Past Meeting Notes

February 2020

Friends of Music Minutes 

Meeting Date: February 25, 2020

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer,  Jen Mahannah, and Becky Olson

The meeting was called to order at  7:08 pm.

New Business:

We sold 989 boxes of Fannie May candy for a profit of $5530.98!

Disney:  We will have final prices in the next two weeks.  Then we will mail letters home to all of the parents which will give them the date of the meeting for Disney.

Solo and Ensemble for High School is March 7th and Junior High is April 4th.

The Jr. High field trip is this Sunday.

New fundraiser:  Easter Bunny for hire.  The family would give us money to hide the Easter Eggs at night on Saturday, April 11.   The money will be due on April 6. $20.00 for two dozen eggs. 

Treasurer’s Report:   All accounts in good standing.

We can use the school’s tax exempt i.d. because we are an organization of the school.  

We also have a savings account, so we are going to move the majority of money to the savings account from the checking account.

We made $233.00 from our winter concession stands.  

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on April 7 in the Elementary music room.  The meeting was adjourned at 7:49 p.m.  


January 2020

Meeting Date:  January 7, 2020

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Anthony Napolitano, Toni Cassano, Nicole Kneer,  and Becky Olson

The meeting was called to order at  7:05pm

New Business:
*We have a Jr. High field trip for band and choir.  It is a free orchestra concert at Krannert on March 1st.  We will leave the school at 2:00pm and return home around 6:30pm.  The kids will just have to pay for food.  

*We will again do the scholarship for the Thomas Watson Fine Arts and are changing the music scholarship to the Rachel “Ray” Watson Music Scholarship.  We are going to make them $250 each written to the recipients school.   

*We are going to start a scholarship in Mr. Krejci’s name for students going into music education.  

*Our total profit for the coffee fundraiser was $2253.00. 

*We ordered 50 decals from Terry McFarland and paid $4.00 a decal and we are selling them for $10.  

*The Fannie May fundraiser starts on January 10th and orders are due on January 24th. The candy will be in by February 3rd.  We have a new distributor and there are new items along with the same Fannie May favorites.  There are cumulative prizes that they can win based on the items that they sell.  The profit is now 40% rather than 50%, but we feel that the prizes are going to be a good motivator.  

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on February 25th in the Elementary music room.  The meeting was adjourned at 7:47 p.m.  

November 2019
Friends of Music Minutes 
Meeting Date:  November 12, 2019

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Lily Lawrence, Dani Conner, Cassie Duffy, and Becky Olson

The meeting was called to order at  7:04 pm

Old Business:
Fall festival for Jr. High was on November 7 and it went very well.  

Yesterday we had our Veteran’s Day program and the Jr. High choir sang the National Anthem, the H.S. choir sang, and the band played Marches of Armed Forces.  

The Variety Show was November 1st and both shows went very well.  We earned $40 from the concession stand, $64 in donations, and we sold $75 in T-shirts in the last two weeks.  

New Business:
The H.S. choir has the LPC choral festival Thursday, November 14 at 7pm at Heritage H.S.  The entrance fee is $5.00 for adults and $3.00 for seniors and students.  

Jr. High field trip--We do not have a place to go yet.  Ms. Cardiff has looked at all the shows but has not found anything appropriate yet.  

Saturday, November 30th Jr. High and H.S. students are welcome to come to the Tree Lighting Ceremony and we will sing carols at 6:00 p.m.

High School band will be marching at the Parade of Lights in Champaign on November 30th.  They will meet at the school at 4:15 and parade starts at 6:00.

There was another concession lottery and we have January 21, February 3, and February 6.

We auctioned off only 7 of the 20 seats for the Winter Elementary Concert.  Ms. Cardiff wants to have an online auction for the other 13 seats for the front row seats at the Winter Elementary Concert on Monday, December 9th. 

The JH/HS band and choir concert is on  December 11th.  

Dial-a-carol will need to be done between December 12-16th.  We will have a sign-up sheet for the person to tell us where to go or who to sing to.  Hopefully we will carol one to two nights.  More details to follow.

Mrs. Olson has found someone that can do car decals that we can sell for $10.00.  We might use the logo from the T-shirts or have a contest for the logo.  We will order 100 for our first order.  Mrs. Olson will look into this.  

Treasurer’s Report:  We were able to close the savings account and transferred $53.59 to checking.  We spent $380.06 spent on the nine Senior gifts.  We have just collected for the coffee fundraiser. 

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on January 7 in the Elementary music room.  The meeting was adjourned at 7:47 p.m.  

October 2019

Friends of Music Minutes 

Meeting Date:  10/15/19

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Jamie Bennett, Becky Olson, and Anthony Napolitano  

The meeting was called to order at  7:05 pm

Old Business:

Deposit for Caramel apples tomorrow from Sunday.  We sold 30 apples and made $68.20. We sold 2 t-shirts as well.  Later on we may take an order for sizes we do not have in this order.

New Business:

**November 7 is the Fall Festival for the Junior High band.  It is at Atwood Hammond Grade School and the concert is at 7:00 p.m.  

**November 14 is the LPC Festival for choir at Heritage High School.  The concert is at 7:00 p.m.

**Variety show is November 1st at 1:30 and 7pm.  If you sign up to help set up on October 30th at 6pm for Disney credit.  You can also get Disney credit by signing up for crew, concessions, and/or tear down.

**The JH/HS band and choir concert has been changed to December 11th.  Nicole ordered the Senior blankets and they will be given during this concert.

**Coffee fundraiser:  It will start October 28 and orders are due November 11.  This company has non-flavored/ flavored coffee and a variety of cocoa.  We will try to get the order forms printed in color so the customer can see what the label of the coffee will look like.  

Treasurer’s Report:  All balances are in good standing.  We had a deposit of $91.00 for football concessions.  The caramel apple money ($68.20) has not been deposited yet. 

There is a savings account at the bank with about $53.59 that was opened in 1990.  We need to keep adding $1.00 to keep it active. We have voted to close this account.

We are wondering if we are a not-for-profit club.  Becky will ask Shirley about whether or not this would be helpful or not.  

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on November 12 in the Elementary music room.  The meeting was adjourned at 7:47 p.m.  



September 2019

 

Friends of Music Minutes 

Meeting Date:  9/3/19

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Nicole Kneer, Jen Mahannah, Becky Olson, Jeremy Bennett and Anthony Napolitano  

The meeting was called to order at  7:05 pm

Old Business:

The Disney meeting date is September 10th at 7pm in the band room.

Last FOM meeting we discussed what package that we will present at the meeting.  This meeting is purely informational--no money will be taken.  

Director Report:

Permission slips and money ($49.00) are due September 9th for the Beef and Boards trip.  Students need to write on the permission slip if they want to use their trip account.  

The junior high field trip will be scheduled when we get final numbers of band and choir.  As of right now it looks like we will go see Stomp.

We ordered T-shirts for band/choir already.  If we sell them all at $15.00, it will be a little over $600.00 profit. We bought them for $572.00.

The concession dates are 9/16 and 9/30.  Jen and Savannah have volunteered for 9/16 and for 9/30 we need one more person.  

Jen and Nicole can man the booth at Open House on 9/11.

We need someone to order the caramel apples, pick them up, and sell them at the Wooly Worm festival on October 5.

Mr. Napolitano would like new chairs for the band room.  The ones that he is looking at the total would be around $4000.  He will talk to PTO as well. He would like to split the cost between FOM and PTO.  

The ISU All State band day is Sunday, September 22.  Registration is due by September 16.

New Business:

The coffee sale is Oct. 28-Nov. 11.  Mrs. Olson’s concern is that it will come in on Thanksgiving break.  She will talk to the coffee guy about how to take care of this.

Treasurer’s Report:  

The current balance is $17, 210.92. We wrote a 450.00 check to Beef and Boards for the deposit for the trip on October 2.

 Mrs. Olson has a spreadsheet of the trip accounts.  She will give the student’s their amount balance at the Disney meeting.  

We have some inactive students and Mrs. Olson would like to leave their money in there account until they graduate.  All graduates who do not use their balances, that money goes back to FOM unless they have a sibling or cousin currently enrolled in music.  If they are inactive when they graduate then it will automatically go back to FOM. Inactive means they have not been in a music program for 2 or more consecutive years.

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on October 15 in the elementary music room.  Mr. Napolitano will bring food!

The meeting was adjourned at 7:56 p.m.  

