Good evening!

What a day! That is all there is to say.  I am overjoyed with the effort and pride that our band showed yesterday.  When I say band, what I mean is family.  As we know it takes a village and yesterday everyone was operating with the same goal in mind, which made for an electrified performance.

The day started early even after our late night at Fayette County with band parents and staff tackling the tough obstacle of clearing the bus loop in front of the band building.  The recreation department assisted by making announcements and we had some extremely dedicated parents standing watch to help clear the area.

As you see from the photo above, the students had a very focused and productive final rehearsal before our big performance.  They got started EARLY, with their stretches and carried themselves with pride and integrity throughout the entire day!  I knew from that moment that the students were ready to bring the house down and that they did.

This ultra focused attitude continued even as the students went to the restroom before warm-up.  They students remained at a relaxed, calm, focused state while waiting in the gym.  It gave us a chance to think about the task at hand and clear our mind before warm-up.  In the warm-up area – the focus of the staff and students continued to be spot on.  I must say that it was pretty special to turn around during the band’s warm-up to see our principal, Dr. Albertus, supporting the students by following them through the warm-up process!

One judge commented on the sheet that the Carrollton Band was “En Fuego!” and stated that we were clearly the “Fan Favorite.”  This is what performing is all about, entertaining the audience with passion, intensity, and professionalism.  Our students were ROCKSTARS!  It was obvious that the crowd did not stand up just for any band, but our students received a boisterous standing ovation.  You can tell from the looks on their faces that they left it all on the field and created a memory that will stay with them forever.  I am so proud of our students for representing our community with class and integrity.  Yes we brought home some beautiful hardware to show our community, but more importantly you guys put one of the best performances of your lifetime.  Well done!  Following the performance and presentation of awards, Dr. Edwards and Mr. Goodman came by to give their congratulations!  How special is it to have the Director of Strategic Communications, our Principal, and the Superintendent of Schools in attendance at our performance.  I say it again, “What a day!”

As we all know there is a ton of preparation and logistical magic that must happen to have a successful band program.  We are extremely lucky to have one of the best staffs to work with our students.  Thank you so much to Mrs. Dothard, Mr. Robichaux, Mr. Huls, Ms. Menendez, Mrs. Greene, Mr. Lyman, and Mr. Alexander for your hard work and dedication to our students.  All night people were approaching me to compliment your work and the student’s performance.  Thank you for always providing the best instruction for our students!  I am honored to call you colleagues and appreciate your camaraderie in leading our students to be leaders in our community.

The logistical magic is created by our band parents! WOW!  I am still in awe of the organized crew that shows up at the right time to load the trailer, assemble props, feed the students, pass out uniforms and fix the broken ones, carry extra uniform parts, chaperone the buses, keep the parents in the loop with website posts, offer moral support and love, and to work through any and all problems that may arise with a cooperatively calm cool attitude that makes it fun to work with.  You guys are pros and we are so fortunate to have you as part of our team.  Thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank you again!

Days like yesterday make me excited about the future.  That was our first competitive performance together, but definitely not our last.  We now have the opportunity to celebrate what we have accomplished but more importantly to build on what we have established and work together to make our next performances even better!  I look forward to beginning that journey tomorrow as we reflect on yesterday’s performance and continue our quest as a band family.  Congratulations!

Honored,

-Mr. Carr