dcifanforlife
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Posts posted by dcifanforlife
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2 hours ago, ranintothedoor said:
That's what I thought (based on the conversations in this thread), so I was surprised to hear that.
Thanks for humoring me, everyone. S
Remember Cadets signed a multiple lease/contract with Erie Sports Center. Breaking it will mean another lawsuit.
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1 minute ago, OhioBoy_99 said:
Not sure the likelyhood of this reaching anyone, but didn’t want to start a new topic for this question, and I thank you for any help in advance!
Okay so to my question, I’ll be attending DCI prelims this year and I’m looking for some advice on which tickets are good. I attended finals in 2017 and was roughly in section 636, which is the nosebleeds around the end zone so the sound wasn’t very good as I’m sure you can guess.
I was seeing if anyone had seats in the 600’s on the 50 and how the good the sound is there. Assuming it’s not terrible since judges are in the press box up there but just curious from anyone who has sat up there or around that area. Thanks again!
In years past DCI has not sold any tickets in 600's for prelims.
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3 hours ago, craiga said:
I have no issues with the current show prices, particularly at local shows.
Remember, the host corps gets 100% of the gate at these shows, which means that money goes directly toward feeding, housing, and taking care of the members.
Secondly, the $55-$75 seats are probably high up in the center. There are still alot of seats much less than that, and there is nothing wrong with sitting on the 35. You don't have to be sitting in the GE judge's lap to enjoy the show.
Please God, let's not start in on high ticket prices being caused by uniforms, props, electronics, or "dancing and prancing"...
.Host corps does not get 100% of the gate. Host corps has to pay DCI a fee for running the show, paying judges and corps. Average cost is over $35,000 for a six corps show.
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24 minutes ago, DAvery said:
I have read several times the Cadets have sold their equipment. I would think if this has actually happened in our small world of drum corps and band we would have heard who it was sold to. So who was this equipment sold to?
Troopers got all the electronics and the electronic trailer to haul it. Music City got the food trailer. Cadets didn't own the brass and owner took it back the day after they announced that they were not going to have a 2024 season. Battery returned. No idea what happened to front ensemble probably sold to multiple groups.
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2 hours ago, IllianaLancerContra said:
But even if Cadet’s defense prevails, they still will have considerable legal fees.
Cadets have been paying their legal fees in advance. That is reason for selling all the assets.
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1 hour ago, Jeff Ream said:
the equipment is gone from all credible sources i've talked to
All that is left is the Championship Trophies which should probably just disappear for several years.
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4 hours ago, craiga said:
This is EXACTLY what I heard as well
They are selling canned goods (catsup, beans, canned peaches etc. left on cooking trailer) before Music City took it. That is the only liquid assets that they have left.
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2 hours ago, Richard Lesher said:
The question/accusation is often posed to me why I do not like the leadership of SCV? Why do I keep at it?
Over the last year it has been a discovery process of the truth. The truth that has been withheld and guarded from stakeholders (and I presume some board members as well) of what has actually been going on.
What it comes down to is millions is unaccounted for as a function of fiduciary irresponsibility among those professionally trained, professionally experienced, and entrusted with the responsibility. Those people and their friends (likely unwittingly) through their actions have overtly and continue to prevent the discovery process from happening.
That’s what it comes down to. I had to endure a year of knowing the obvious and wait out the inventible for those in denial.
Remember…………. The truth of the audit is two years old. That is the truth that was behind the words in September 2022. Had the audits been done on time then fiscal year 2021 would have been identified as a problem at Sept-2022 at that time, and a whole year of bingo irregularities could have been avoided (do folks think 2023 was any better than 2022?).
What has held true of all things like this I analyze is the truth is worse than I think it is. I can only articulate an opinion on data that I have on hand, and I will always have incomplete data, and that goes for the 2005 Bingo theft. I only calculated $800K over three years, but once the Bingo Manager and General manager were out of the way total revenue improved $1.3M a year.
So, if I look back at all my warnings as to how bad things are as we know it now, I now see that things are actually worse than I thought last year this time, and I have a new level of worry.
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I never said SCV was missing fixed assets and equipment. The CPA audit said that. They can’t account for it.
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I never said SCV was missing cash or can’t account for its money. The CPA audit said that.
