences delays.)
Police - Emergency: 931-5122
Police - Non-Emergency: 931-5100
Fire : 373-5400
4. Plan to lunch at the festival on Saturday. Armadillo Willy's. 11 to 2 pm. $7. Sandwich, chips, drink, includes tax.
5. Start packing in some extra sleep now.
6. Make sure your walking shoes have dried out.
7. Wash your purple so you can wear it on Saturday.
8. Buy your tickets to the Ravi Coltrane concert on February 8 at the Amador Theater.
9. Join us for Setup on Friday afterschool, 3 to 7pm, Choir Room.
10. Go hug a musician! Afterall, where would we be without the music!
See you on Saturday, at the 33rd Annual Campana Jazz Festival.
*** Winter Percussion
Roland Ellinsen
Our kids and the coaches have been focused on putting together a great 2008 Winter Percussion show inspired by Charlie Chaplin. As we know from the last few years the show day itself needs the help of as many parents (siblings, grandparents/friends are welcome as well) as possible. Please study the attached dates and plan on participating as often, 100%if possible. Please pay special attention to the open need areas that are bolded and the mailing address for this year's fee. First Performance Saturday, February 23rd - San Jose - More info to follow
Parent Participation requests:
Help Request: Driver Coordinator needed: Ensure enough drivers/ print out maps/directions for all
Help Request: Drivers: We need at least 7 drivers for each show. These people and all parents are encouraged to attend warm up practice at each event w/ a willingness to help. Please bring fold up chairs/ coffee, snacks, newspaper and time to chat w/ other parents. The events require a number of hands to get the gear from warm up to the staging area and back to be reloaded into the trailer.
Help Request: Loading/ Pulling Trailer (s): Greg Ford can pull the trailer for most events, but we likely will need a second person w/ a large bed truck to hall the props. There will be at least one weekend that Greg will not be available to pull the trailer so we are seeking a dad or mom comfortable w/ trailers. All parents are encouraged to help w/ load/ unload during the season.
Help Request: Uniforms/Costumes: We need a mom or two to work w/ Casey on his needs for costumes. The work aspect will be communicating/coaching other parents etc.
Communication Chief- Kimberly Ansell
Grub Master- Nancy McGhee - Nancy did an incredible job during the Winter Percussion Camp and has agreed to keep our kids fed during the season.
Staff and Parent Liaison: Roland Ellingsen
RA Chief- Trish Moosbrugger -
Schedule: Subject to change: Details to follow- Generally morning departure - afternoon performances
Feb. 23 (San Jose-Location TBD- plan on being at Amador at 7:30 am)
March 1 (Independence High School)
March 15 (Union City)
March 22 (Dublin)
April 5 (Championships)
Fees: Please mail the $545 participation fee made out to AFM: SEND TO: Jill Albers: 1521 Via Di Salerno, 94566
This fee covers all aspects of the Winter Percussion season except for costumes.
Please call or email with questions or to sign up for a coordinator position. Phone- (925) 895-1041 Fax- (925) 600-1509
*** Sleep Train Pavillion for 2008 Season:
*** Earn $$ for your student account
Cecilia Melby
This year's concert season starts in May. Our team runs the Corona Beer Hut, selling bottled beer, draft beer, wine and sodas. For each event we typically provide 2-3 people who are entirely responsible for manning the booth. We are responsible for accounting for the beginning and ending product inventory and all cash sales. We then receive 5-7% of the proceeds from the event, in addition to any tips collected. 10% of our earnings are applied to the band General Fund, and the remaining earnings are allocated to the student accounts of the parents working that event. The tip money is pooled and distributed to the entire volunteer pool to help adjust for any events where earnings are low. Last season volunteers averaged $100 per event once the tip money was allocated. Week-day events usually require the group to leave Pleasanton around 4:00 PM for a 5:00 reporting time. We typically are home by about 11:30 PM. Weekend events are more variable, sometimes requiring a full day/evening (full day events paid out at $150).
Interested? In order to qualify for this opportunity, you are required by the Pavilion to take a 3 hour training class in Concord that covers the regulations for selling alcohol at this venue. There is also an internet option for training that costs $40 per person that you can elect to pay for yourself (Concord on-site training is free). The training is good for 3 years - Parents of Seniors please take note, your TIPs card may be expiring before the season ends and you may need to take the class again. In addition, everyone is also required to take a short on-line training course that covers the Hospitality aspects of running a booth.
Training in Concord is usually offered in April/May - usually with very short notice! Please email Cecilia.Melby@Clorox.com if you are a new participant this year and I will add you to our current volunteer list and notify you of the training dates once available. Once you have completed the necessary training, you will then be eligible to volunteer.
*** Amador Valley Winterguard Show
Ginnelle Dowdy
The Winter Guard Show was a smashing success even with the downpour of rain and wind that we all endured. Thanks to all those who volunteered guard parents, students and band parents that helped bake potatoes and goodies! Your help is forever appreciated.
Special thanks goes to Jill Zollinger, Co-coordinator, Lynn Langlie-Snack Bar champ; Jennifer Silva who feeds our judges, guard and instructors better than anyone; John Silva who suffered through the cold and wet to keep our parking lot in order, Richard Dowdy who kept the guards moving through the pattern and into the gym on time and of course our great Director, Jon Grantham who smiles through it all.
Our guard performed beautifully and came in second place in their division. They even sang at the end! Congratulations!
*** AFM Scrip
Cherie Stueve
Link: Scrip Reference Sheet
A Scrip Reference Sheet in Excel is available on the band website in response to the frequent request of a quick reference of the most popular & local scrip. This does NOT serve as an order form. All orders MUST be placed online at www.shopwithscrip.com.
If you are interested in getting friends or coworkers to order scrip, they might prefer to complete this worksheet and you can order online for them.
Next scrip deadline is February 29th. Call or email with any questions!
timstueve@earthlink.net
*** Marching Band Uniforms:
Kimberly Ansell
*** Uniforms Need To Be Turned in ASAP!
The Marching season is over and it's time to return the uniforms to the band room. On December 1, several carts were placed in the lobby of the music department for students to drop off their "CLEANED" uniforms. Please have your uniform cleaned and returned no later that February 8th. A committee will be checking in, inspecting, and sorting the uniforms in preparation for next fall.
If you should have any questions regarding care and maintenance of the uniform, please feel free to contact me at 925-413-8810 or by email at KimberlyAnsell@Comcast.net.
Updated: February 6, 2008 |
