By: Sharon Aron Baron
Half of the battle to receive an invitation to perform at the Sugar Bowl halftime show is practice and perseverance.
Now comes the harder part: getting the money to get them there.
The Piper High School Band has taken to social media to help raise the funds to get them to New Orleans for their first ever trip to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on December 29 through January 2, 2016 after they were selected by the Sugar Bowl committee last February.
All year long they’ve been holding car washes, pie and concession sales, and now they have opened a GoFundMe page to try to raise funds so all of their band members can participate.
Band Director Kervens Jackson, said that so far they have raised $14,000, but need $80,000.
“We have a a total of 72 going, but our band consists of a total of 134, so we’re leaving quite a few behind because they couldn’t afford the trip,” he said.
Since it was too expensive to fly, the band will be taking a 12-hour bus trip to Louisiana over winter break.
Jackson, in his tenth year at Piper, said he loves teaching and being a mentor to his students. He also pairs his incoming freshmen with upperclassmen to make sure they do well and make the right choices.
“Hard work and dedication will take us to the next level. I believe in that and they believe in that. I see that a lot of time, and they take that with them throughout college. My goals is that they graduate, they go to college, and they do something productive afterward. We make sure they have a plan after high school.”
He said he gets a lot of satisfaction when one of his students comes back from college and speaks to the kids in class, especially if they’re in the college band. “I love when they do positive things.”
So far, the GoFundMe page has only raised $1,400.00. If you would like to help these students. Please donate at the link here. GoFundMe
Piper High School is located in Sunrise, Florida and is attended by students in Tamarac.
