Message delivered:  9/9/2012

The Week Ahead

Dear Parents and Students,

Things get crazy from here! 

Tuesday night we have out monthly BPA meeting. It has been my intention that these meeting never last more than an hour. It will be at 7:00 in the band room.

Thursday evening we will have a brief meeting for all who are helping with the Hall County Marching Exhibition which will be next Monday September 17. The meeting will begin at 7:00pm in the band room.

Friday we will play Cedar shoals high School in Athens. The schedule will be as follows:

4:30 meal

5:00 - Depart

6:30 arrive

7:30 game

11:30 arrive home.

On Saturday September 15, we will have a rehearsal from 9:00am until 4:00pm. We will learn the drill to the entire closer on that day. We probably will not try to perform at the exhibition but we will have it our there to work on.

Looking ahead to the next week,

September 18 - The horns and drums will travel to Davis MS to promote eighth grade night

September 21 - Eighth grade night at the next home game

September 22 - Taste of Flowery Branch and the Living Dead Dash. (This could be one of our most important fund raiser this year) Please consider volunteering to help.

September 29- The White column invitation band contest at Milton high School preliminary performance time is set for 6:20pm. This is subject to change. There will be a rehearsal before we leave for the contest so please make plans for this to be a day long event.

Thank you so much for your help so far. There is a lot to do over the next few weeks!! I will look forward to seeing everyone for a few minutes on Tuesday night.

Sincerely,

Dennis L. Naughton

Message delivered:  9/1/2012

Thank you 1000 times!!!

Dear Parents and Students,

Well, it is 8:40 AM on Saturday after the big game and I have made it back to Woodstock. 

I want to thank everyone who helped make last night a success. Especially, all of you who worked in the concession stand. I know that is a tough job and from what I understand you got slammed from the time the junior falcons left the track all the way up to halftime. There are no amount of words or gifts that I can give you to adequately say thank you for your help for making it a success!!!  I have said many times over that is takes a great parent organization to make a great band. I am blessed to have such wonderful parents who help with this program.

I also want to thank the students for putting on a great show last night. They all know we still have some issues to work through and we still have more to learn. I am pleased with the overall results of the first performance. 

Please remember that our rehearsal schedule changes this week on Thursdays.  We will rehearse Tuesday evening from 6:00 - 8:30 and Thursdays from 4:00 - 6:30.  Students are to have their coolers at every rehearsal or will they will be sent home and risk not marching that week.

Parents who are interested in chaperoning the away football games should make their best effort to attend a chaperone information meeting this Tuesday evening at 7:00.  It will be brief but will offer the ability to sign up for games to chaperone.  If you can't attend, please contact Jan Freihaut at jan.freihaut@hallco.org and let her know of your availability.  She is head chaperone this year so please make sure you contact her and not me as I have CRS disease (Can't remember stuff).  It happens around your mid forties at least in my family!!!!

Stay with us as the show continues to develop through the year.

Have a great labor day weekend!!!!!

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  8/30/2012

Chaperone Meeting

Dear Parents,

If you are interested in being a chaperone for the away games and even for homes, there will be a short meeting next Tuesday at 7:00 PM to give out information regarding responsibilities that come with the job. It will not be a long meeting. You will have an opportunity to sign up for each game and contest that you would like to help with.

We will use 12 chaperones per game so there is plenty of opportunity to help. I will put the meeting on the website calendar later today.

 Sincerely,

Dennis L. Naughton

Message delivered:  8/29/2012

Information for Friday and a plea for help

Dear Parents,

Wow!! The first game is here! here are some details regarding this week.

 Schedule for the students:

 5:15 - Report to the practice field for a short practice session called our "skull session" Students should be dressed in half uniform. Half uniform consists of bibber pants, dry fit shirt (which they will receive this week) black shoes, black socks (must be calf height or knee high, no ankle socks

6:15 - report to band room to put on full uniform

7:00 - line up for march into stadium

7:20 - Star Spangled Banner

7:30 - Kick off

8:30 - approx. performance time

 The game will end between 10 and 10:30.

 We will march out as a group the way we marched in and dismiss by the band room. Students are not fully dismissed until theior uniform is turned back and all parts are accounted for.

 Ms. Dunn, put out a request for chaperones this week. I would like to clarify.

