As a parent, I some-what understand the decision of the middle school band directors to withdraw from the Salisbury Christmas Parade due to the extreme weather, but did anyone realize that these students practiced for over an hour 2 days per week for a month leading up to the parade, many days in extreme cold and wind? What is the difference in practicing in the cold and participating in the parade in the cold?
Bennett Middle School band students were required to rent uniforms and purchase specific shoes for this event that are pointless. Yes, they wore them to an hour-long concert in December, but unfortunately as a mother of a 7th grade percussionist, I only witnessed one song my son actually was able to participate in. Purchase of special marching shoes that will not fit next year is unfair in this economy.
To top off my disappointment and anger, I just saw the results of the Pocomoke city parade and found that the Salisbury Middle band participated in that parade. Shouldn't Bennett Middle School band students have been given the same opportunity? I waited for over 2 years, since my son was in 5th grade band, to see my son participate in a parade. So far this year, I have seen him play 1 song. Does that seem fair?
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
32 comments:
Wow.... in a society such as where we are today, this is your biggest problem?
Perhaps you should sit back and count your blessings.
8-10 hours of practice time for your little angel won't kill him. It'll make him a better person in the long run.
No, I don't think you'll muster up the troops to go and burn the school down because you only saw/heard one song.
Have a Merry Christmas otherwise.
Its only band!!! Who cares!!!!!!
To the author of this Post. Don'tmind the anti Albero Bloggers getting on here and bashing you, it's what they do daily. They never have anything to say nice, trust me, I know. If we put up 20 to 30 posts a day, they're never hapy and do everything they ca to discredit or bash me any way they can. So don't feel bad, eventually all three of them will disapear ad wait for the next post to come up. We're close now.
It doesn't seem fair. I have a child in the bandfront. We did march at the salisbury parade. It was cold but it was worth it. The kids and parents alike do put a lot of time into this. As a parent you do want to see your child march. It may not seem important to some of you but it is to others. Where is your empathy towards other people. You should be ashamed.
With all the effort put into pratice alot of parents would have complained if they had played in the bad weather.
I'm going to add. I can recall playing flag football in school in the same kind of weather and if you didn't have sweats, (no one could afford them) you played in your gym shorts. Yes, it was cold but we had a blast and as soon as we kicked off you'd forget all about the cold.
I personally feel the person making such a decision to cancel while so many other Schools went on to play was a smack in the face to those kids who were willing to get out there and participate but some pansy teacher said no.
I'm sorry this happened to the Students.
It may be "only band" to some, but these kids put in more than 8 to 10 hours of practice. They have worked for 2-3 years to get to this point.
Just a couple of days ago, posts were flying criticizing the students at this school for being problem students. Shouldn't productive students that put effort into making themselves better be rewarded?
My "little angel" is a good person already. He has worked his butt off to be good enough for the marching band - shouldn't his efforts be as recognized as the problem students that we bashed a few days ago?
And yes, there are a lot of problems in society. My "little angel" is working on making himself better so that he is not one.
Perhaps your son can now wear those new shoes to church every Sunday?
9:54 AM I agree with what you are saying. The truth is the schools don't have time to reward the good students. They are to busy covering up for the bad kids. You don't get credit where credit is due anymore. Look at the idiot that called your child your "little angel" he/she is probably the parent of a child out of control. You can tell if they had kids they wouldn't be putting in time towards making them a responsible human being. Stop rewarding the bad behavior and focus on the good. They really need to think before they post a comment because they really make themselves look stupid.
8:36am I don't think you realize how much time and effort it takes to perform a lot of people take pride in the marching band just as they would in football, baseball, soccor or other sports.
I have participated in many band activities to parades, to competitions and half time shows. It's a great experiance. I missed seeing Bennett Middle in the Parade this year, I was wondering why they weren't in the parade. The uniforms aren't exactly pretty or comfortable and neither were the shoes but we put them on and represented our school.