August 2019

 

Friends of Music Minutes 

Meeting Date:  8/7/19

Members Present:   Jeri Cardiff, Dani Conner, Lily Lawrence, Jeryn Bennett, Jamie Bennett

The meeting was called to order at 7:06 pm in the Elementary Music Room. Ms. Cardiff gave updates on Disney received from the travel agent. All of the information will be shared at the Disney meeting on Sept. 10th. Band camp is August 13-15 from 10 a.m.-1:00 p.m. each day. Possible dates for the laundry detergent fundraiser were discussed. We will try to have t-shirts ready to sell during Open House. The tentative calendar for the year was given. Meeting adjourned at 7:21 p.m.


July 2019

Friends of Music Minutes 

Meeting Date:  7/9/19

Members Present:   Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Jamie Bennett, Becky Olson,  Ashley Kielhorn, and Anthony Napolitano  

The meeting was called to order at 7:11 pm at The Scoop.

Old Business:

  1. Talked to the coffee guy and he is good doing it in place of the cheesecakes during the late fall.  Each bag of coffee will be labeled VG music. Mrs. Olson will be in charge of this fundraiser.

  2. The car magnets are on hold because the one in Champaign did not respond.  We will get a quote from the place in Charleston or in Champaign.

  3. We reviewed the information about the laundry detergent fundraiser.  This will be done in the late Spring.

  4. Amy and Ms. Cardiff are running the AG days Talent Show.  Amy, Tony, and Cassandra are judging. 

  5. Table the discussion of the parking or seats at concerts until August.

New Business:

  1.  Mr. Napolitano is giving summer lessons incoming 5th graders on Monday and Wednesday.

  2. Registration is August 7 and 8th and we talked about having a table during registration but now because of the construction we should wait until Open House which  tentatively is Wednesday September 4. 

  3.  Two options for Disney:  

1st option is to do it the same way in the past--Drive in a bus straight through, 4 day hopper passes for all Disney related parks, 4 meal vouchers, directors are comped, and we stay in the resort.  We will have student rules and chaperone rules. Private security may increase the price a bit.

2nd option:--Three days of park hopper passes, 1 day hopper  pass for Universal Studios. Everything else is the same.

1st option tentatively costs $736.00 (quad room) and 2nd option tentatively costs $803.00 (quad room)

$55.00 per person for the bus (FOM pays for this when the students get their service events)  but that bus will stay at Disney so we can use the bus to go to Universal Studios.  

**We have voted to go with option 2.  We are planning on leaving June 1, 2021 and be back by June 6, 2021.  The students who are eligible are incoming 8th graders to incoming 11th graders.  

Treasurer’s Report:  

In May we paid for the Thomas Watson Music Scholarship to Ashley Fulk and one reimbursement for summer camp.

Mrs. Olsen would like to get all of the student’s balances updated by the beginning of the school year.

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be at 7:00 pm on August 7th in the elementary music room.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 p.m.  

May 2019
Friends of Music Minutes 5/14/2019

Members present:  Jeri Cardiff, Sherri Watson, Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Nicole Kneer,  Jennifer Bender, Becky Olson, Jamie Bennett, Jeryn Bennett, Jen Shadwick, Ellen Zimmerman, and Sonya Williams

  • The meeting was called to order at 7:00pm.

  • Concert wrap ups

    The concerts went very well and we had $85 (band concert) and $232  (choir concert) in donations.

    • Gifts for accompanists- $24.68

  • Treasurer report  by Ms. Cardiff

  • Fundraiser schedule

Christmas caroling (December)

Need to set a date and a parent to sponsor it (Nicole Kneer has volunteered)

Over the phone and in person

Secular and Sacred options

Easter egg hiding (March/April)

Need to set a date early

Parent volunteers (Jen Bender and Ellen)

2 dozen for $20, prefilled

They fill out a form and we put a distance (within ___ miles)

  • Silent auction reserved seats/parking (September)

Student/parent ushers to keep reserved spots

Beginning of the school year?  

Table at Open House to have this silent auction

Mrs. Olson will get us a good spot

We will also put it on the school Facebook page

  • Coffee  (November/December)

No upfront cost or minimum order size

Coffee is roasted fresh to order

$20 shipping charge

Customized label

Profit 40% on every 10 oz. bag sold for $15 ($6)

Not separated by student at delivery

  • Variety Show- Chili supper/Concessions?

The baked goods and chili supper did not go over very well this

year.  

We have decided to do regular concessions ran by kids for Disney

credit.  

  • Window Clings- Profit of $925.50 if we sell all 150 at $10 each

They cost us $3.50, profit of $6.50

We decided to do magnets again rather than clings.

  • Possible cheesecake replacement- Century Resources

    • Both 40% profit, Century has better incentives that our kids will like

    • Profit this year from cheesecake was only $2,394.00 this year.

    • Century resources does have catalogs with cheesecake in them but have other options.  The overall opinion was that this is too similar to Club’s Choice.

    • Different time of year besides October?

    • Another possibility is Profitable Solutions with is detergent and garbage bags-Jeri will check on the profit margin  (Spring)

    Fannie May-Fannie Mae profits:

    • 2015- $6,120

    • 2016- $2,910

    • 2017- $3,714

    • 2018- $4,422

    • 2019- $4,407

The profit margin is 50% for Fannie May with the company we have now.        We also looked at different options.

We discussed selling the coffee in the beginning of Fall instead of cheesecake.   Ms. Cardiff will look into this and Mrs. Olson will help with this fundraiser.

We will also sell caramel apples  from Flesor’s at Wooly Worm. (October)

  • Disney preliminary information

  • Officer nominations and voting

We need a a President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary

The following officers were nominated and voted in:

President:  Nicole Kneer

Vice President:  Jen Mahannah

Treasurer:  Becky Olson

Secretary:  Sherri Watson

The meeting was adjourned at 7:52pm.

April 2019
Meeting Date:  4/16/19

Members Present:  Dawn Fulk, Jen Mahannah, Sherri Watson, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Ashley Kielhorn, and Anthony Napolitano  

The meeting was called to order at 7:03 in the elementary music room.

Old Business:

  1. Everything for Chicago financially is taken care of and wrapped up.  

  2. The Krannert trip has been paid for.  The Jr. High are going April 27th at 5:30 p.m.  

New Business:

  1. The band spring concert is May 2 at 7:00pm.  The choir spring concert is on May 9th at 7:00pm.  April 23rd at 6:00pm is the K-3 spring concert.

  2. May 16th we are going to have a recruiting assembly for 4-8th grade during the school day.  

  3. Disney will be in two years rather than three years to allow the sophomore class to go.  If they do not raise enough money then we will push it back one more year. There will be a few changes such as service hours.  We will do the number of events worked instead.

  4. Possible fundraisers:  Coffee fundraiser, Christmas caroling fundraiser, Leaf raking fundraiser, Monical’s fundraiser, and an “Easter Bunny” fundraiser.  We will be discussing and cementing what fundraisers we will do during our May meeting. Our goal is $21,000 for the next two years.

  5. We will be electing officers for Friends of Music during the May meeting.  We are going to put an insert about FOM in the programs of all three concerts.  

    Director’s Report:

  1. Junior High students did well at solo and ensemble.  They were also well behaved.

  2. LOVC Band went well and the students had fun.  Our conference is changing to Lincoln Prairie Conference. Next year might be an honor band instead of all the students.  Choir LPC will be in the fall and band LPC will be in the spring. This is a change from every other year. The fall choir concert will not be happening because of this concert and District 5.  

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be Tuesday, May 14 at 7:00 pm.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:05 p.m.  

March 2019
March 5, 2019

Call meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.

Members present:  Jeri Cardiff, Dawn Fulk, Sherri Watson, Anthony Napolitano, Shelby Sigler, Joyce Bretz, Jen Mahannah, Tracy McAfee, Tricia Floyd, Dave Kern, Tanya Kern, Jamie Kern, Sarah Brown, Randy Brown, Dani Conner, Rachel Watson, Scott Leon

H.S solo and ensemble was this past Saturday and they did a great job!

LOVC will be March 21st at Oblong.  Mr. Napolitano will email the other directors for more information on transportation possiblities.

Jr. High field trip is April 27th at Krannert.  Leaving at 5:30 p.m. and seeing the Champaign Urbana Symphony Orchestra.  They will be listening to the Star Wars suite and the Planet Suite.

Spring concerts:  Elementary on April 23rd (K-3) at 6pm, the Spring band concert is April 30th and the Spring choir concert is May 9th at 7 pm for both.  We will give the choir seniors their gifts at the concert. Band seniors received theirs in the fall during Senior Night for football.

Treasurer’s report:  Jen reported the balances of the checking and savings accounts.  All accounts are in good standing.