 I would like to request that we a couple of volunteers to help me with the doors by the band room. Dr. Coleman has asked that we not let people through those doors that are not in the marching band. This has been a problem in past years and he has spoken to me about it. Chaperones, concession volunteers, and marching band members may enter through these doors.

I will not need more than about 5 chaperons to help with the students in the stands. Your primary function is to be there for the students in case there is a need such as sickness, emergency, etc. I don't feel we have the need to escort to the restroom unless we are at venue that is viewed as a security risk. 

Students will be allowed to have their coolers in the stands for water and have been asked to have them at the concession stand prior to the skull session.

This is probably the most important part of this email:

We are now in charge of all of the concessions for these games. As of right now, we do not have enough people signed up to work through the evening. Volunteering for this is an extremely vital part of our goals as a Band Parent Association. I know everyone wants to see the game this week. it will also potentially be our busiest night besides the Gainesville game. 

There has been some speculation that we are being asked to provide concession for the junior Falcons as well. This is not true. The wrestling team has been doing concession for them and sharing their profits with the middle school football team. I told them to feel free to continue to provide concessions at the two events at Flowery Branch.

I am begging each of you to consider my plea to help out this week with the concession stand. This is a $20,000 fundraiser that is so important to benefit the students of the Flowery Branch Band.  

Ms. Dunn sent out the sign up genius a while back for you to volunteer. It truly takes a great group of parents to make a great band program. I thank you in advance for your service.

Sincerely,

Dennis L. Naughton

Message delivered:  8/9/2012

Rehersal Tonight

Dear Parents and Students,

After careful thought and consideration I have decided to cancel rehearsal this evening. This is due to the following reasons:

1. The weather map is showing a pretty big line of storms heading this way all the way back into Alabama. There is no guarantee it will rain but if it does, the band room will be trashed for the first day of school tomorrow.

2. I don't want everyone to be exhausted from practice for the school day.

We will begin our normal rehearsal schedule on Monday with a stands music rehearsal followed by marching rehearsals on Tuesday and Thursday evening 6:00 to 8:30.

See you at open house if you are coming.

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  7/19/2012

It is about that time!!!!

Dear Parents and Students,

We will begin official rehearsals for the 2012-2013 marching season next week. Please refer to the calendar page at www.fbhsband.org/calendar.html for the full schedule.

Here are a couple of reminders for your arrival:

1. Please wear shoes to all rehearsals as you will be learning to march and need the shoes to execute the technique properly.

2. Please be sure to hydrate yourself with water everyday. The heat is intense and you need to be in great shape and should be acclimated to the outside conditions.

3. Please wear light clothing. Don't wear heavy denim or pants. 

Please eat three meals a day for the next two weeks. The only incidents where we have had to take students to the hospital were due to them not eating a good breakfast on band camp mornings.

4. All members of the brass and woodwind should have a red binder notebook with their name clearly written on it. It also needs to be filled with about 30 sheet protectors for your music. I have a ton of music for you to fill the folders with.

5. Your third payment is due upon arrival. Please make every effort to stay on track with the dues payments as this is how we pay the many staff members and show writers who work with us. At this point you should have paid $300 toward your dues on Monday.

Please make every effort to sign up for the twitter feed that is listed on the website as well as the facebook page. We are trying to keep information updated for you to stay informed. I have worked very hard on the website calendar to put everything that I can think of for the year. Please be aware of rehearsals, games, and contests as these are all required performances by each member of the band.

I am very excited for the start of the season. Our booster organization is energized, the students leadership team will be one of our best yet, our staff is excited, and the students are excited. I have made one change for band camp regarding times. We will start each day at 7:30 AM.  This will allow us to come inside before the heat gets to the horrible levels that we have seen and protects the students.

We need to everyone to plan on attending rehearsals everyday starting next week. If you are going to miss for any reason you need to let me know. If you miss a day. you miss a lot.

Football season is right around the corner!!!

Feel free to email me at my hallco address or here at gmail. I will also be posting on facebook and twitter so please check in asap!!

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  4/8/2012

Greetings

Dear Parents and Students,

I hope that everyone has had a restful spring break. we are in the home stretch with a number of things to do. Please check out the calendar for a list of important dates. We resume after school rehearsals for Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Jazz Band starting tomorrow. The spring concert is only two and a half weeks away on the 26th of April. 