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I hadn’t really dig unto the Bingo concerns. I only had a single data point (draft of 2021), but now that is a persistent trend and it correlates to the changes in Bingo Operations, the Bingo Manager, and his work situation from Hawaii. Holy mother of god, Bingo is totally sideways and I can quantify that in the millions.
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Now I can say Federal loans and grants were needed to cover the losses in bingo. That’s going to cause a problem with Federal Authorities. That’s a $675K. Those funds were procured while delinquent without audits and are less than the straight accounting loss of -$808K in Bingo payouts. Even if Bingo was operating at a break even 0% profit SCV would have $808K more, and those federal loans and grants would not have been needed.
Now, I am saying things are WAY WORSE than we thought they were. The above is my new baseline, and things are worse because there is still all of 2023 that is now behind us that we have no verifiable data for.
Are folks going to believe the core of SCV leadership that oversaw 2021 and 2022 as audited, and still in place in 2023 acted in an appropriate manner the entirety of 2023? They didn’t even get audited financial data for 2021 and 2022 until last week (two years after the fact). What financial information do you think they were working with in 2023?????
Are folks saying that while the auditors don’t call out proof and it is not verifiable that there is a possibility there is a room filled with millions of dollars of undeposited Bingo cash that SCV will just stumble upon (oh look, we found it all)?
No………. SCV leadership, the leadership at the core of letting things get to this point have continuously prayed on the Alumni’s limited information, limited financial education, and their love of SCV in order to manipulate their oversight of SCV for their own personal gain to continue unchecked.
Net Assets decreased over $3,000,000 in 2022.
The Vanguard Cadets will never return with Bingo performing as it currently is.
Vanguard is not technically a member of DCI
Vanguard’s own auditors cannot verify anything of material significance for the last two years audited, and 2020 will not get audited as a function of reporting income less than $2M.
Total Bingo is netting millions less while reporting millions more in Gross Revenue. Pull Tab sales are covering losses in traditional bingo game.
What is the measure of competence and success folks are using?
What justification is being rationalized to overlook all this nonsense?
What should the new CEO and board be doing that they are not doing? Offering solutions to the problems is the best way to go in the future. SCV has addressed every concern that you and the entire DCI Community has raised. They are well positioned for a successful 2014 season.
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At the recent Janual Meeting DCI implemented new stringent rules for rehearsals during spring training and on tour in order to ensure that the safety and well-being of the members is top priority at all times. Your duties and responsibilities should be listed in your employment contract. You will be given training on what you can and can't do when you are teaching. Expectations should be clearly spelled out. Other than teaching you should not have any other responsivities other than be on time when the buses depart each time. Since corps stay in schools' communal showers are the norm but you will have a specific time when you can shower. Drinking in public is not allowed so is restricted to staff bus.
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3 hours ago, Slingerland said:
You can attend, but you wouldn't be able to get into any room where business is being discussed. Probably can't crash the NFL Owners' Meetings either. 😎
You have to preregister and pay a $249 fee. You have state your interest in the activity in order to get a badge. Thursday World Class business meetings are the most important. DCI staff and corps dedicated representatives sit in a square table arrangement. Corps Directors / Corps Managers and others sit in rows behind them. Only dedicated representatives can speak or ask questions. If something is said that is unclear or confusing those in back are rapidly texting their representatives to ask for a clarification.
Open Class/SoundSport is Friday night and the same arrangement. At Open Class/SoundSport meeting it is almost the same as the World Class except for the financial information. I have attended the Open Class/Sound Sport Meeting several times. Open Class Meeting presenter asked for questions from those sitting in audience every year.
All sessions are open to everyone with a badge. A wealth of information can be gained by attending the Januals.
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13 minutes ago, LabMaster said:
I’m not agreeing it’s an ego or “cause” thing with him, as much as it is information he has put forth, that no one else would have. Had he not provided the detail and research, no one on here would have been aware of the depth of the issues and apparent illegalities that have been ongoing and unresolved for the past few years. SCV is rife with noncompliance with State of Cali requirements and follows it all up with a lack of openness and honesty when questioned. A sad state of affairs.
DCI Annual Meeting starts Thursday morning 01-04-24. SCV presentation will be the most anticipated event ever. Let's see what they have to say to the DCI Board and to the membership. All of the work Richard has done will get blown out of the water is my guess.