Chicago Trip:   Ms. Cardiff went over the behavior contract.  Students will wear to school what they are wearing in Chicago.  Please dress warm in layers and sensible shoes. After 1st hour they will get on the bus and then they will get on the train to Chicago.  Please be sure that your emergency numbers are up to date. These will be taken with them. The students are being limited to one backpack. Ms. Cardiff and Mr. Napolitano will be going through all luggage before the trip.  Be sure that if your child takes prescription meds please fill out a permission slip and medication in original container. A do and don’t list was sent home for the trip. If you need a copy, Ms. Cardiff can email it to you.  The students will need a sack lunch for the train on Friday. The students will be together at all times. Budget about $15-20 dollars per meal (2-3 meals that are not pre-ordered). Chromebooks can be left in the band room on Friday.   There are a total of 29 children and 6 adults going on the Chicago trip. They are staying at Palmer House. Each child can bring one backpack and will abide by all school rules and the behavior contract. Ms. Cardiff will resend the itinerary and behavior contact to all parents of students going on the Chicago trip.

The next meeting will be April 16th at 7:00 pm in the Elementary Music room.

The meeting was adjourned at  7:27pm.

February 2019

February 11, 2019

Call meeting to order at 7;04.

Members present:  Jeri Cardiff, Dawn Faulk, Ashley Faulk, Sandi Hire, Ashley Kielhorn,  Nicole Kneer, and Sherri Watson

Just finished Fannie May fundraiser and our profit was $4,407.  The top seller was a sixth grader. Everything went well with the fundraiser.  The profit margin with this company is great however, the communication with them is very lax.  We are considering options for a different company for next year.


Treasurer’s report:  Ms. Cardiff reported the balances of the checking and savings accounts for the Treasurer, who was unable to attend.

Chicago Trip:  There are a total of 30 children and 5 adults going on the Chicago trip.  They are staying at Palmer House. Each child can bring one backpack and will abide by all school rules and the behavior contract.  March 15th, we will leave the school at 9:15 and the train leaves at 10:14 (eat lunch). We will arrive in Chicago at 1pm and then walk 5 minutes to Sears Tower.  After the tour of Sears Tower we will walk 20 minutes to Millenium Park. Then we will check into the hotel and freshen up. Dinner is at 5 at the Italian Village. The show is at 7:30 at CIBC theatre.  We will go to the hotel and there is an 11pm curfew. On March 16th, we will have breakfast at Freshii in the hotel. We will walk to the Art Institute and do the tour. Then there is a trolley to Navy Pier.  At 7:00 we will take the trolley from Navy Pier to the train station. We will arrive in Champaign at 10:30pm and take bus back to V.G.

Scholarships:  Sherri will present the scholarships.  FOM Thomas Watson Memorial Art Scholarship and FOM Thomas Watson Memorial Music Scholarship.  Two scholarships for $250 each (one for each scholarship). These will be presented on May 7th at 6:00pm.

Scholarship requirements are an application  and an essay about their involvement in music or art.


Solo and Ensemble for the H.S. is March 2 at Heritage and Jr. High is April 6 at St. Joe.


Mr. Tracy has talked to the board they approved Disney in three years.


The next meeting is March 5 at 7pm at the Elementary Music Room.

Meeting is adjourned at 7;58pm.

January 2019
 January 8, 2019 Call meeting to order at 7:05.

Members present:  Jeri Cardiff, Mr. Napolitano, Nicole Kneer, and Sherri Watson

Scholarship for Music and Art in Thomas Watson’s name.  Voted on handing out the scholarship to a student who has been in music or art at VG not necessarily going into a music or art major.

Treasurer’s report:  Ms. Cardiff reported the balances of the checking and savings accounts for the Treasurer, who was unable to attend.

Fannie Mae fundraiser will kick off January 14 and will end January 28.  Delivery before Valentine’s Day.

Chicago Trip:  Art Institute is now a teacher led tour which makes the museum cost is free.  The total cost is $297 with Willis tower tour and $273 without the Willis tower tour.  

Mr. Napolitano is planning a field trip to Krannert (Jr. High Choir and Band and High School Band).  They will be going to a restaurant before the field trip.

Solo and Ensemble for the H.S. is March 2 at Heritage and Jr. High is April 6 at St. Joe.  

Meeting is adjourned at 7:30pm

December 2018
The Friends of Music met on December 18, 2018 at 7:00 p.m. in the Elementary Music room.  Members present were Dawn Fulk, Jen Mahannah, Dani Conner, Lily Lawrence, Nicole Kneer, Ms. Cardiff, and Mr. Napolitano.  The meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m.

The directors reported that all of the Winter concerts went well.  Audience attendance and feedback was all positive.  We brought in donations at the concerts, as well as from the Rotary after the choir caroled at their party.  Another member of the Rotary gave a donation as well.

Senior choir members will receive a gift from FOM at the Spring choir concert.  Senior band members received theirs at Senior night during football season.

The Music Department will do the Fannie May fundraiser January 14th-28th with delivery before Valentine's Day.  

The Chili Supper and Variety Show concessions profit will be split between the High School and Jr. High students who worked it.  The profit will go into their trip accounts.

FOM has concessions on 2/4/19.  It will be reserved for high school students who are going on the Chicago trip to help them get their events worked.

Chicago trip details were shared. All itinerary events and costs have been finalized.

Ms. Cardiff and Mr. Napolitano suggested caroling for both groups as a fundraising event for next school year.

The next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 8, 2019 in the music room.  The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 p.m.  Dawn Fulk motioned to adjourn and Nicole Kneer seconded.

September 2018
The Friends of Music met on Sept.17, 2018 at The Scoop.  Members Present:  Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Joyce Bretz, Sarintha Nelson, Sherri Watson, Jen Mahannah, Jeri Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Ashley Kielhorn.  The meeting was called to order at 7:00pm.

We voted for a new treasurer.  Jen Mahannah was nominated and she was voted in as our new treasurer unanimously.

Old Business:

Three blankets were ordered for Senior Gifts (band) for a total of $132.87 and Joyce has been reimbursed for this.  We will order 8 more for choir for December.
We received a Thank you note from Hannah Hudson thanking us for the scholarship to EIU Music Camp.  
The choir has an overnight trip to Chicago planned for 2019 but what they will be doing is still being checked into.  This will cost approximately $300-$400.
The upcoming concert date is October 17th for High School choir and band.  The Variety Show date is still pending.  Auditions are October 9th-12th.  We discussed the possibility of selling concessions during the Variety Show.
Upcoming fundraisers:  
Car magnets-We are still need to find a manufacturer.
Cheesecakes-The kickoff is October 3rd and sales will run until October 17th.  Delivery is October 24th.
Dawn brought up the possibility of selling caramel apples from the Candy Kitchen.  They will give them to us fro 25% off their price and will sell each apple at $2.95 to us.  We set the price ($5 each, profit of $2.05 per apple sold.  Since the meeting, we have decided to try to sell these at the Wooly Worm Festival on October 6th.
Possibility of other fundraisers:  Fannie May in the Spring 

Director’s Reports:

Choir is going well and there are some new high school students that have joined this year.  The Jr. High choir was small so Mrs. Cardiff allowed 6th grade to join Jr. High choir this year.  That added 12 more students to our Jr. High choir. She will provide a pizza party for all Jr. High members who stay in choir the entire year.  The Jr. High and High School choirs will be singing together on Veteran’s Day.
Band is also going well.  New students are joining and Mr. Napolitano is pulling up some Junior High members for pep band.  

Next Meeting:  The next meeting will be on Monday, October 22nd at Jen Mahannah’s house.  

The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 p.m.  Dawn Fulk motioned to adjourn and Ms. Cardiff seconded.

August 2018
The Friends of Music met on August 6, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room.  
Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Isabella, Joyce Bretz, and Nicole Kneer.  The meeting was called to order at 7:05.

Treasurer voting will happen at the September meeting.  Joyce reported on the FOM accounts. 

Motion was presented by Dawn Fulk to continue the FOM scholarship for students who attend summer music camps.  Ms. Cardiff seconded the motion and all voted in favor.

District 5 Honors auditions are on Columbus day in October.  The Variety Show will have to be rescheduled and Ms. Cardiff will get that date onto the calendar as soon as possible.

Ms. Cardiff suggested that FOM send a floral arrangement to the Soper family in their time of loss.  All were in favor.  Ms. Cardiff will order the arrangement for them.

The concessions lottery meeting with Mr. Sappenfield is upcoming.  We will attend the meeting and choose days to run concessions for our FOM accounts.