As was announced last week, there is a great opportunity for you to make money towards your marching band dues by working at the races in Commerce. We will have sign up sheets available at the BPA meeting this Tuesday evening. The meeting will begin at 7:00pm in the band room.

Congratulations to the Winter guard and Winter Drumline. The guard finished 4th for their best championship finish ever and the drum line scored 8th which was also their best finish ever. We will take a short break from these two groups and start rehearsal for the fall during the first week of May.

Marching band paperwork was distributed before we left before spring break. I will take packets to the middle school students tomorrow as first deposits are coming due soon. 

Please make yourself aware of all of our dates that are listed on the website calendar. This has been a fantastic year and I am looking forward to a strong finish.

See everyone tomorrow!!!

Dennis

Message delivered:  3/5/2012

Symphonic Band LGPE

Dear Parents and Students,

This is a huge week for the symphonic band. We will perform at 7:30 on Wednesday evening at Reinhardt University for ratings in our annual Large Group Performance Evaluation. This is easily one of the most important events of the year and perhaps the time that the ensemble will sound its best. I am very excited about the performance level of the symphonic band.

Here is the schedule for Wednesday for the students:

3:15 - dismiss from class to get changed into performance attire

3:50 - pizza and drinks served in the cafeteria

4:20- all members to meet in the band room for final meeting

4:45 - depart for Reinhardt University

6:30ish - arrive at Reinhardt

7:00 - warm-up

7:30 - performance

8:00 - Sight reading

8:45 - depart for home

10:30 - arrive home.

Parents who have volunteered to chaperone are asked to arrive around 3:40 to help with the pizza and drinks. I need all the help I can get.

I have asked the students to bring $5 to pay for the pizza and drinks on Wednesday. Please bring exact change. Performance attire should be all black. My preference is that they guys wear a black dress shirt, black tie, black pants, black socks, and black dress shoes. Girls may wear a black pants and blouse outfit, black skirt and blouse or a black dress with black dress shoes. Please no open toed black shoes.

The students know that this performance is very important for many reasons. This is the day we take the program into the upper tier of band programs in our district. I am very proud of their success so far and hope to cap it off with a great run of the program on Wednesday night.

It is my sincere hope that the parents can come out and see the great performance on Wednesday evening.

Thank you again for your continued support of these great students. They are truly a joy in my life every day. I am very proud of their progress this year.

I will look forward to seeing everyone Wednesday evening at 7:30 in the Falany performing arts center on the campus of Reinhardt University.

Concert band parents, our big performance is next week on Thursday evening. I will emailing details for that day very soon.

Have a great evening!!

Sincerely,

Dennis Naughton

Message delivered:  2/20/2012

Busy Week

Dear Parents,

This is the first big of our performance evaluation season. Here is the schedule for the week:

Tuesday - The concert band will have rehearsal from 3:45 until 5:45 as usual.

Thursday - Pre-Festival at Brenau, Pearce Auditorium

Concert Band report time

6:00pm - please wear dress black for the performance. Report to the church across from the auditorium. The concert band will perform at 7:00pm.

Symphonic Band

7:25 - report time - please wear black concert dress attire for the performance. Please report to the church across from the auditorium.

The symphonic band will perform at 8:25pm.

We will be looking for parents and students who can be there early enough to help unload the trailer at 5:30 at the Pearce auditorium. We will be using the Flowery Branch Percussion equipment so we have to be there early. Additionally, we will also need help loading the equipment at the end of the evening.

We will look forward to seeing you there.

Here is some additional information regarding our performance at our annual Larger Group performance evaluation. The symphonic band will perform on March 7 at Reinhardt University. We will plan on leaving around 4:45. I have had at least four parents offer to chaperone the trip. I would like to have about 2 to 4 more. Additionally, we will probably try to feed the students before we leave.

The concert band will perform at Hart County High School on March 15.

We will plan on leaving school around 2:30. Their performance time is

6:40 in the evening. I will be working on plans for food and things.

As with the symphonic band, I am looking for some parents to chaperone. I need at minimum of six who would be willing to help.

It is my sincere hope that you can plans to attend these events. Both bands have been working very hard to prepare for this performance which is one of the most important of the year.Please let me know of you can help on either of these dates.

Have a great evening!!!!