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The issue is Santa Clara Vanguard 2024 not the past. If some posters on here stopped reading Redit and did some research on Russ Gavin, you would find that he. 1) Marched Drum Corps. 2) Was successful Music Educator at both the high school and university level. 3) Took over the Stanford Band at a time when it was the laughingstock of the college marching band scene and close to being shut down permantly. He faced membership health and safety issues within the band that were compounded by the fact that he was dealing with adults. He solved all the problems that came up and the Stanford Band is a respect member of the college marching community today. 4) Was a Corps Director for eight years and the corps made DCI finals seven of those eight years. 5) Was the first corps director to have a Trans member in the corps. The policies and procedures that he implemented to protect that member on tour are still used by many corps today. Protecting Gay, Lesbian and Trans members is an important part of drum corps and marching bands.
Let's give Russ a chance to solve the problems at SCV.
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10 minutes ago, scheherazadesghost said:
The latest CEO update indicated that they plan to have the 2022 audit submitted by the end of this year. I think that means the audited financials will be available to the public in January.
As I've always said, even if the finances turn out to be spick and span, I still have safeguarding concerns. Those never went away. And before anyone comes at me with the rest of the safeguarding updates they've already publicized... you have to demonstrate consistently that your environment is safe, not just make rules on paper saying that it is.
Your concerns are not justified. How can they demonstrate consistency that their environment is safe unless they go on tour and implement the safeguarding procedures. You're not a stakeholder here. The stakeholders are SCV, marching members, staff, volunteers, parents and donors. Let them proceed and let's see what happens.
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38 minutes ago, IllianaLancerContra said:
It is true there is a rumor Cadets are liquidating physical assets; l’m not sure or not if the rumor is true.
They have few assets to sell. Everything that they got from YEA is now junk. Food Trailer, Equipment Trailer, Box Truck and couple of vans have little to no value. Front Ensemble and Brass are the only assets of any value.
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The problem with end of year campaigns is that most people(myself included) have given out all my donations for 2023. First time BD has ever against for money. Mandarin's should continue the match into 2024. Spirit has a real need. $40,000 in expenses each month and $5,000 in revenue each month. I wish them well.
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1 hour ago, craiga said:
This. And, lately some know-it-alls on dcp HAVE been repeating the fiction that some corps actually have SEVEN weeks of spring training and 5 weeks of tour. Just because some bitter, out of touch drum corps fan says something, that does NOT make it true.
Those on DCP that continue to post inaccurate information are going to be called out about it going forward.
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Holding Spring Training at a college or university is the best option for a corps. Out of the top sixteen placing corps at semi;s Twelve corps ( I am including Cadets since they had beds for staff and members in Erie) held spring training at a college or university. Only Mandarins, Troopers, (Troopers had an excellent site at Tipton HS but only downside was members and staff jammed into several rooms for sleeping), Blue Knights and Pacific Crest did not. Staying in dorms solves a ton of problems. Two to a room in beds keeps the members and staff rested, safe and healthy. Most dorms have coin laundry rooms so everyone can do their laundry during free time plus they have lounge areas for everyone to use. Some corps even stay in dorms that have an individual bathroom in each room or a bathroom for a group of four rooms.
Cost to stay at these colleges and universities varies greatly. Some corps pay next to nothing for their spring training stay and others that have to use college food services pay significantly more. If the CEO's and Corps Directors didn't think they had the best deal for their corps would they keep going back to these sites?
Everyone is aware of the benefits of having the corps parked in one location for spring training. Costs are budgeted for so stop crying about what a corps spends on spring training.
Spring Training is up until the buses and trucks arrive to pick up everyone. From that point on the corps is on tour and has a different cost structure. You can't count the time a corps leaves their Spring Training site until their first show as Spring Training. In 2023 I visited four Spring Training site three in Midwest and one in Arizona. Those claiming that corps are spending six weeks in Spring Training are incorrect. In 2023 here are the Spring Training days for some of the corps.
Cavaliers 37 - Cavies first show close to their Spring Training site.