Dawn motioned to adjourn at 7:44 p.m.  Nicole seconded, and all voted in favor. Meeting adjourned.  Next month's meeting will be Sept. 17th at The Scoop.

July 2018
The Friends of Music met on July 9, 2018 at The Scoop.  Members present were Mr. Napolitano, Ms. Cardiff, Jen Mahannah, Emmaline Cler, Dawn Fulk, Angela Napolitano, Nicole Kneer, Sherri Watson, Liberty Watson, Ashley Kielhorn, and Sarintha Nelson.  The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.

Due to schedules for students and parents, we will not do an Ag Days fundraiser.  The cheesecake fundraiser will be Oct.3-17 with delivery on Oct. 24th.  
Ms. Cardiff is still trying to find a way to get more of the car magnets made.

The Chicago trip transportation will be provided for students by FOM if they work 5 events (set up or tear down) and sign in and out with directors for each event.  They may also sell 20 items at a fundraiser to equal one event.  The choir will apply to perform at a venue in Chicago on the trip.

New officers were voted on. Dawn Fulk is President, Nicole Kneer is Vice President, and Sherri Watson is Secretary.  The Treasurer vote will be delayed.  Members voted to add Mr. Napolitano as a signer on the FOM checkbook.  Dawn made the motion and Nicole seconded.  All voted in favor.

Senior night for football will have band students recognized and FOM will buy those seniors gifts.

FOM would like to have a Music Department cookout to welcome Mr. Napolitano during school registration.  We will have hot dogs, chips, and water on the front lawn on 8/2/18 starting at 6 p.m.  Ms. Cardiff will contact administration to get permission to do so.

Ms. Cardiff will send home FOM flyers with the students in grades K-6 after school starts.

The next meeting will be August 6th at 7:00 p.m.  Nicole motioned to adjourn at 7:45 p.m. Dawn seconded, and the meeting adjourned.

May 2018
The Friends of Music met on May 7, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room. Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Nicole Kneer, Ashley Hunter, Jen Mahannah, Dawn Fulk, and Ashley Fulk.  The meeting was called to order at 7:03 p.m.  

Ms. Cardiff tried to call the phone of the place that did the car magnets.  That number is no longer working.  

The Spring Concerts, Baccalaureate, 8th Grade Promotion, and Graduation are all this month.  We have received thank you notes from students who earned our FOM scholarships. 
Ms. Cardiff is going to look into prices for new tux shirts to replace some worn ones.  There may be a donor willing to fund this project.

Next meeting will be July 9 at The Scoop.  Meeting adjourned at 7:25 p.m.

April 2018
The Friends of Music met on April 16, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room. Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Ashley Fulk, Dawn Fulk, Jen Mahannah, Ashley Hunter, Joyce Bretz, Sherri Watson, and Amy Rose.  The meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m.  

The Loyalty Day Parade is in May.  Ashley Hunter volunteered to let the HS Band use her family's trailer.  Ms. Cardiff will find a truck to pull the trailer.

Jr. High Solo and Ensemble was a great success.  The Spring concerts are upcoming and notes will be sent home concerning them.

Jessica Rose earned a scholarship from the Chorale and will be recognized at the Spring Choir concert.

Ms. Cardiff will contact Larry Hall to see when the parade is during Ag Days.  Whether or not we do a car wash will depend on the time of the parade.  Ms. Cardiff will also look into the cost of making more FOM car magnets.

The May meeting will be May 7th.  Meeting adjourned at 7:35 p.m.

March 2018
The Friends of Music met on March 26, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room. Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Bill Fulk, Dawn Fulk, Jen Mahannah, Ashley Hunter, Andrea Hall, Kaylee Arbuckle, Joni Horein, Joyce Bretz, Juli Jobe, Justin Shrum, Mr. Napolitano, and Amy Rose.  The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. 

Ms. Cardiff introduced Mr. Napolitano, the new band director that will start next year.  We are very glad to have him joining us!  She also reviewed the Spring schedule and the concessions profits we made for the Spring.  

Ms. Bretz gave the Treasurer's report and account balances.  The Tri-M dues and All State hotel reimbursement have been paid.  

A scholarship committee needs to be formed to decide on the winners of the Thomas Watson memorial scholarships for this year.  Ms. Cardiff and Mrs. Watson will be on the committee.  Mrs. Fulk and Mrs. Mahannah volunteered as well.

Ms. Cardiff and Mr. Napolitano will start planning the Chicago trip for May of 2019 in August.  Students will have sign in and sign out at 5 music events (set up/tear down) in order to have their transportation paid by FOM.  

In order to get more people involved in FOM, we will have a flyer to put into the Spring Concert programs.  

Fundraiser ideas for next year were shared.  They will be voted on at a later date.  Ideas included a spaghetti supper with a show from students (silent auction/bake sale during the evening), a Monical's fundraiser night, talking to the Ag Days committee to schedule a car wash, Variety Show bake sale, a chili dinner before a football game IF we have concessions that night, drive through dinner, a vendor fair, and making more car magnets.

April 16th will be the next FOM meeting. Meeting adjourned at 7:45.

February 2018
The Friends of Music met on February 22, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room. Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Verna Bennett, and Ms. Cardiff.

Meeting was called to order at  6:59 p.m.  Ms. Cardiff reported the profit for our Fannie May candy sale and concessions.  FOM sent flowers to the Watson family for Jason's visitation. Ms. Cardiff read a thank you note received from the Watson family.

The scholarship application for the FOM scholarships was given to Mr. Sims and included in the packet passed out to the seniors.  Thank you to Mrs. Rose for typing up the application.

Solo and Ensemble dates:  High school on March 3rd at Heritage HS and Jr. high on April 14th at St. Joe MS.

The 5th grade band will be going on a field trip to Little Theatre on the Square in Sullivan on April 18th during the school day.

The Tri-M students asked if they could use their trip account money to pay the Tri-M dues for the year.  All members voted yes.

Ms. Cardiff reported that the school has started interviewing for the Band director position.  We are all excited to have a second full time director for the music department again next year!  It is important for all students who are interested in being in band and choir next year to put it on their schedule sign up to give to Mr. Sims, even if they are not sure if it will fit into their schedules for next year.  The schedule won't be finalized for what hours Band and Choir will meet until he receives all forms and sees which hours will allow for the most students to be in the ensembles.

The High School Band and Choir will perform for the ROE Secretary's Dinner on April 25th.  Students will report at 5:15 and will be provided dinner.

Members discussed ways to improve parent involvement in FOM.  One idea is to put the monthly agenda on the FOM Facebook page and in the FOM emails.

Next meeting will be March 26th.  The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.

January 2018

The Friends of Music met on Friday, January 12, 2018 in the Elementary Music Room. Members present were Amy Rose, Dani Conner, Nicole Kneer, Sherri Watson, Becky Olson, and Ms. Cardiff.

Meeting was called to order at  7:04 p.m.  Ms. Cardiff shared the account balances for checking and savings for Ms. Bretz, who was unable to attend. 

Director's report:
  • The December concerts went well and everyone seemed pleased.  We got a good amount of donations for FOM from the donation buckets. 
  • Jessica Rose and Abi Hopkins will be going to All-State January 24-27.  Congratulations!
  • FOM has concessions on January 18th and February 20th.  Mrs. Kneer and Allison will do the 18th and Ms. Cardiff will find one more volunteer student.
  • Jr. High will attend Beef and Boards on February 7th. They are seeing "Mamma Mia."

The Fannie May fundraiser will be the 17th through the 29th of this month.  Delivery will be before Valentine's Day.

Scholarship- Details for the Thomas Watson Memorial Scholarships were decided and voted on.  Mrs. Rose will type up the application.  We will give out 2- $200 scholarships this year.

Motion for meeting to adjourn by Amy at 7:54 p.m.  Nicole seconded the motion.



November 2017
The Friends of Music met in the Elementary Music Room on November 15, 2017.  Members present were Joyce Bretz, Ms. Cardiff, and Amy Rose.

The meeting was called to order at 7:15 p.m.  Joyce gave the Treasurer's report.  Senior choir students will receive the same personalized blankets the pep band seniors received.  The choir students will receive them at the Winter Concert when all of the seniors are recognized.  Joyce will get cupcakes for all 12 seniors and their parents.  We will also have soda and water to drink for the senior reception after the concert.

The FOM scholarship needs to be defined and finalized for Mr. Sims.  Since only 3 members were present, that will be tabled until the next meeting.

Ms. Cardiff reported that we have not yet renewed our Tri-M charter for this year.  The Winter Concerts will be on December 5th and 6th.  K-5 is on the 5th and Jr./Sr. ensembles on the 6th.