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  2/4/2012

In between performances

Dear Parents,

I am at school today getting some work done in between the great performance by the indoor drum line this morning and the second great performance about to be given by the winter guard at 3:53 at Mill Creek High School.

The big event this week is of course the concert camp for all members of the concert and symphonic bands. Once again here is the schedule for Friday and Saturday:

Friday

4:30 - 6:15 - Concert Band Rehearsal / Symphonic with sectional clinicians
6:15 - 7:00 - Dinner
7:00 - 9:00 - Concert Band Sectionals / Symphonic Band Rehearsal

Saturday

8:30am - 12:00pm - Both bands rehearse with guest conductors

This is a wonderful opportunity for the students and myself to get an outside perspective on where they are in preparation for concert festival.

IT VERY IMPORTANT THAT EVERY MEMBER TURN IN THE $30 CAMP FEE THIS WEEK SO THAT WE CAN PAY THESE WONDERFUL PEOPLE THAT ARE COMING TO HELP US! THIS WAS LISTED IN THE SYLLABUS THAT WAS GIVEN AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEMESTER.

Please on the lookout for volunteer opportunities to help with preparing the food for dinner. we will be looking for desserts for the students and the clinicians

The other important even going on this week is the auditions for class placement on Monday afternoon. Each student will perform a small audition to see what band class they will be placed in for the 2012-2013 school year. This is an excellent opportunity to receive a higher class placement than before. We will have judges here to adjudicate the auditions. This is an exciting time as our band program is certain to see some growth for the next school year.

I will see everyone later!!

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  2/1/2012

Too long!!!

Dear Parents and Students,

It has been too long my last email and I apologize!! Once we got home from the trip the race to the end of the school year began. It is hard to believe that this is actually the busiest time of the year but it is! I have had two teachers say to me recently, "I guess this is your time to relax". Has anyone seen the "time" they are referring to? Here is a rundown of things that are going on:

The winter guard and winter drumline will be competing in their first contest of the season this weekend at Mill Creek High School. The drum line performs between 10am and 11am and the color guard performs between 3 and 4. This could possibly be the closest to home they will perform. It would be great to have a good "Branch" crowd there to cheer them for their first contest.

The "6th" man basketball pep band will perform for their last game this year this Friday. A big shout out goes to Mikhail who has led this organization and has kept the band in the public spotlight through the basketball season. Be sure to thank him when you see him

We have around 25 students traveling to Davis middle school tomorrow to try and talk to the eighth graders about giving the high school band a shot. If you have any connections to any of the families I hope you will do your best to convey the positive things that are happening in the FB band program!!

We now have two steel bands rehearsing in the mornings at FB. The advanced group practices on Wednesday and Friday mornings at 7:15 while the beginning group rehearses at 7:15 on Monday and Thursday mornings. We have around 30 students learning how to play the drums now.................it is awesome!!

The percussion class is starting to work on a stand alone percussion ensemble concert that they will give on May 3. This is must see event. It will be in the FB theatre so seating will be at a premium. Make your plans now!!!

The concert and symphonic bands are working on their music that they will perform at our annual Large Group performance evaluation. We have our yearly concert camp on Friday February 10 and Saturday February 11. We will have guest conductors and clnicians for everyone. The camp is mandatory and has been on the calendar since the beginning of the year. Every student has been asked to turn in $30 before next Friday to cover the cost of our guests. Please send this in with your child ASAP.

Pre-festival will be on February 23rd at the Pearce auditorium at Brenau college. The concert band will perform at 7:30 and the symphonic band will perform at 8:40. Students will need to wear dress black and provide their own transportation there. Meeting times will posted later. Please plan on coming out to the performances of these two groups.

LGPE for the symphonic band will be on March 7 at Reinhardt university at the Falany performing arts center. As of right now, we are scheduled to perform at 7:30 in the evening. The day is firm, sometimes the time will change.

I do not have a schedule for the concert band yet but will publish as soon as it is available to me. They will perform at Hart County High School between March 14-16.

Please notice that the website calendar has been updated to include all summer dates as well as the 2012 football schedule.

I hope everyone is doing well. Feel free to stop by the band room anytime as there is always something going on.

I will be in touch again soon!

Sincerely,

Dennis Naughton

Message delivered:  11/28/2011

Repeat of Schedule

WOW!!! Are we busy!

