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WHHS Band Booster Club Meeting August 5th 2021

Wade Hampton Marching Band


Booster Club Meeting

August 5, 2021 7 p.m.


20 members in attendance


Dr. Grant could not be in attendance with us tonight. Hopefully he will be able to join us next month.

  1. Mr. Ritchie:

    1. This is a small, growing year.

    2. Looking at the five year plan, we are looking at adding another concert band, a wooden ensemble (which would require auditions), a symphonic band (which would be the rest of the band), and bringing back the jazz band.

    3. Focus on building a seven year plan with the middle schools and high school.

    4. I have spoken with Reggie Choplin, and our plan is to move performances during the marching band season to half time.

      1. There may be a few games like homecoming where we may not be able to.

      2. Will have to work that out with the cheerleading coach, since she was not made aware of that.

    5. We will have Winterguard this season, however, no indoor drumline, due to numbers.

    6. We are looking to have a basketball pep band; probably a drumline.

    7. Covid requirements from the district

      1. Masks are not required yet, but encouraged.

      2. I will share all the information on social media soon.

      3. Students are to stay 3 feet apart.

      4. Teachers and staff are to stay 3-6 feet apart.

      5. Contact tracing will be done.

    8. Community preview

      1. Will take place tomorrow at 5pm in the parking lot.

      2. Will have someone directing traffic.

      3. Bring chairs if you would like to sit.

      4. Because of the district protocols, the cookout and pool party has been cancelled, but we will have a frozen treat social for the students.


2. Board Introduction





3. What are the Band Boosters?

  1. We are the band’s biggest fans!

  2. We are the band’s biggest volunteers!

  3. We are the band’s biggest supporters!


4. Changes this Year (Alan)

  1. $21,886.38 was reported stolen last year.

  2. As a board, we want to be upfront this year, so you will see a lot of numbers because transparency is how you solve a lot of these problems.

  3. What are we as a board doing?

    1. Thorough background checks for board members.

      1. Megan is heading this up.

      2. The district does a background check when you sign up to volunteer, however, it only looks at if you are able to work with kids.

    2. With increased transparency, we will show you every month what we started with, what came in, what went out and what the final balance is.

    3. If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to ask.

d. The by-laws state that we are to vote on the budget, however, we will not vote on the budget tonight. This will be done next month. You will get the budget beforehand.


5. Bylaws (Alan)

  1. The bylaws can be found on the band website, Link located below, which will contain both the original and proposed.

    1. Current Bylaws

    2. Proposed Changes to Current Bylaws

  2. We will vote next month on bylaw changes.

  3. Changes

    1. Meetings

      1. Right now, the bylaws call for us to have meetings every month.

      2. We are proposing that we change it to having meetings when the executive board calls them.

      3. If we do not have a booster meeting, we will share the financials in some other way.

      4. This is important because in the spring we tend not to have meetings every month.

    2. Officers

      1. We are looking to add that no officer can hold more than one office at a time.

      2. This has been a problem in the past.

    3. Checks

      1. Right now, the bylaws require two signatures for checks over $250.

      2. We want to require two signatures on all checks.

      3. Side note: Banks cannot require two signatures, but if a check does not have two, we can come back and say someone breached the rules.

      4. No debit cards on any accounts. We will have written checks for anything we do.

    4. Voting

      1. The bylaws had a clause that stated we could have this meeting and vote the same night on the item at hand.

      2. We are removing that clause and replacing it with a clause that we must wait thirty days before voting so that the item at hand can be shared with the entire membership.


6. Financial Changes (Alan)

  1. All the band dues and fees go to the school. The booster club cannot touch the money.

  2. So what are accounting for

    1. Donations received

    2. What things did we pay for

    3. What money did we donate to the school to support the band

  3. We set up a new bank account at BB&T.

  4. We still have the PayPal account, which we must leave open because of the investigation, but we are not using.

  5. Question was raised - What goes into our account versus the school account?

    1. Donations/Sponsorships

    2. Concessions

    3. Fundraising

  6. Band fee will be listed as a school fee (listed under student’s fees that are due). At the end of the year you will be notified if you have not paid.

    1. This is great because we do not have to ask for the hardship form anymore.

    2. It now becomes part of the free and reduced lunch program.

    3. The school cannot give us the names of the students on the program, only the number of students.

    4. Shoes are not part of the band fee.

  7. Money received from district

    1. Each year we receive $6500 for every 50 kids per the arts program.

    2. This year, due to our situation, we received two $6500 checks from the district.

    3. We also received $3500 for classroom materials.


7. Finance (Karen)

  1. Opened a new account; the last account was closed by BB&T because it was completely emptied.

  2. Current finances

    1. July

      1. Starting balance - $0

      2. Deposit - $412

      3. Payments - $0

      4. Ending Balance - $412

    2. August

      1. Starting balance - $412

      2. Deposit - $1400 (Alice Props!)

      3. Payments - $0

      4. Ending balance - $1812

  3. We are anticipating sponsorships, donations, things like that to increase the balance.

  4. What’s going to come out of that is concessions, props

  5. Question was raised - Are we having to do two budgets for this account and the school account?

    1. No, Mr. Richie is in charge of the school account.

    2. His items need to be connected to the show, staff, and activities for the kids.

    3. However, if he does need something before the show and cannot get something quickly, he can come to us and we will see what we can do.

  6. When the booster account gets to a certain amount, which has not been determined yet, we will write a check to the school and put it in the band account.

  7. You will be receiving receipts for everything. We will have a paper trail for every transaction.

  8. Alan raised the question to the group - Is everyone ok with the Alice prop money being used for the props for this year? The answer was unanimous, yes.


8. Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities (Shannon)

  1. Shannon sends out weekly emails that feature a list of volunteer opportunities.

  2. We need any skill set you can imagine. Please let us know of any special skills you have. Often we don’t know we need it until you tell us.

  3. What we need

    1. Meals for competitions

    2. Concessions (Carleen is in charge)

    3. Chaperones for football games and competitions

    4. Prop crew

    5. Drivers

    6. Uniforms (Linda is in charge)

    7. Food donations

    8. Hospitality

    9. Fundraising events

  4. If you are volunteering, please make your Raptor status is up to date.

  5. We want to see YOU in the stands! The kids love seeing you.

  6. If you have any questions, please contact Shannon by email at whhsbands@gmail.com.


9. Fundraising (Phil)

  1. Our goal in fundraising is to get the band fees down over time. Mr. Richie feels very strongly about lowering the fees.

  2. You can start or renew your sponsorship right now.

    1. There are multiple levels to choose from.

    2. Any questions, contact Phil by email at phil@ta5.com

  3. We will be selling show shirts for $20 starting tonight; student shirts are included in their fee.

    1. We want to be the band where all the parents wear the show shirt.

    2. The shirt is a heather blue, with the lighthouse design on the back.

    3. It is a 60/40 blend.

    4. Payment can be made to Karen (cash or check).

    5. We will let you know the end date in the next email.



Minutes submitted by Megan Thomas





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