Meeting adjourned at 7:35 p.m.

October 2017
The Friends of Music met in the Elementary Music Room on October 2nd.  Members present were Dawn Fulk, Joyce Bretz, Juli Jobe, Ms. Cardiff, Amy Rose, Nicole Kneer, Kelsey Sears, Christian Hunter, and Ashley Hunter.
The meeting was called to order at 7:02 p.m.  

The Fall Fundraiser profited approximately $879.  We will get a list of which students sold just online so that everyone who sold can get profit into their trip accounts.

LOVC festival will be here at VG on November 9th.  The students from all 6 schools will have the option to purchase a Jimmy John's lunch for $5 that they must order in advance.  VG students involved will be released from class at noon so they can start greeting the other schools at 12:30.  We will have concessions at 3:30 in the cafeteria.  We need donations for the concession stand, as well as parents and students to help work that day.  Ms. Cardiff will send out a list for people to sign up to help or donate.  Dawn will give a list of ingredients needed, and then will make the dinner for the directors lounge.

Variety Show is the 27th.  Set up is on the 26th at 5:30 p.m.  Concessions will be open, and baked goods are needed for this event.  All donations must be nut free.  Dawn and Amy will run the Variety Show concessions.

The band will ride in a trailer to perform for the Homecoming Parade.  The HS choir will sing the National Anthem at the Homecoming game, and band will play pep band.

Meeting adjourned at 7:54 p.m.


September 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Elementary Music Room on Sept. 12th.  Members present were Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Amy Rose, Nicole Kneer, and Ashley Hunter.

Friends of Music voted to continue the scholarships for students who attended summer music camps.  Hannah and Abi were the two who went this past summer.  Amy made the motion and Dawn seconded. All voted in favor.

We have concessions on the 25th and 26th of this month. Ms. Cardiff cannot attend, but parents and students have already signed up to help.

HS music students will attend Beef and Boards on Sept. 28th.

Joyce gave the Treasurer's report via email due to illness.  All accounts are in good standing.  Checks were sent to Beef and Boards.

5th grade band instrument rental night is the 13th.

We will host LOVC choir festival in November.  Discussion on what foods and concessions to serve were started and will be finished at the next meeting.

Students are signing up for Variety Show auditions.  We will serve nut free concessions that night with donations from parents.

Sr. Night- gifts have arrived and we will do a reception for all music department seniors after the Winter Concert.

Meeting adjourned at 7:55 p.m.  Next meeting is October 2nd.

July 2017

The Friends of Music met at The Griddell on July 9th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Ms. Cardiff, Joyce Bretz, Nicole Kneer, Scott Leon, Ashley Fulk, and Dawn Fulk.

Director's report- Letters are going to all students next week to see who is able to attend Band camp and march in the Ag Days parade.  Band camp is Aug.2-4 from 9:00 until Noon each day.

Pep band and marching at games is up in the air until the schedule is settled.  The Board will have to wait until the 1st day of school to consider getting a second director.

Nov. 9th LOVC choir will be hosted at VG.  There should be approximately 75 students from the schools.  We will need to have a menu for supper, water, soda, small concession stand.  Dawn will talk to Dan.

HS will go to Beef and Boards in the Fall for their field trip.  We need to start fundraising for the Chicago trip in May of 2019.

Joyce gave the Treasurer's report.  The only activity was paying for sending flowers to the Connor family for Caitlin's visitation.

Fundraising ideas- Spaghetti dinner with a trivia night, coffee house dinner theatre, add concessions to the Variety Show evening performance, chili supper before football game.  Decisions will be made at a coming meeting.

Next meeting will be August 15th at 7:00 p.m.  Meeting adjourned at 8:02 p.m.



May 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Music Room on May 9th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:04p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Rebekah Hopkins, Jen Mahannah, Joyce Bretz, Nicole Kneer, and Ashley Fulk.

Ms. Cardiff shared the schedule for the end of the year- Choir concert the 11th, Baccalaureate the 21st, Promotion the 25th, and Graduation the 26th.

We received donations at both the Elementary Concert and the Band Concert.  Ms. Cardiff also shared that FOM received a sizable donation from Victory Church after the Elementary Concert.  We will send a thank you from the students.

Ms. Cardiff requested that FOM help pay for the accompanists and end of the year trophies for the students due to extra expenses in the music budget this year.  All members voted in favor.

Mrs. Fulk discussed the possibility of a FOM scholarship on Awards night in years to come.  All members present were in favor.  Details will be discussed at a future meeting.

Ms. Bretz gave the Treasurer's report.  We had a few checks go out last month and deposits from the concert donations.  

HS students will be taking a trip to Chicago in the Spring of 2019.  Preliminary ideas and details were discussed on where to go, stay,etc.  Instead of service hours, students or parents will have to help at a certain number of events.  Putting a full schedule on Google docs where students can sign up was suggested.  There will be deadlines for participation once more details are in place, as well as other specific requirements.  More details to come!

Ideas for music advocacy were discussed.  A plan of action became more detailed.

Meeting adjourned at 8:03 p.m.

April 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Music Room on April 3rd.  Meeting was called to order at 7:04p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, and Ashley Fulk.

Students will be preparing a thank you for Mr. King.

Tri-M members will be manning the donation buckets and programs at all of the Spring music events.

Ms. Cardiff will do awards during the concerts this year instead of doing a separate awards night.  Members agreed they prefer the students have a more public recognition for their achievements.

Ms. Cardiff has put out an email to see if we can get any donations of bell sets, alto saxes, bass clarinets, or flutes.  Our school instruments are older and we don't always have enough for students in need.

Officer elections will happen in August.  Discussion was had on officers and on how to further plans for supporting the music department.

Next meeting is set for May 9th at 7:00 p.m.  Meeting adjourned at 7:32 p.m.

March 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Band Room on March 6th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:00p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Joyce Bretz, and Ashley Fulk.

Solo and Ensemble Contest was this past Saturday.  All of our students received a I or II rating, and had a very successful day!

Tri-M members will be performing for the Rotary luncheon on the 30th.

Ms. Cardiff requested a check for Mrs. Malin, who did a great job with the flag squad as their coach this year.  This request had been approved in a previous meeting.

Members agreed to recognize Mr. King for his assistance this year at the Spring Band Concert.

Ms. Cardiff reported that the sound system pieces have been received and the new system will be installed before the April 25th Elementary Concert.

Ms. Cardiff reported that she will be asking approval for a 2 day Chicago trip for the HS Music Department in May of 2019.  All details and plans will come at a later date, after approval has been received.

Discussion was had on how to further support the Music program as changes are coming in the future.  Ideas are welcomed and appreciated.

Next meeting will be April 3rd.

Meeting adjourned at 7:37 p.m.


February 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Band Room on February 13th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:06 p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Lori Beeson, Nicole Kneer.

Ms. Cardiff reported on behalf of the Treasurer that Fannie May made a profit of $3,714 and the money refund from Metra has been received.  Refund checks will be written this coming week by Ms. Bretz.

All State was exceptional and both students had a great time.  FOM has paid half of the students' room expense, with thanks to FOM from the students' parents.  

Calendar dates:  March 4 is HS Solo and Ensemble in Broadlands, March 8 is HS field trip to Beef and Boards, March 16 is LOVC for HS Band in Hutsonville, April 1 is Jr. High Solo and Ensemble, April 25 is the K-3 Spring Concert, May 3 is the 5-12 Band Concert, and May 11 is Jr. High/HS Choir Concert.

Pictures and videos of all music events this year can be sent to Jim Kestner at jkestner@yahoo.com for the Commemorative DVDs.

Ideas for future fundraisers were discussed.

Ms. Cardiff reported that Mark King has been doing repairs for the band all year, free of charge.  Members present voted to thank him publicly at a later date.

Ms. Cardiff asked if FOM would pay accompanist fees for the Spring Concert, as well as purchase a rental alto sax for the band program.  All members voted in favor on both accounts.

Motion to adjourn at 7:56 p.m. by Dawn Fulk.  Amy Rose seconded.  Motion passed.

January 2017

The Friends of Music met in the Band Room on January 9th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:01 p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Ginger Campbell, Ashley Fulk, Nicole Kneer.

Ms. Cardiff reported on the Winter Concerts for all age groups.  All concerts were a great success by our students.  Tri-M students collected FOM donations at all concerts.  DVD pre-orders have also started to come in from parents.

The pep band will have 2 more performances this quarter.  

The money from the cancelled Chicago trip will be refunded in full as soon as we receive the refund checks from the 3 venues.