The schedule for this week is as follows:

Tuesday

3:45 - 5:45 - Symphonic Band 

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Drumline Chop Shop

Wednesday

7:15AM - Sheer Panic

Thursday

4:00 - 5:30 - Parade Rehearsal 

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Drumline chop shop 

Friday

4:00 - 6:30 - Symphonic Band 

Saturday - Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta Parade

7:15am - Report to Flowery Branch

7:45am - Depart for Atlanta

9:10am - Stage at Baker Street and Peachtree

10:30am - Parade Begins Be sure to set your DVR!!

I am hoping to return to FBHS by around 1:00 where we will need to unload marching stuff and load concert stuff. Symphonic Band members will get a quick lunch and meet at Riverside to set up for the rehearsal.

Symphonic Band Concert

3:00 - 5:00 Dress Rehearsal

5:00 - 6:30 Dinner Break

6:40pm - Call time for performers

7:00 - Inaguaral Sounds of the Season Concert!!!!

While this concert primarily involves the Symphonic band, all members are encouraged to attend. Ticket orders for Symphonic Band members need to be turned in before I release them to the public Wednesday. We really need to sellout this program!! It is going to be a wonderful show!

Looking ahead to next week:

Monday

4:30 - 6:00 - Jazz Band

Tuesday

 3:45 - 6:00 - Concert Band

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Drumline 

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Guard 

Wednesday

Steel Band, Jazz Band, Percussion ensemble, and Concert Band Christmas Concert at Brenau's Pearce Auditorium.

Thursday

4:00 - 5:45 - Pep band 

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Drumline 

6:00 - 9:00 - Winter Guard 

Please ask your child about their mid term exam requirements. Exams will start at the conclusion of all these concert events.

Saturday December 10 - All-State Band auditions, White County High School

December 13 - 7:00 PM - BPA Meeting (Mandatory Orlando Trip participant Meeting) FBHS theatre 

Sincerely,

Dennis Naughton

Message delivered:  11/24/2011

Thoughts on Thanksgiving Morning

Dear Flowery Branch Family,

I just want to take a minute to wish everyone of you a Happy Thanksgiving!

As we all take a moment today to spend with our loved ones I just want you to be aware of how much all of you mean to me. Not a day passes that I am not grateful for the great things going on at Flowery Branch High School and with the band program. The past year and a half has been an amazing run. We have so many more great moments to experience together.

Have a great day with your loved ones. I will look forward to seeing most of you tomorrow evening at 5:00 as we cheer the Branch Boys as they try to defeat a very good Tucker football team. We must continue to believe in them and what they can accomplish!!!

Sincerely,

Dennis Naughton

Message delivered:  11/20/2011

Important Information

Dear Parents and Students,

This email is likely to be very long but will be jam packed full of information so please read through it carefully. As you know there are many things going on in the Flowery Branch Band Program right now and it is a little difficult to keep track of everything. So here we go item by item:

Friday November 25 - We have a playoff game against Tucker High School. The game is an 8:00 kickoff as we have heard again that it is a PBS broadcast. The students need to arrive at the school at 5:00 for a 5:30 departure. The game will be played at Adams Stadium. The stadium is a one sided stadium that is located off of North Druid Hills Road. Take I-85 South to North Druid Hills road, turn left across the interstate, go past the Chick Fil A on your left at Briarcliff Road and the stadium will be on your right. Chaperones need to plan on paying. That doesn't mean you will, just plan on it.

Jazz Band - Jazz Band Rehearsals have begun. The Jazz Band will rehearse every Monday at 4:30. They will perform at the December 7 Christmas Concert (see information below).

Steel Band - The next rehearsals we will have will be on Wednesday November 30 and Friday December 2 at 7:15 in the morning. We will also perform at the December 7 Christmas concert.

Pep Band Rehearsals will begin soon with Mikhail. Please stay tuned for more information.

November 29 - Symphonic Band rehearsals from 4:00 to 6:00

December 2 - Playoff game (if we win, we could be going to Warner Robins). If we don't have a game, the symphonic band will rehearse from 4:00 till 6:00.