Boston 37
Phantom 33
Troopers 30
Colts 29
Academy 28
Blue Stars 26
Madison 26
Blue Devils 24 in Laramie
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4 hours ago, rpbobcat said:
A couple of questions:
1. Where can you find DCI's 990's ?
2.Do the 990's "itemize" the sources for $14 M revenues ?
Guidestar.org you have to get a sign in. (email and password) Drum Corps International Click on Tax Forms. Yes, 990's itemize revenues and expenses. All non profits are listed on guidestar.org. Reading corps 990's is more interesting than most posts on DCP. DCI spends $496,000 a year on credit card fees. Cost of going cashless.
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2 hours ago, IllianaLancerContra said:
Good points. All kinds of behind scenes stuff is happening. We don’t know what insurance policy says. If there is a disagreement between insurance companies & DCI / SoA then there will be more discussions between DCI lawyers & insurance lawyers. More $$ to pay the lawyers will have to come from somewhere.
IDK what kind of cash reserves DCI has, but based on what I read here it probably isn’t large. Question I have is: As DCI is the Corps ($0.02 to Jeff Ream), I wonder if the Corps will be required to contribute to the DCI Legal Defense Fund? Suspect it depends on exactly how the DCI incorporation documents are worded.
This could easily be the end of DCI as a organization. Whether the surviving Corps reorganize into another organization is a separate discussion.
Per DCI's 990 for year ending 12/31/22 they had a cash reserves of $5,596,240. On $14,677,561 revenue they paid $111,185 for insurance. Less than 1 percent which is what most corps pay. You are not going to get any news on this lawsuit until it is settled and documents sealed. Only way to get any details is to show up in court and watch proceedings. Instead you to come on DCP and make up all types of wild theories.
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46 minutes ago, corps8294 said:
A Tarpon Springs, Florida color guard audition? That's Michael Shapiro territory.
Michael Shapiro has not been involved with Tarpon Springs in over five years.
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One should hold off on donating to The Cadets until they come clean on what actually happened and that they have a plan going forward. 1) Who is going to be the face of the organization before DCI and other stakeholders. During the past five years The Cadets next person up scenario has burned though a lot of good will within the drum corps activity. All of the previous leaders lived and died for the organization. Is now the time for a change? The Cadets have a large creditability issue to overcome. 2) How many paid employees are The Cadets going to have and where will they be based? 3) How do they repair a donor base that has been asked to save the organization several times.
A 2024 return is off the table. The Cadets are refunding all audition fees and dues already paid for 2024. 2024 schedule will be out within a month and The Cadets will not be listed for any shows. With The Cadets having little income coming in how is the organization going to survive? $200,000 will not get the job done. The Cadets will need $2,000,000 to return in 2025. Is it time to send the trophies to Drum Corps Museum?
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2 hours ago, C.Holland said:
that building had several deficiencies and had to close starting in June until Sept while things were rectified
During the majority of June 2023 The Cadets were holding Spring Training at the Erie Sports Complex and posted several photos of them using the dome. Why weren't the owners fined?
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4 minutes ago, scheherazadesghost said:
Two clarifications on bolded text, as reported by new CEO, and as far as I understood and documented in my notes.
They will be observing a revenue share loss from appearance fees.
They are not a voting member.
Yes they will see a revenue loss from appearance fees since the amount that they will receive will be considerably less than when they were a top four corps. I don't think that they have lost voting status but I could be wrong we will see.
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42 minutes ago, craiga said:
Yes, it would mean they would be the first World Class corps on in every show until San Antonio, and no appearance fees all summer. Also, they will not have a vote. Basically, they would be classified as a first year corps.
SCV did not lose their membership status because they did not participate in 2023. All the membership requirements where changed in 2020 because of Covid. They will receive appearance fees just like all member corps. They do have to pick last when selecting what shows they want to be in. Mandarins have made it known that they want to be at more of the big shows (Broken Arrow, Murfreesboro, Atlanta and Winston Salem) so don't expect to see SCV at any of those shows. Yes they should be the first world class corps to perform at shows unless deals are cut with other corps. They are still a voting member. Everyone has to wait until September meeting to sort out everything.
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Phantom Regiment 2024
in DCI World Class Corps Discussions
Posted
Marie lacks the stamina to be a Corps Director in 2024. Phantom continues to believe that they can succeed by reliving the past. What they need is a young gun (male or female) to push the corps forward.