2 students will be attending All State- Rachel Watson and Abi Hopkins.  Ms. Cardiff asked if FOM would pay the difference of their rooms so their parents didn't have to.  All members present voted in favor.  Ms. Cardiff will get the amount from the bookkeeper after returning from All State.

Ginger gave the details of the Fannie May fundraiser.  The sale will end on January 30th, so it can be back to the company by Feb. 2nd.  The kickoff will be Jan. 17th at 2:30 p.m.  Delivery will be on February 10th.

Amy proposed that brainstorming begin for how FOM can advocate to have a band director position again next year.  All members discussed possibilities, and agree it is better to do so sooner rather than later

Tony Hooker has brought up a possibility of a music trivia night fundraiser.  This is a time of year where that could be a great moneymaker for us.  All spoke positively of the idea. No date was set at this time.

Ms. Cardiff proposed that we find a second parent who could be added as another parent on the FOM bank accounts in case we need access to checks during the day when the treasurer may not be available.  All members were in favor.  We will table the discussion until parents who are interested can be found.

The next meeting is set for Feb. 13th at 7:00 p.m.  Dawn voted to adjourn at 7:39 p.m.



November 2016

The Friends of Music met in the Band Room on November 21st.  Meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Juli Jobe, Joyce Bretz, Ashley Fulk, Nicole Kneer.

Ms. Cardiff read a thank you note from Hannah Hudson for her music camp scholarship from FOM.  She also reported that the HS choir wants to sing Carols in December.  They may possibly go to a nursing home, or the elementary classes.

Ms. Cardiff reported on the Jr. high band Fall Festival, and District 5 performances for all ensembles.  All State Results should be posted on December 5th.  She also shared the concert dates for December's concerts.  The Tri-M induction will be held during the Jr. high/ High school concert.  Dawn will collect the donation money from the concerts that the Tri-M members collect before the concerts.  

There are 3 tickets left for the Chicago trip.  Ms. Cardiff asked if we could offer one to the bus driver at a discount so she doesn't have to sit for 12 hours.  FOM voted to comp the ticket for the bus driver.  Amy suggested asking the foreign exchange students if they would like to attend.  All members present voted for the idea.  Ms. Cardiff has to give a headcount to Metra by 11/26 and payment by 12/3.

Ms. Cardiff reported that the FOM parent t-shirts require a minimum of 12 shirts to order. Dawn asked for a jpeg of the shirt so she can print color flyers.  Then we will pre-sell the shirts.

FOM will have concessions on 12/1, 1/6, and 2/6.  
Next meeting will be Monday, January 9th.
Meeting adjourned 7:28 p.m.

September 2016

The Friends of Music met in the Music room on September 13th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.  Members present were Amy Rose, Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Joyce Bretz, Juli Jobe, Ginger Campbell, Rebekah Hopkins, Abigail Hopkins, Carrie Freeze, and Libby Spannagel.

Ms. Cardiff reviewed the schedule for the upcoming Homecoming Parade and Homecoming game activities for HS Band and HS Choir.

The Chicago trip transportation will be from VG to University Park on a school bus, and then on the Metra to the Millenium Station that is 10 minutes from the theatre.  The cost for the Metra is $3.50 for students and $7.26 for parent chaperones.  Ms. Cardiff was able to reduce the number of tickets for the show with no penalty.  We will only need one bus.  We will eat at the Italian Village.  Total cost for the trip will be announced as soon as Ms. Cardiff hears back from them.

Senior night is this week.  Discussion was held on what to do for the seniors.  It was decided that a reception will be held in the music room after the game. Mrs. Freeze will bring cupcakes, and Mrs. Spannagel will bring soda and cups.  Mrs. Rose will buy the music mugs and Mrs. Fulk will get gift cards for the seniors.  

Ms Cardiff is judging at District 5 auditions, so we may need a parent chaperone (preferably a school employee) to go with the band and choir students auditioning on Oct. 10 in Effingham.  

Ms. Bretz gave the Treasurer's report.  All accounts are doing well, and Ms. Bretz updated student trip accounts.

Cheesecake sales will be Oct. 5-19, with orders being delivered on Oct. 26th.  Mrs. Fulk is in charge of the fundraiser, and will schedule parents to help for the delivery day.  No younger siblings will be able to be there during the delivery, as we had some confusion last year.

Mrs. Campbell was able to schedule the Fannie May fundraiser before Valentine's Day so that we can get the sales for Valentine's and Easter.

We will project the videos of last year's performance DVDs before the concerts this year (without sound) and pre-sell the DVDs all year. Mr. Kestner will organize getting high quality videos of all music concerts and we will deliver them to those who purchased the DVDs sometime in May after all of the concerts.  

A concern was raised that the FOM donation buckets haven't been utilized well in the past couple of years before the concerts.  Tri-M students will now be assigned to be at concerts one hour early with the donation buckets and programs at both entrances to help increase donations for the music program.

The position of FOM secretary was opened.  Mrs. Hopkins and Mrs. Freeze volunteered to share the responsibility.   Mrs. Rose motioned for them to be co-secretaries.  Mrs. Spannagel seconded the motion. All were in favor.

Motion to adjourn at 7:50 p.m.


August 2016

The Friends of Music met in the Music room on August 16th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.  Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Amy Rose, Joyce Bretz, Juli Jobe, Rebekah Hopkins, Tish Gulick.

Ms. Cardiff sent an email to Amtrak about the HS trip to Chicago.  The Union Station is a 15 minute walk from the theatre.  She is waiting to hear back to see if they can accommodate us and what the price would be.  We would need to take buses to the station in Champaign.

FOM needs a new secretary.  Members present voted to wait until the September meeting to elect a new secretary.

Band camp and the parade went very well.  Mr. Bowers did an amazing job with the percussion line, and Mrs. Malin did great work with the flag squad.  Ms. Cardiff asked if Mrs. Malin could be paid $500 for the year, which is what the coaches were paid last year.  Vote was unanimously in favor.

The car wash at Ag Days was not as profitable as in the past, but was still successful.

The Jr. High band and choir will go to Beef and Boards in November.  Since we do not have the capability to take 2 buses during a school day, we will need to charter buses for the day.

The students will be designing their t-shirts for this year.  They wondered if the FOM parents wanted t-shirts as well.  The vote was overwhelmingly yes, and that since the students have done such a great job of designing shirts in the past, the parents would like for them to design the shirts.

Camp scholarships went to the Hudson and Hopkins families.  If any other students went to a music camp over the summer, they may turn in their receipt to receive the $100 scholarship reimbursement.

Ms. Cardiff was reimbursed for the flower arrangement for Dede's family.

Mr. Kestner has offered to do a DVD fundraiser for the performances this year.  FOM will ask him for his costs up front so we can tell students the profit for their accounts before we sell them.  We will wait to sell until closer to the Winter concerts.

Ms. Cardiff has 17 FOM car magnets left that we can sell this year.  They are $10 each.  

There will be no Fall concert this year due to Ms. Cardiff preparing all of the band and choir students for IMEA, Fall Festival, and the Variety Show within a short time period when the Fall concert is normally held.

We will do concessions as a fundraiser again this year.  Cheesecake sales will be Oct. 5-19, orders due Oct. 21, and delivery Oct. 26th.


Meeting adjourned at 7:22 p.m.

July 2016

The Friends of Music met in the Band room on July 12th.  Meeting was called to order at 7:05 p.m.  Members present were Ms. Cardiff, Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Amy Rose, Ginger Campbell, Rebekah Hopkins, Tish Gulick.

 Ms. Cardiff read a thank you note from the family of Dede Eversole.  FOM sent a flower arrangement for the services.

 The band polos for incoming freshmen have been ordered.  The band students will get their polos at Band camp, and will be responsible for them through the end of the school year, when they'll be turned back in.

 Band Camp will be from August 1-5 from 9:00 a.m. until noon each day for all high school band students.  Students need to bring sunscreen as well as their instruments.  Clothing is t-shirts, shorts, and tennis shoes. No sandals!  Ginger and Dawn will bring bottles of water and Tish will bring a cooler to put them in.  There will be ice to keep the water cold.  Music for band camp will be available in the main office starting Monday, July 25.  Students need to pick it up and have all four pieces in working order by band camp.  We will have the pieces memorized before the Ag Days parade.  We will march in polos and khakis with tennis shoes.  We will have lunch on Friday when camp is over.  Band parents who would like to donate, please contact Dawn Fulk for details.

 A vote was taken to approve continuing the $100 scholarship for students who attend music camps over the summer.  Vote was unanimously in favor.  The checks will not be written until next month, when parents have had time to turn in their receipts of payment for their child's music camp.