December 3 - The Childrens Healthcare of Atlanta Parade. Parents, this link contains information about the parade route, parking, and tickets for bleacher seating http://www.choa.org/festival. Band members will need to report to the band room at 7:00am. (This will not change even if we have a playoff game the night before). We will depart at 7:30am. We are supposed to arrive at our staging area around 9:00am. I believe the parade is scheduled to run from 10:30 to noon. I don't know where we are in the parade yet. I will communicate as soon as I can. Dress warm as we will be outside for a very long time and it could be very cold. My guess is that you can drive to downtown Atlanta and park anywhere close to the parade route. The parade travels straight up Peachtree Street and turns onto Marietta Street ending at the CNN center. I do know that this parade usually draws a great crowd.

December 3 - Yes the same day...When we arrive home from the parade, students in the symphonic band will have a quick turn around. We need unload the marching equipment, load the concert equipment, grab a quick lunch and head to Riverside Military Academy. We will have a dress rehearsal with the full chorus from 3:00 to 5:00 for our first annual Sounds of the Season concert. The concert will begin at 7:30 and is a must see event for everyone. The performance will feature over 260 performers involved in the chorus and band programs. We are selling tickets now. Tickets are $3 each. you may purchase up to four for $10 and then the price goes back to three per ticket. We need to sell out this event as the venue cost a lot of money. I have try to get the order form posted on the website this week. We need to sell 700 tickets to this event. Concert band members will given extra credit for attending this concert event.

December 5 - Jazz Band rehearsal 4:30 to 6:00

December 6 - Concert Band Rehearsal from 3:45 - 6:30. This is a long rehearsal because it is the only we have with the percussion section before the concert.

December 7 - Christmas concert at Brenau's Pearce Auditorium at 7:00pm. This concert will feature performances by the Steel Band, Percussion Ensemble, Jazz Band and Concert Band. All parents are encouraged to attend. Donations will be taken at the door and will go towards the rental fee of the facility. Symphonic Band Members will be given extra credit for their attendance. Please support all the organizations with your attendance.

December 9 - State Championship Game at the Georgia Dome. The game is set for an 8pm kickoff. I will details later if needed.

December 10 - All-State Band Auditions at White county High School. I will have audition times posted when the students return. Please make sure you are practicing the materials ove the break. If you accidentally left your instrument at school, i will be there tomorrow (Monday) from around 2:00 till 7:00 working trying to get caught up (Thanksgiving Break...right!).

December 13 - Orlando trip rehearsal 4:00 tp 5:00.

December 13 - 7:00pm. This is our regulary scheduled BPA meeting. I am going to make this a mandatory meeting for all students (with their parents) and chaperones attending the Champs Sports Bowl trip. We will go over the trip and answer any questions you may have. I will present the full itinerary and go over every detail about the event.

On a side note, every member making this trip must get it paid for. We don't have the money to cover it in our account so let's make every effort to get this taken care of.

December 15 - Orlando Rehearsal 4:00 to 5:00pm.

December 23 - Naughton turns 45, and is showing every bit of it...........just sayin!!

December 25 - We won't have any meetings or practices on this day.........at least not as of right now!! (I hope you know I am kidding!! Have a Merry Christmas!)

December 26 - Orlando chaperone Meeting at 7:00pm in the band room

December 27 - This is tentative but I want you to have an idea.  Students should plan on arriving at Flowery Branch no later than 5:45am to load the buses. (We will see if we can get some biscuits delivered from Chick-Fil-A, I will work on this). We will have a final departure meeting at 6:30 with the plan of departing around 7:00am. Many more details will be coming.

The items I have not accounted for are Winter Guard reherasals and Winter Drumline Rehearsals. The basketball pep band will also begin during all of this.

Many people find it hard to believe that we actually get busier after marching season...but we do. I am sorry that I haven't gotten more information to you sooner. I will be working some over the break to get things caught up so we can have a strong run for the remaining three weeks of 1st semester.

I hope this helps!! Have a Great Thanksgiving Break!,

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  11/7/2011

BPA Meeting

Dear Parents and Students,

Our scheduled monthly BPA meeting scheduled for this week is being postponed until next Thursday evening. This is due to a personal conflict and I apologize.

The BPA executive board will meet next Monday evening.

By the way, parking at the John's Creek in $5, not the 10 that was originally published.

I will send more info later this week,

Sincerely,

Dennis 

Message delivered:  11/5/2011

Playoff News

Dear Parents,

I received an text this morning from Coach Shaw and the news is not good.

