It’s Friday afternoon before Viking Fest, and I am getting ready for my seventh Kingston Middle School Band trip. I’m so excited!
No, this isn’t sarcasm. I’m really excited!
This year, after the band marches in the Bremerton Armed Forces Day Parade and the Poulsbo Viking Fest Parade, we are jumping on a bus and heading for the Victoria, B.C. ferry. We will participate in the Battle of the Bands and Victoria Day parades. It’s always fun, and KMS often places well against competing bands. The KMS band has traditionally ventured on one band trip a year: Victoria, Portland, or Disneyland.
Band trips are crazy busy, but generally an incredibly positive experience. Dozens of adults volunteering their time to plan, fundraise, and execute a trip for well over a hundred middle school kids.
And the students, who are young teens and experiencing all the ups and downs of young teenhood, have an opportunity to be a part of something special. Expectations are high. They need to perform music and choreography, and present themselves in a professional manner. We’ve had strangers from California to Canada compliment our band, as not many middle school bands are as disciplined and prepared for these competitions.
With this band trip and past trips in mind, I’ve been thinking a lot about arts in our schools. It’s always an issue, isn’t it? The North Kitsap School District has less money to spend, cuts are made. And, usually, the extracurricular programs are the first to be cut. It’s not like they can cut math, or science, or sports. (Just a little joke there. Sports are important too.)
I get frustrated about those program cuts just like everyone else, but what can we do about them?
1. Write your congressmen, people! Tell them to fund schools, pay up on their obligations. It doesn’t hurt for them to hear from you.
2. Stop complaining that schools only need the basics — reading, writing, and arithmetic — not these extra programs. Obviously strong basics are needed, but what school system do you know of that thrives on just the basics? The dietary equivalent of “the basics” is enough to keep you alive; maybe rice and beans. But without fruits, vegetables, and dairy, you won’t be thriving. Schooling is the same.
3. This is an easy one, but it takes time: Volunteer! Whatever it is your schedule allows, get out there and be involved. If your kids are grown, you could still contact the school and see how you can help. Art, drama, debate (I don’t know if debate is considered an art, but it’s an important option), choir, and of course band in our schools only happen because a lot of parents, grandparents, and community volunteers step up to help make it happen.
Contact one of the middle or high schools and ask about their booster clubs. In addition to the KMS Band Boosters, I know Kingston High School has a Fine Arts Boosters association. See what events are coming up. What can you do to help? Call the schools or Google them, and find out.
Now back to packing for our trip. I’ll be chaperoning seven girls, keeping them safe, happy, and ready for their performances, and exploring downtown Victoria with them. Fun times!
The best part of the trip is always watching the performances. Remember in the musical “The Music Man,” when the high school band is first learning to play? Our band is much better than that, I’m happy to say; but the pride of the parents watching is a familiar feeling. “That’s my Bobby on the tuba!”
“Don’t they sound amazing?”
“My daughter’s a clarinet.”
While I’m excited for our venture, band trips always make me cry. Happily, for all the right reasons.
— Contact Denise Roundy at dirkroundy@yahoo.com
