gunther

This happened in ALL youth ministries including sports. The Church sought to become political and pursue mercenary interests. The amount of money it took to support an ongoing youth program was not large. In those days, the economics was very different. A corps could take a parade for $150 and the bus only cost $40 to 50. Likewise contest money. A corps could break even even with poor contest results. But the fees for contracted services with any municipality were far greater and much more appealing to Church leaders. The dumping of youth onto the streets contributed to a rise in crime that slowly took off at this time in places large and small. There was no other organized outlet for such large numbers of youth and instructors. This also had a severe cost in depriving emerging talent from guided development from qualified and dedicated instructors. It killed dreams and careers. It also began the process of weakening the family unit which was being held together by the support and interest of parents, siblings, relatives and the general community for the corps and sports teams. It put a burden on families and parishes with no interest in the consequences of the Church's decision or supplying an acceptable alternative replacement. The parishes sold all equipment for the most they could get, wiping out the memories and pride of achievements. All this equipment was fully depreciated. It could have been placed with other organizations that could have continued the corps and teams but the lure of the buck had a greater appeal. The Church had no social conscience. This activity kept people's children trapped into very limited futures and control of the Church. It was all done, like my friends Frank and John said above, for financial reasons. The missing point has been the Council of Bishops' decision and orders to their parishes.

Actually, what happened was the result of a decision made by the Council of Bishops in 1960 that reflected the Church became contractors with the various states for sizeable fees for social services. True, drum corps did have costs related to them but those were mostly one-time expenses incurred in the early start-up phase. Instruments & uniforms had a very long life and did not require frequent replacement. The small dues paid by members were only to keep people honest. Many parishes never paid the instructors. I know of at least 2 good Brooklyn corps that owed the instructor/director over $3,000 and that was from a weekly fee of $15. That model may have been repeated elsewhere. Corps were mostly self-sustaining financially from parade work and contest prize money plus other inventive fund-raising. Many corps sponsored contests/stage shows where the Church took the money. All those corps did unpaid parade works for the parish street feasts. I was in Loretto (originally Our Lady of Loretto) and each kid bought the uniforms 2 times. (Did I just give my identity away?) We also had to turn them in when we left or the corps was disbanded. The parish sold everything for a good amount and kept the money forgetting that they never owned the uniforms and did not sponsor the corps for 2 years. Instruments were fully depreciated. Disbanding was the final step in a financial decision that brought a lot of income to poorly managed parish finances at a time when there was enormous growth in attendance and contributions. The Church was not shy about making a buck whenever it could. It was a calculated and conscious decision by the bishops to get out of youth activities, including sports to the detriment of the kids and the greater parish. Costs of operation did not change much until the '70's so the churches were not subject to rising price pressures. The various parishes and the overall Church benefitted enormously from the positive exposure brought to them by the drum corps. The corps were great public exposure and no-cost promotion. Contests/performances were mostly within 50 miles of home with occasional distant trips and many of those were subsidized or paid fully by the county veterans associations.