 We will continue the cheesecake and Fannie May fundraisers.  Dawn will be in charge of the cheesecake fundraiser, and Ginger will be in charge of Fannie May.

 FOM will do a car wash for Ag Days at Monical's.  It will be from 7-11 a.m.  Choir students will run the car wash with Scott Leon and Dawn from 7-9 a.m.  Band students will work from 9 a.m.-11 a.m.  Students may not work for more than 2 hours.  We still need 2 parents to work the 9-11 a.m. shift.  Please contact Dawn Fulk if you can help.  Jr. high band students, we need you to work this since HS will be marching!

 Band will march at Ag days and Homecoming this year, as well as home football games.

 HS Band members need to get their phone numbers to Ms. C for a Remind app group.  This will be the easiest and best way for us all to keep in touch.  Parents are welcome to be in the group as well.  Ms. C doesn't have access to the private FB page that was set up, and does not use FB messenger, so the best way to contact her is the Remind app, or jcardiff@vg302.org

 Chicago trip- Due to unforeseeable changes to the Dance team schedule, the trip will be on the same day as the dancer's competition.  We need to know the number of students that effects ASAP.  We will try to reduce the ticket number, but only if that doesn't raise the price.  If we can't reduce the number, we will sell the extra tickets to the public, but will keep our group to the students and a few chaperones.  We can't sell tickets on FB, but we can privately spread the word on FB if needed.  Instead of an overnight trip, we will take a train to Chicago the day of the trip.  The permission clip (for head count) will be due September 1st.  The final money will be due Sept. 30th.  Any student not meeting deadlines will have their ticket sold (or ticket number reduced).

 Next meeting will be August 16th at 7:00 p.m. in the Band room.


May 2016

The Friends of Music meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m.  Members present were: Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Ms. Cardiff, Ginger Campbell, Amy Rose, Mr. Mueller, Joyce Bretz.

Directors' reports:  Beef and Boards with the Jr. High musicians was a great day.  We want to give a big thanks to the chaperones who attended.  The Jr./Sr. Spring Concert was stellar.  The students did an amazing job.  The Elementary Concert was wonderful as well.  HS band performed in the Loyalty Day Parade on Saturday.  Despite the rain, everything went well.

Joyce gave the treasurers report. She needs the names of students who used account money for the Beef and Boards trip.  The directors will give that information to her.

Mr. Kestner is going to print the DVDs of last year. He is donating the ink and FOM will just pay for the discs and labels. He must have all orders by the 17th so he has time to make them ready for delivery at the banquet on the 24th. Amy asked if there is a possibility of making them for this year's performances as well.

Baccalaureate, Graduation, and 8th grade Promotion are coming up.

We will do a car wash during Ag Days. Dawn will talk to Sid to schedule it.

The Chicago trip for December has been approved.  Ms. Cardiff recommends booking the hotel now to make sure we can get the rooms and the low rate.  She will check on the cancellation policy and report to FOM officers before the booking is done.

The End of the year banquet is on May 24th at 6:00 p.m. in the cafeteria.  We need forks and plates donated.  Each student is responsible for bringing something (please refer to the note sent home and sent in the FOM email for details).

Tri-M will need to recharter for next year.  The directors will discuss what new members will be inducted for next year.

Meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m. 

April 2016

Friends of Music met on April 5th at 7:00 p.m. in the Band Room.  Members present were Dawn Fulk, Melissa Jones, Zeb Jones, Jen Mahannah, Laura Cler, Ms. Cardiff, Amy Rose, Mr. Mueller.

Meeting called to order at 7:02 p.m.  Directors reported that Solo and Ensemble will be on the 16th.  FOM received a very nice thank you note from the Watson family.  The directors would like to have an end of the year get together for the bands and choirs to give out awards and celebrate our students and their families.

The Loyalty Day parade will be May 7, which is the same day as prom.  Step off will be at 10:00, line up at 9:30.  Heritage band has been invited to join us for the parade.

Beef and Boards field trip for the junior high will be on April 13th.  

Graduation and Baccalaureate will just be choir seniors this year.

Treasurer's report was accepted via email since Ms. Bretz could not attend.

The high school will see "Phantom of the Opera" in Chicago in December.  A reservation deposit was required in advance, and the final payment is due on Oct. 17th.  The tickets are $103, and other costs should bring the total to around $160 per person.  This trip will tentatively be an overnight trip after finals are finished, with many more details to come!  A motion to pay the deposit was made by Jennifer and Dawn seconded.  Motion passed.

Possible car washes on Ag Days and/or Alumni weekend to offset costs for the December trip.  The idea of a dunk booth was presented.

The next meeting is set for May 10th.

Meeting adjourned at 7:21 p.m.

March 2016

Friends of Music met on March 10th at 8:00 p.m. in the Band Room.  Members present were Dawn Fulk, Ashley Fulk, Ginger Campbell, Joyce Bretz, Juli Jobe, Brian Wilkey, Melissa Jones, Allison Wilcoxon, Sara Jones, Jen Mahannah, Laura Cler, Ms. Cardiff, Amy Rose, Mr. Mueller.

Meeting called to order at 8:00.  Directors reported that Solo and Ensemble for the High School was a success.  All students received I's and II's.  Jr. High Solo and Ensemble is on April 16th at Danville South View.

Spring Concert will be on May 4.  Tri-M students will pass out programs and hold donation buckets at the concert.

The Tri-M recital was well received.  New Tri-M members will be considered for next year.  Tri-M will have a Spring recital as well.

Treasurer's report:  We profited $2,910 from the Fannie May fundraiser.  Ms. Cardiff has given Ms. Bretz the student profits for the fundraiser, so their accounts will be updated.  Amy Rose will be reimbursed for ordering the FOM bouquet for the Watson family.

Mr. Mueller was given a RIF notice with recall rights due to budget cuts.  FOM plans to have one person be spokesperson for the group to go to the school board meeting to show their support for him on the 21st.  FOM wanted to come up with a plan to fund his salary for one year, but there are laws and rules against that.  Dawn will draft something for the school board and have another member review it.

Phantom of the Opera trip for the HS ensembles next school year.  This will be an overnight trip to Chicago, so students will need to fundraise to pay for their stay and tickets.  More details to be given later.

Meeting adjourned at 8:50 p.m.

February 2016

Called to order at 7:05 p.m. Members present were Joyce Bretz, Dawn Fulk, Amy Rose, Melissa Jones, Ms. Cardiff, Mr. Mueller, Juli Jobe.

The Tri-M Winter Recital will be on the 21st at 4:00 p.m. in the study hall.  The public is welcome to attend, and a student will create an article for the newspaper to advertise.

Solo and Ensemble for the HS is March 5th at Heritage, and JH is April 16th in Danville.

The directors are looking into having a master class with a clinician for the JH and HS ensembles instead of Organizational Contest this year, due to scheduling and a desire for a more beneficial experience for the students.

Fannie May fundraiser kickoff was scheduled for this Friday.  Due to the dance team assembly, the directors will reschedule the kickoff for 2/11 or 2/16.  Money raised will go to trip accounts and FOM.

To alleviate confusion at fundraiser pickups, we will set up committees of parents to put one person in charge at fundraiser deliveries. FOM members will also help count the money when it comes in and get the orders ready so the directors don't lose instructional time with the students.

The Lion King trip in December was a great success and a wonderful day for all.

DVD's of last year's concerts are available for $15.  The directors have passed out notes to the students, but will upload the note for parents to print out since most have not received it.  ORDERS ARE DUE MARCH 23rd and checks should be made out to FOM.  DVD case artwork ideas for printing the pdf from Mr. Kestner were presented. Ms. Cardiff will see what is cheapest and get 25 of them printed.

Jr. high ensembles will be going to Beef and Boards on April 13th to see "Guys and Dolls."  The tickets are $37, and the money is due February 29th so the deposit can be paid by March 2nd for the tickets.  

Financial report was given by Ms. Bretz.

Color guard will start again on February 9th.

Articles about the students who attended District 5 Honors ensembles and Rachel going to All-State will be published in the newspaper.

Meeting adjourned at 7:45 p.m.

November 2015

Called to order at 7:00 p.m.  Members present were Joyce Bretz, Dawn Fulk, Ginger Campbell, Ms. Cardiff, Melissa Jones, Minnie Vandeventer, Jen Mahannah, Stephanie Lecher.  

Director reports: Mr. Mueller
  • Band has taken on two more concessions to help raise money for uniforms.
  • Band has raised $2,000 for uniforms so far.

