Megan Navarro
WIMBERLEY — As band students practice during the peak of the Texas summer heat and throughout the school year, getting ready for marching season, behind the scenes is the boosters organization that lends a helping hand.
The Wimberley Band Boosters is a 501(c)(3) that supports the middle and high school bands within Wimberley ISD through fundraisers, organizing hospitality and meals for students when they attend competitions, coordinating volunteers and chaperones for various activities and seeking businesses who want to be program sponsors.
“The funding that we do through our fundraisers and sponsorships, through the concession stands, all that kind of stuff supports the program. It can be from new instruments to repairing instruments, helping with prop design and so forth for marching season,” said booster president Susan Rang. “We provide sponsor shirts, so that there's kind of like a uniform shirt beyond what they wear during the season. Basically, if there is a need that supports the entire program, not just an individual student, but the majority of the students in the program, then we can help support that cause.”
There are a couple of different ways for students to obtain instruments. Some come with their own instruments — either purchased individually or rented from places, like Strait Music, while others may rent them — especially in percussion — from the band program itself, Rang explained.
The booster president recalled that when she was a student, she was using a trombone that her neighbor had, but her parents eventually bought one — about $1,500 back in the '90s — that she was able to play through college. However, for her son, a new flute that would get him through high school and maybe into college would cost at least $1,000 to $1,500 today for a smaller instrument.
Knowing the large cost that it takes for parents to have their kids in band, Rang said that the boosters want to do all they can to make it an affordable program.
One of the major ways that the organization does this is through various fundraisers. This includes the following: a carnival that typically occurs around August with games, food, the Texan Stars and a performance by the Jesse Stratton Band; running the concessions stand at the visitors side during the varsity football games; and Santa Land with photos, crafts, games, karaoke, hot chocolate and a silent auction.
Currently, they are in the process of a new fundraiser, where participants can add a little pink to someone’s yard with a flock of flamingos.
“You can pay to have a friend’s [yard], your own yard or a business flocked. A flock is 25 flamingos and they stay there for, basically, like three to four days. You can have them migrate early if you don't want them in your yard or you can pay to have anti-flocking insurance and then, the person would have to pick another spot to flock it,” Rang said. “We're just trying something new this year to see if that works out.”
A flock of 25 flamingos is $50, early migration is $30 and yard insurance is $75. Each flamingo flock will arrive at the selected address on either Sunday or Wednesday of the chosen week, beginning March 25 and going through May 13, but they are limited to WISD boundaries.
Approximately half of the slots have been filled up for the flamingo flocking, so those who are wanting to sign up to help the current and future students in the program continue to succeed are encouraged to do so soon.
“They're playing their instruments, they're counting, they're memorizing music. They're using so much skill in order to accomplish this 15-minute program, basically. It's amazing because those kids are brilliant in math and athletics and they end up excelling more, I think, in their overall academics, when they have this kind of program,” Rang concluded.
To learn more about the Wimberley Band Boosters fundraisers, follow them on Facebook at @WimberleyBandBoosters.
