October 10, 2006
Music Boosters Board Meeting Minutes

Submitted by Kathy Cranford, Secretary
Next meeting scheduled for November 28, 2006 at 6:30 p.m.

In Attendance:

Christoph Weber, Pia Weber, Mike Cummins, Mary Ann Klima, Gay Olivier-Lilley, Kevin Lilley, Jeanne Hoey, Cheri Zinser, Nilantha Sirisoma, Jan Frost, Karin Walin, Mike Walin, Bonnie MacRitchie, Isabela Weizman, Malou Rogers, Kathy Cranford

The meeting began at 6:40 pm.

Upcoming Performances:

Mr. Cummins reviewed upcoming performances in the fall program:.

• Friday, October 13: Home game at La Jolla High School. Call time – 5:45 pm, board buses – 6:00. Perform at half time. Return to UCHS at approximately 9:30pm.
• Saturday, October 14: Field Show at Poway High School. Call time – 12:45pm, board buses – 1:00. Perform at 3:15, awards at 5:00. Return to UCHS after awards.
• Friday, October 20: Homecoming at UCHS. Band performs for pre-game show at 6:45 pm. We hope to have the new uniforms by then.
• Saturday, October 21: Field Show at Scripps Ranch High School. Call time – 1:00 pm, performance at 5:15.
• Saturday, November 4: Field Show at Mira Mesa High School. Performance at approximately 5:15.
• Saturday, November 18: Field Show at Temecula High School. No data yet regarding times.
• Saturday, December 9: Parade at Pacific Beach. We have the banner but still need a pole and weights.
• Thursday, December 14: Holiday Concert at UCHS auditorium; strings only.

The orchestra will perform at Open House on October 18. Call time is 6:15 in the Music Room. The orchestra will organize the bake sale for the Holiday Concert.

Last Meeting:

The minutes from the last meeting of September 12 were approved.

Financials:

Jan Frost updated us on finances: Jan distributed a handout itemizing the current finances. There is $535 to deposit for fair share donations this month. It was suggested to send an e-mail to remind people to pay the 2nd installment of $62.50.

Mr. Smith will pay for food and buses for the first football game (which is a “home game” that is “away from home”).

The finances were approved.

Transportation:

Mr. Cummins led a discussion about transportation. Specifically, charter buses are sometimes less expensive than school buses. In addition, it is less expensive to go directly to the charter bus company than to reserve a charter bus through the school district. Parents could order a charter bus for less money than a school. Advantages of a charter bus are: 1) it stays with you the whole time, 2) it has room for equipment so we might not have to rent a truck or just rent a cargo van for uniforms, 3) it has a bathroom. This is worth checking into for field shows. The cost of a school bus to Temecula is approximately $500 and about $60 for the equipment truck.

Food Committee:

Karin Walin gave us an update on the food committee: For the Poway field show, Karin will provide snacks, fruit, and water after the performance. We won’t need a whole meal.

Food for October 21, Scripps Ranch field show. This is also the date for the Homecoming Dance, so some students will be leaving after the performance. Mr. Cummins will need notes from parents of those students who will be leaving early. Once we get the number of students who are staying (and the timing of the awards), we will determine what (if any) food will be needed.

Fundraising:

Gay and Kevin Lilley gave us an update on the fundraising committee. Our plan is to have one person in charge of each fundraising event. Our largest fundraising event (most income) was concert admissions and bake sales at the concerts. We need someone to coordinate the bake sale for the Holiday Concert and call people to donate food.

A member suggested a donation box during Open House. Mr. Cummins will have to ask Mr. Smith if this would be allowed.

Isabela suggested a raffle wheel and the sale of tickets. School rules prevent fundraisers during school time, but we could plan and carry it out during the Holiday Concert. Isabela will look into this fundraiser.

The ASB advisor, Michelle Fornier, has to be contacted for officially scheduling fundraising events.

We discussed more fundraising ideas from last year. Selling advertising space for the concert programs was a good source of donations. Personal contacts seem to work better.

It was suggested to send a letter home to parents explaining different ideas for fundraising. Gay volunteered to draft a letter explaining fundraisers and suggesting an alternative of a cash donation for families that do not wish to participate in fundraisers but still want to contribute to the Music Boosters.

Kevin will work on restaurant fundraisers and could use some help. One suggestion was a fundraiser at Red Robin. It was suggested that we have a restaurant fundraiser every two months. Gay asked us to give her names of anyone who might be willing to help with one.

Cheri Zinser gave us an update on the Jack-in-the-Box fundraiser. We are #10 or 11 in the que. The PTSA will help us with getting enough people to participate. Cheri is currently obtaining more information about the logistics of this fundraiser and it would be beneficial to include information about this fundraiser in the letter to parents.

The idea of a car wash fundraiser was discussed. In the past, it didn’t make much money, but we could do it if the students are really interested in doing it. Gay has already found a location to hold it, Fast Fuel, on the southeast corner of Clairemont Mesa and Genesee. We would need an organizer for this event, and it would be best to wait until spring to have the car wash.

Gay will lead the cookie dough/pie sale.

A member suggested playing Christmas music at a mall and having a donation box. There was discussion on the pros and cons of this idea. Mr. Cummins has done this before at Grossmont Mall. A brass ensemble would work best. Students could organize and lead this effort. The mall administrator would have to be contacted as well as the stores to make sure they would allow this performance. Mr. Cummins agreed to work with Isabella to investigate the possibility of a performance at UTC.

Another idea for a fundraiser is the Solid Rock Gym. The students would need to sell 120 tickets for a price of $15 each. Solid Rock Gym charges $600 for 3 hours; we would clear $1200. Mary Ann Klima volunteered to lead this fundraiser.

It would be advantageous to publicize band news through UCHS e-mails for broader distribution.

The idea of a booth to sell license plates at Homecoming was discussed. We agreed it would be better to sell plates by walking through the stands before and during the game. They sell for $5 each. We’ll ask volunteers who have already signed up to help at the game.

Students Lisa Walin and Melanie Sirisoma took the initiative to form an organization (through ASB) named “UCHS Band Club”. They will send out an e-mail to solicit student members. E-mail: UCHSbandclub1@yahoo.com.

One member asked if it had been considered to hire a professional company to videotape concerts. We have not pursued this before since parents are welcome to record and videotape concerts themselves.

Nilantha Sirisoma explained his idea for a fundraiser. He’s going to take portraits of the students with their instruments. This will be planned when we have the new uniforms. It would be best to schedule this at the end of marching band season (December 9th). Portraits will be taken here at the Music Room.

One member suggested that we obtain corporate sponsors. The companies would be acknowledged in the concert programs. This would involve training for parents to approach and talk with Human Resource Departments and writing an introductory letter to the companies.

Bonnie volunteered to help with the website and will contact Malou Rogers, our Communications Director.

The meeting adjourned at 8:10 p.m.