Sgt.Joe Buck says if the little ones wanted it and the majority of the parents voted to go then this is America Dammit. Do what is right. They should have marched. As for the one stating your "Your Little Angel" My guess is that person has to sit down to urinate even though he is a male. Do not take it to heart. Also consider taking the little guy to Karate. It builds self esteem and band kids seem to get picked on a lot. Just a thought. If I were you I would take this issue up with whom ever made the call not to go and remind them why they are there. It is for the kids. Things like this are huge for children and when they are sold out it does leave a mark. To most of us it meant very little but obviously at one point my concern was that you did not get to see him play. I hope he is doing this for himself, because he enjoys it, not because Mom & Dad were band members. So with that said "whew" If Jr. is doing it because he likes it, then battle on. If it is over the cost of the shoes, sometimes we pay a price for our loved ones. If you like i can put the band leader through Sgt. Joe Bucks marching in bad weather school. I guarantee it wont happen again. Have a great day.
This is sad for the kids that worked so hard. Wish luck with pursuing whateve action you feel are needed. I think they made a bad call.
9:54 - The decision by the band director had nothing to do with "no time to reward good kids for their behavior," It had everything to do with the freezing weather and wind chill factor. Like fog delays, some parents will complain because they have a different view. Has this lady spoken to the band director or has she just complained in the blogs? Why does every parent think they have the only right answer when so few show up to help? Was this lady signed up to march alongside the band as a chaperone?
you enroll your kids in public school. You have other options. If you don't like it, take them somewhere else. Sad but True.
What kind of idiot pulled the plug on the parade for them. His ass should be fired. When I was in band, i can remember busting my ass in the rain, snow, hot, cold, it didnt matter. If we were supposed to be in a parade, we were in it, and weather be damned. We won damn near everything we went to, but that was from the determination of the band members and the teacher to do the best job possible no matter the situation.
To the people bashing this parent and knocking band...
Shame on you.
This is a big event in both the students' and the parents' lives. Band builds discipline, friendship, teamwork, culture, a will to succeed and a greater likelihood of academic success.
So much for "it's only band."
Some of my best memories come from freezing my butt off in parades far colder than this one or sweating to death in warm weather in those uniforms.
None of the great things band does for kids is possible without supportive parents. I know. I had two of them.
So, suck it up, you two, and let this parent vent. And may schools opt today for "convertible" uniforms that have parts for cold weather and for warm weather. And that goes for the poor lasses (and a few laddies) in the drill teams in front who STILL are made to wear stupid skimpy outfits in cold weather.
I would be upset as well. I teach the drumline at Mardela High School, and my students practice two nights a week after school (in addition to practicing with the full marching band). I know all about the hard work that has been put into the performances. It would be heartbreaking to any child to put that much time and effort into a performance that doesn't occur.
I don't know if 9:00 wrote "It's only band. Who cares!" just to elicit comebacks, but I agree with 9:54. I, too, was a "band parent," and band is a very big deal to those students. We made our son practice every night, weekends included, and it paid off in his being named every year to the All-Shore band and twice to the All-State band. We went to countless concerts, competitions, adjudications, etc. Performing in a band is no different from performing in sports . It takes lots of practice, but the results are worthwhile.
I also think that the band should have been permitted to play in the parade. The Christmas parade is one of the highlights for a band. They will not die from being exposed to colder-than-seasonal temperatures, any more than the Green Bay Packers will. Jeers to the director for his/her decision.
There is precious little reward for the 'good kids' who spend their days trying to do what they know is right because their parents brought them up well. All we hear about the problem kids, that are really only about 5-10% of students. Even some of the kids who are often in trouble would be good if they didn't have the negative role models getting so much attention.
If you have or know a good kid, praise them for doing well, you can be sure they don't hear enough it.
2:52 PM Mardela is Awesome!! Results of the Cambridge Parade. Marching Bands - 1st Mardela Middle and High School - Best Drum Major Mardela Middle and High -
Best Percussion Mardela Middle and High - Best Band Overall Mardela Middle and High. Mardela did march in the Salisbury Parade. We have an awesome band under an awesome instructor. Yes we are proud of them and yes it is the kids that want to be a part of this band. I do feel for you because it is amazing watching your kids do something they enjoy so much.
