One of the major goals of our booster club is to provide financial support to the students, band directors and staff of the Fort Mill District Bands - two high schools and 3 middle schools - in order to help keep the level of the band program to what is expected and help the students achieve their goals. It takes a considerable amount of revenue to offer the students their well-deserved quality band experience. School budgets rarely cover the band's needs; the band boosters come to the rescue with extra funds to keep the program fiscally responsible. Our organization ensures the future of quality music education for the student musicians.

Where does this money go? Every year is different but income generated by fundraising activities and donations go to items like - outside instruction for all aspects of the band program, marching shows (drills, music, band camp, etc.), concert music, winter guard (drills, music), percussion ensemble music, equipment (tarps, props, flags, instruments, electronics), student awards/recognition, travel (buses, trucks/trailers, food), registration fees, administrative items (accountants, SC non-profit fees, website, etc.), dues and education for directors and many other items - the list goes on and on.

Obviously, it is easy to see how the booster club's fundraising efforts benefit the band program and our children. Band is one of the many positive activities that the students can participate in high school. The benefits of a good music education are endless but here are a few quotes from nationally distributed articles -

• Music majors are the most likely group of college grads to be admitted to medical school. Lewis Thomas, Case for Music in the Schools, Phi Delta Kappa, 1994
• Students who participate in school band or orchestra have the lowest levels of current and lifelong use of alcohol, tobacco and illicit drugs among any group in our society. H. Con. Res. 266, United States Senate, June 13, 2000
• High school music students have been shown to hold higher grade point averages (GPA) than non-musicians in the same school. National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988
• 78% of Americans feel learning a musical instrument helps students perform better in other subjects. Gallup Poll, “American Attitudes toward Music,” 2003
• Nine out of ten adults and teenagers who play instruments agree that music making brings the family closer together. Music Making and Our Schools, American Music Conference, 2000
• 71% of Americans surveyed by the Gallup Poll believe that teenagers who play an instrument are less likely to have disciplinary problems. Gallup Poll, “American Attitudes toward Music,” 2003
• With music in schools, students connect to each other better—greater camaraderie, fewer fights, less racism and reduced use of hurtful sarcasm. Eric Jensen, Arts with the Brain in Mind, 2001
• A study of 7,500 university students revealed that music majors scored the highest reading scores among all majors including English, biology, chemistry and math. The Case for Music in the Schools, Phi Delta Kappa, 1994

The Fort Mill District Band Booster Club, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit group and donations may be tax deductible - please consult your tax advisor for details.

Want to donate? Donations can be mailed to the Fort Mill District Band Booster Club, P.O. Box 611, Fort Mill, SC 29716 or can be accepted via PayPal leveraging the following instructions -

• Click this button below that will take you to the band club's PayPal page. Note - PayPal will open in a new window!!!

 

• Enter the amount of the payment.

• Click 'Update Totals' to save what you entered.

• If you have a PayPal account, login and continue the transaction with your saved information.

• You do not have to set up an account to send a payment. If you do not want a PayPal account, click 'Continue' under 'Don't have a PayPal account?' - on left side/bottom - to enter your payment information.

• Be sure and note on the page the school and purpose of your donation if applicable.

• An e-mail will be sent by PayPal notifying us that you have sent payment.

• An email confirmation will be sent to the Executive Secretary as well as yourself confirming your transaction.

• Your credit card statement, confirmation email and your monthly student account statement will be your receipt.

Please contact Kathy Krieger, Executive Secretary, if you have questions about your donations.

Thanks in advance for volunteering to help our students achieve their goals and continuing the tradition of music excellence in the Fort Mill School District!!!