Ms. Cardiff:
  • Choir robes are here!  Robes can be washed and hung dry.
  • LOVC choral festival is this Thursday in Oakland. EIU's director Dr. Rossi is the guest conductor.  Students need to bring dress clothes and either money or a sack lunch for supper.
  • District 5 Jazz was a great success!  
  • District 5 Concert ensembles will be held Nov. 21st.

Lion King Trip:

Marie's Tours and Travels will send a contract.  There are 21 more tickets that parents can purchase.  Money is DUE Nov. 30th.  Students will wear dress clothes all day that day.  Students will take finals 4,5,and 6 with Mr. M and Ms. C on the 15th.  They will sign an agreement that they will be at school the Thursday and Friday (the 17th and 18th) of finals in order to go on the Lion King trip.  If they're not at school those days, they must have a doctor's note to be able to make up their finals.

Treasurer's report:

Total of $10, 924.37.  $4,000 is kids' accounts.  Joyce has a print out of how much each student has in their account. She is giving a copy to the directors.

December meeting will be on the 15th.

Meeting adjourned at 7:24 p.m.

October 2015

Called to order at 7:02.  Members present were Joyce Bretz, Amy Rose, Melissa Jones, Jim Kestner, Scott Leon, Mr. Mueller, Ms. Cardiff.

Director reports:  Mr. Mueller
  • Mr. Mueller reports that football pep band and marching are over. They will have a parade in Chrisman on December 2nd.  There is a possiblity of a Christmas parade in Tuscola, or perhaps a Villa Grove Christmas with band and carolers from the choir. 
  • The Tri-M induction went well, and those members will do a Winter recital in January.  The Fall Concert included 4 college students to cover illnesses in the band and our kids enjoyed having them there.  
  • Jr. High Fall Band Festival in Arcola will be on 11/5/15.  They will practice from 12-6 and the concert for the public is at 7:00 p.m.
  • The Winter Holiday Concert for Jr. High and High School bands and choir will be on Dec. 11th at 7:00 p.m.
  • Prototypes for the marching band uniform have arrived.
  • On 10/26, two band students have been chosen to be in Milliken Honor Band.  They are Jake Gulick and Jessica Rose.  The guest conductor is the composer of "Moscow 1941" that the band played last week.

Ms. Cardiff:
  • Choir robes will ship on Oct. 26th.
  • District V ensembles- All three band students who auditioned were chosen and 7 of the 9 choir students were chosen.  Jazz Fest will be Nov. 2 for Mary Elam and Mytchel Freeze, and Nov.21st will be Honors Fest for Sam Reno, Juli Jobe, Daniel Olson, Abi Hopkins, Jessica Rose, Rachel Watson, Lexi Vandeventer, and Jake Gulick.
  • Nov. 12 is LOVC Choral Festival in Oakland all day.  Dr. Rossi from EIU is the guest conductor.  There will be a concert in the evening for the public.
  • The Variety Show is next week.  Set up will be at 6:00 p.m. on the 28th and the shows are at 1:30 and 7:00 p.m. on the 29th.  Anyone who can help set up would be appreciated.
  • Cheesecake orders are due the 21st.

Treasurer's report: Checking balance is $4139.44 after paying for choir robes.  Savings balances are $6,734.93 and $50.  The tickets to the Lion King were purchased and that money will be repaid to FOM from students who go on the trip.  There are payments still outstanding for the 2 drill team coaches and for the tuba.  The tuba will be $2,288.50 and the drill team $1,000.

New business: Dec. 16th (Wed.) the high school band and choir will be going to see the Lion King in Chicago.  The buses were $1350 per bus from Marie's Tours and Travel.  This saved us several hundred dollars over using Peoria Charter.  We will eat at Giordano's Pizza at 11:00 and then go to the show at 1:00.  The food is $19 not including tax or tip and includes salad, pizza, pasta, focaccia, and drink.  The show tickets are $38.  We need chaperones and will sell the extra tickets to any parents on a first come, first served basis, so be watching for a note home the last week of October.

Jr. High band and choir will go see "Guys and Dolls" at Beef and Boards in Indianapolis on April 13th.  The tickets for show and dinner are $37.

A motion was made to continue the tradition of parents being able to use money from their child's field trip accounts to be chaperones for field trips with the student's consent.  Motion carried with all in favor.

Profit for the students for each cheesecake sold is $2.40.

Next meeting November 10th at 7:00 p.m. in Mr. Mueller's room

Meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m.

 

September 2015

Called to Order 7:02

 

Attending: Jennifer Mahannah, Dawn Fulk, Joyce Bretz, Amy Rose, Lori Beeson, Jim Ketzner, Ginger Campbell, Melissa Jones, Mr. Mueller.

 

Directors Report

 

Ms. Cardiff-

 

-HS Choir students will sing the National Anthem at the game this Friday night, 9/25/15. Students are to report to the music room at 6:30 to warm up, and we will head to the sidelines at 6:45.

 

-The Cap and Gown company sent a receipt with an estimated shipping date of 10/26/15for the choir robes.  We will wear the uniforms for the Fall Concert due to this.

 

-The payment for the tickets to the HS field trip in December is due on October 16th. The tickets are $38 each.  Our cheesecake fundraiser won’t be done yet, so can  FOM pay the $2280.00 and we will reimburse FOM after the kids pay?  This was voted on and motioned carried with all in favor.

 

-Cheesecake sales will be from October 7 – October 21st. Deliver will be on October 28th in the afternoon.  We will be looking for parent volunteers to help sort and hand out these orders.

 

-Variety Show auditions are Sept 28th – October 2nd. Set up for the show is Wednesday October 28th and the shows are October 29th at 1:30pm and 7:00pm.

 

-District 5 Honors Choir auditions are October 12th. The directors will drive the students auditioning to Effingham that day.

 

Mr. Mueller-

 

-We have marched in a couple football games so far.  The first game was pregame only, due to the storm that sent everyone home.  However we have received wonderful reviews from teachers, administrators, and fans.  We have 3 more home football games we will march in.

 

-A big THANK YOU to the parents that are helping  during the games. From holding coats and sweatshirts, to taking instruments, to helping with the podium it is all greatly appreciated. Things would not run as smooth if it isn’t for our band parents helping.  Again, Thank you so much.

 

-Color Guard is down to 4 individuals. At some point we will be having auditions for 4 more spots.

 

-We had a skeleton crew to play for the Rotary Club meeting.  We only had 12 band members; however, the teachers loved it!!

 

-Marching Band has been invited to play at the Homecoming bonfire on 10/1/15.  Mr. Mueller will give you details closer to time.

 

-Marching Band will be marching in the Homecoming parade on 10/2/15.

 

-Pep Assembly this Friday to see our girls JH softball team off to state.  The band and color guard will be performing at this Pep Assembly.  Time is 10:30.

 

-Band Concession Stands- October 1st at a girls basketball game. We do have volunteers for this one.  October 2nd Homecoming football game concessions.  This will be a big game for us to work.  Of course we will need lots of volunteers to help out and the 1st half and half time will have to be worked by mostly parents since the Marching Band will have their pregame and halftime show. Please let Mr. Mueller know if you are able to help out.

 

-Fall Concert October 14th 7pm.  During the concert we will have the Tri –M induction. A special private reception will be held after the concert for Tri – M inductees and their parents.

 

-Millikan Honor Band Day October 26th. Mr. Mueller has nominated 5 individuals and is awaiting to see if they are accepted.

 

-Numbers from band: We have 23 out of 41 5th graders signed up.  We also have 28 6th graders and 30 Jr. High students.

 

-We have a 5th grader renting a ¾ size tuba that is hard to lug around to and from school. Mr. Mueller has done some pricing and has proposed the question if FOM would be willing to purchase for $2288.50 another ¾ size tuba to have here at the school not only for this student, but for any student to utilize so they do not have to transport their own instrument from home to school to back home again. Motion passed with all in agreement.

 

Wanted Secretary for FOM-  When we had elections we did not have any nominations or volunteers for a secretary.  The question is being asked again if anyone would like to take this over. Melissa Jones agreed to be our secretary. Thank you so much for volunteering!!

 

A letter will be send to the 5th and 6th grade band student’s parents explaining what FOM is and what we do.  Hopefully they will be interested and start coming to some of the meetings.

 

Marching Band uniforms- We are working on fundraising for the Marching Band Uniforms.  The cost is approximately $17,492.00 for 40 uniforms.

 

Treasure’s Report

  Checking balance $1,422.82

  Savings Account Balance $6,734.93

  Fl Trip Savings Balance $5,046.62

 

The Choir Robes have already been paid for.

 

Meeting closed at 8:02