As a band member for a wicomico county high school band and a past member of the Salisbury Middle School band, thats life. We have performances cancelled all the time due to weather conditions If you dont like it, dont be in band. When you get to high school marching band, to be honest, we dont care about the parades, we march for the competitions with our field shows. And as for SMS playing in pocomoke, they do the fundraising, your band had the chance to play in pocomoke, your director just didnt sign up, probably because you guys dont have the funds, so take that up with him. As for practices, get over it, we practice from 8-2 for two weeks straight during the summer on our field show, then a friday morning to sunday evening weekend at a local camp during the summer to continue practices, and then 5 hours a week from the 3rd week in August to the thrid week in November plus a performance every saturday from usually 12PM-12AM (dont believe me, call a HS band director) plus 5-6 football games in the fall, thats just the nature of the beast that we call band. its a big commitment dont bitch when you don't know the facts, especially when all the local middle school bands were not in it
Also, if you want to see him play more songs, tell him to practice, band is a chair system, the best players play.
the world we have our kids grow up in is very different. Your more likely to get sued from a parent for christmas than a present from them. I understand the rational that could have been used. And point being, they chose not to have the band entered. Thats their job to make that choice.
As I understand it, Bennett was amongst the many school bands invited to participate in the Delmar Christmas Parade but they did not participate.
It used to be that you went to the different parades and saw many school bands, but now you don't.
So what are the bands for? Why do the students spend so many hours practicing if they are not going to show their stuff at local events?
News flash!!!! As of this time no students have suffered and negative effects of marching in the 2008 Christmas Parade.
News flash!!! the sear catalog came out and they invented undergarments that look great and keep you warm.
News Flash!! It's called SACRIFICE and it builds strong character while at the same time rewarding hard work.
Just don't come crying to me when you kids all mess up because he was will to train hard like they say you are suppose to and face the cold to exhibit his talent like you are suppose to, and then you cut their legs out from under them like your not suppose to. It was ONE AND A HALF HOURS for cripe sake. When we were kids my older brother chased me across a field with 3 feet of snow in 10 degrees in my underwear to beat my but, BUTT here I am, no lasting effects.
I have been told in the past by my teachers after I asked why I wasn't being rewarded for a acheivement I made ,that the acheivement was my reward.
Has anyone asked the band instructor why? or is the reason given just what was given as a excuse for not playing.Maybe their band sucked.And the teacher didn't want the kids to look foolish publicly? He might have saved alot of parents the humility of their own children.After all it is Bennett right? Land of the lost.If you doubt the percentage of "bad" kids that attend that school,just ask to sit in one day.There are gangs and the cops have two patrol these "children" all day every day.
If you really care about your child,it would so wisdom by transfering your child to a better learning atmosphere.The mind you save may be your childs.The % of bad kids at this school is more along the lines of 40% to 60% not 5%. As you will notice if you visit this gang infested war land.That is if you get out without being robbed,raped ,or assulted. Don't take my word,Go see for your self.
Not all of the Middle School bands cancelled. When St. Francis got there they were told that there were no other middle schools bands participating, just High School. The kids voted to march any way (even though they were told they weren't eligible for an award) and did a terrific job!!! Well done St. Francis de Sales Marching Band!!!!
The choice that the band director made was and always will be a hard choice to make. The band director at Bennett Middle is a very honest, to the point type of guy. There could have been many students that he thought would have not been able to handle such cold weather. Maybe next year you could offer to head a hot chocolate station. That usually warms up the students pretty quickly.
The decision not to march was a joint decision by the middle school band teachers for Wicomico public schools. Unfortunately, they decided not to participate in the parade before the students showed up so they could cancel the buses in time. Students and parents did not have a choice.
to 9:23, St. Francis wasnt cancelled because its a private school and they are the only ones making the decision, not a joint decision by the school and the county. pay to go to St. Francis if you want to march
12:40 Why would they need to cancel buses? Can't the parents of Salisbury schools transport their children to the "Old Mall". I guess that 3:25 doesn't have a problem using tax dollars for that, but will make a smart remark about people paying for private school that are also paying taxes that help support public schools.
11:26- buses are needed because the kids have to be able to get their equipment that can't be taken home and then head over the old mall on a bus. Some equipment is just too big to carry back and forth (ie. Tubas, percussion, banners, flags, etc.) besides its some of the only funding that the bands get from the board.
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