Instead of having the home games we had hoped for, we drew the third seed in the region. We will play Johns Creek Friday night (11/11/2011) at Johns Creek High School. If we advance to the second round, we will have to travel to either Statesboro or Thomas County Central for the second round.

In the event of travel, we will have to use motor coaches. This will come at a small cost. I will be working on this scenario on Monday.

There may be opportunities for parents to travel with us to the second round. I don't want to put the cart before the horse but we need to plan for this scenario to happen. I will be in touch soon about all of this.

We hope to have a great day at the Old south Marching Festival!!! It will be cold, but hopefully a very rewarding today!!!!

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  11/1/2011

Weekend Schedule

Dear Parents,

It seems like just a couple of days ago that we were out in the ungodly heat hoping to get the students through another rehearsal without injury and now here we are at the end of our competitive marching season. It has been another great year for the Marching Falcons. We will compete for the final time this year at the Old South Marching Festival held at Newnan High School in Newnan, Georgia.

Here is the schedule for the weekend:

Friday against Clarke Central:

5:00 - Depart for Clark Central

7:30 - Game time

11:45 - Arrive home

Saturday contest schedule:

1:00 - 2:00 - Rehearsal

2:45 - Depart for Newnan High School

4:30 - Arrive at Newnan High School

5:15 - Warm-up

6:15 Performance!!!

8:30 - Awards Ceremony

9:45 - Depart for home

11:45 - Arrive at Flowery Branch

This will mark the end of our competitive season. We are obviously still playing football. Our schedule is week to week after this final regular season game. We will keep playing on Friday nights until we lose or win the state championship. This includes the Friday night after Thanksgiving night. I will post details on our website from week to week. If we win this week, we will most likely have a home game for our first playoff game. Let's have a big crowd out at Clarke Central to cheer the Branch Boys to victory!! This will be the toughest game of the year!!!

In the meantime, we will practice the next two Thursdays from 4:00 PM until 5:30 PM for the Braselton Christmas parade on november 19 and for the CHOA Christmas parade on December 3. Once I receive details on these events, I will email you and post on this page.

Thank you to the many parents who have helped make this marching season another great success. We are preparing to travel to Orlando Florida over the winter to give our final performance at the Champs Sports Bowl. I am truly blessed to a part of the Flowery Branch family!! Thank you so much for everything!!

Have a great evening...........I need to go home!

Message delivered:  10/23/2011

Thank You Everyone

Dear Parents and Students,

I wanted to thank everyone who helped and supported us througout the day yesterday.

Thank you to the parents who came in early to cook some food for the students so that they could have a meal before leaving for the contest.

Thank you to all of the chaperones who gave their time yesterday to help take care of the students from the minute we left campus to our arrival home last night at 11:45.

Thank you to all of the equipment crew who always takes care of all of our needs from week to week starting from arranging transport of the trailer to coordinating the movement of the equipmnent from warm-up to performance and back. I am forever grateful to you for coordinating that and taking that responsibility off my shoulders.

Thank you to the many parents who came out, braved the chilly temperatures to sit an watch a very good band contest. I think it does us a lot of good to see what else is out there and see where we compare. We are still very much a program on the rise. The day will come very soon when we will be a legitimate contender for class champion or even sweepstakes winners. We were close yesterday to the third place sweepstakes winner in the silver division.

Lastly, thank you to the students!! You are an awesome group to work with. Keep working hard every day and I promise that you will reap the rewards for your efforts. I think the world of every one of you. Not a day goes by that I am not grateful for your time and dedication to this program.

I am very pleased with the outcome of yesterday's contest. We are still maintaning our record of straight superior ratings in all captions which is another step forward from last year. We have made amazing progress since our last contest. We have two weeks until our final contest of the year. We will be attending the Old South Marching Festival in Newnan, Georgia on November 5. I am certain the schedule for that day will be similiar to this past Saturday. I feel that we are on pace to give our best performance of the year

Once we are finished with the competitive season, we will no longer rehearse the marching show. We will start some shorter rehearsals in order to get ready for the two christmas parades. We will march in the Braselton Christmas parade on November 19 and in the Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Christmas parade on December 3.

Thank you so much for all of your support! I look forward to another great week with the students!!!

Sincerely,

Dennis 

Message delivered:  10/19/2011

Charter School Meeting

Dear Parents,

Flowery Branch High School is petitioning to become a conversion Charter School. I have served on a committee that has researched deeply into the pros's and con's of working toward this goal. We are working towards becoming a a school of Global Studies and Leadership.

The highlights of the charter will be discussed at a meeting tomorrow night that is open to all parents. The meeting will be at 6:00pm in the small gym.

I would like to encourage all parents to attend this meeting. You will be asked to vote tomorrow night as to whether we should go forward with the charter process or not. As a member of the committee, I would like for you to consider voting "yes" to the charter. That being said, you must decide for yourself. The goal of Dr. Coleman and the members of the committee was to continue to make Flowery Branch High School the best that it can be. We believe that the scrutiny that we must undergo as a charter school will hold us to a higher level of accountability. This accountability will be shown through a yearly Charter report that will give the school a report card on the goals that are outlined in the charter document.

Please make plans to attend the meeting tomorrow night. I realize there will be many questions as the focus of Flowery Branch of the future will be discussed. It is my hope that the band parents will be a strong representative group tomorrow night. The Flowery Branch faculty voted last Friday to move forward with the Charter. It is now up to the parents. I believe in what we are trying to do. I hope you will too.

Sincerely,

Dennis 

Message delivered:  10/18/2011

Thanksgiving Plans

Dear Parents,

I would like for everyone to be prepared for us to have a football game the week of our Thanksgiving vacation. As you well know, the football team is currently 7-0 and predicted to do well in the state playoffs. As long as we keep winning we will have football games on Friday nights.......including the Friday after thanksgiving. If we win the region, which we are on pace to do, our first two playoff games will be home games. If we win the games on November 11 and November 18, the game on the 25th could be a toss up (regarding the venue) if it puts two number one seated teams together. All communications fo this will be through email. We will have a parade on November 19th in Braselton where I will most likely be able to give you my most updated information.

Thank you for planning accordingly,

Dennis 

Message delivered:  10/18/2011

This Week's Contest Schedule

Dear Parents and Students,

I apologize for not sending this information sooner however, the information for this weekend has changed three times since I first received it last week. Here is the schedule for the game and the contest:

Friday

5:30 - Skull session outside

6:20 - Get Dressed

7:00 - Meet Outside

7:10 - Marching in for SS Banner

7:20 - SS Banner

7:30 - Kickoff

10:30 - Game concludes

Saturday

12:00 - 3:00 - Rehearsal

3:00 - 4:15 - Eat (BPA will provide a sack lunch that incudes a hot dog, hamburger, chips and a drink for each student) get dressed into half uniform

4:15 - Meet in the band room for dismissal 4:30 - Depart for Forsyth Central High School

5:45 - Arrive

6:30 - Warm -up

7:00 - Move to Gate

7:10 - Performance

7:30 - Go Back and change - Please bring warm clothes as it is bound to be very cold

9:45 - Awards Ceremony

12:00pm - arrive home at Flowery Branch

As I said, our performance time has changed three times since last week. We will look forward to a big supportive crowd at this weeks contest!!!

Thank you for your continued support of the band program.

Sincerely,

Dennis

Message delivered:  10/09/2011

Schedule During Fall Break

Dear Parents and Students,

I want everyone to kow how pleased I was with the performance this past Friday night. It was easily our best performance yet. I feel that we are on a good road to our next two contests.

I know that fall break is coming up however as marching band members we have responsibilities coming up that I want to make sure we are all aware of.

The students are out of school on Friday this week. we also have our biggest game of the season against Heritage High School. All members are expected to be in attendance. The football players will be there, the cheerleaders will be there, and so will we. We are to report to the school at 4:15 this week. We will depart for Heritage at 5:00. It is also one of our longest bus rides of the year.

We will also have rehearsal on Tuesday October 18 from 6:00 till 8:30.

This has been on the calendar all year. We will be attending a band contest on the following Saturday, October 22 making this rehearsal incredibly important. Please plan accordingly for this rehearsal.

Thank you for your support. We will be starting a fund raiser this week that will help benefit your student account. I will send more information later this week!!

Have a great sunday, thank you for your support!!!!

Dennis 

Message delivered:  10/02/2011

Due to Homecoming, tonight's half-time show will take place BEFORE the game.  Habersham will perform at 7:00 and FBHS will perform right after them at 7:10.