M Ryan

Brian Murphy - consultant for Spartans and Academy Matt Stratton - Brass Staff Cavaliers Seth Murphy - Brass Staff SCV Josh Brennis - Visual Staff SCV / consultant Crossmen Julian Johnson - Visual Staff at Bluecoats Enrique Perez - Color Guard Staff SCV Nathan Bashline - Audio at Boston Paul Dolan - Medical Staff at Carolina Crown Kelsey Brunson - Admin at Academy Mike Ryan - Admin at Crossmen

I have been assisting DCI for the past 8 years helping to secure housing for the Allentown show. I can tell you from experience that permission to use any facilities belonging to the Diocese of Allentown is a NO

That’s a wrap! A HUGE thank you to everyone that stood with us and helped us surpass our $100,000 goal for the Front and Center 2020 Virtual Gala! We are so incredibly grateful for the support of all of our friends, family, alumni, alumni families, and fans; we could not have made this goal without you! We are permanently in awe of the generosity that we have experienced in the last 24 hours. There truly is no place like Santa Clara! Don’t worry, if you didn’t get the chance to donate, the campaign will remain open for the next several weeks with a new goal of $150,000! We enjoyed celebrating with all of you, so much in fact, that the Front and Center Virtual Gala will continue to be available for those who were unable to attend or for anyone who wants to relive the fun! Visit us here on Facebook at Santa Clara Vanguard to stream the recording and go to www.scvanguard2020.com to donate! #FrontandCenter2020 #vanguardtogether

Tonight August 29 from 5 pm to 12 am PST Vanguard Music and Performing Arts will be presenting their Front and Center Virtual Fundraiser, 7 hours of special guests, interactive segments, member highlights, and never before seen video footage. For more information concerning this event, please click on the following link. http://scvanguard2020.com/?fbclid=IwAR0N-IBRMrJoioyoOK1_g1uevep3cvL0c4RfNlH0f_3Bv_9AB41ImsfB6Dc

And thank you for your support!

Denise Bonfiglio addressed these issues at a staff meeting this past weekend at the January camp in Salem New Jersey. Since I am not authorized to divulge specifics, I will say that all your concerns (and more) were addressed and details will be released in the next few months. I do think you will be pleased with the future direction of the Cadets

Thank you for the clarification of my post, you obviously understand what I was trying to convey. In my very first post on this thread I said I do not post on forums but the negativity and false rumors being spread about the Cadets is getting to me and I feel compelled to try to quell some of the false statements being made.

It is not a discount on the tour fee it is a discount on the audition fee

The Cadets will be fine for 2020. There will be a big announcement in the near future outlining the plan for the Cadets moving forward and a lot of the people spewing doom and gloom will be eating a lot of crow. This I can tell you and it is first hand knowledge: The Cadets have taken delivery of a BRAND NEW set of Yamaha Brass The Cadets have taken delivery of ALL BRAND NEW front ensemble instruments The Cadets Will be taking delivery of a BRAND NEW set of battery percussion The Cadets WILL NOT be competing in Open Class. They will be touring this summer as a World Class Drum and Bugle Corps The Cadets have a Specific budget for the operation of the corps and will adhere to that budget The “back of the house” is being cleaned and when the dust settles the Cadets will be in a much better place (and it will be a better place than many other corps) Finally if you talk to any prospective members or vets who have been attending the winter camps they will tell you that the experience has been first rate and the overall vibe is extremely positive

They are BRAND NEW from the factory. I inventoried them personally

Sorry for my choice of words in my previous post. That is why I do not post on forums. I was just trying to relay the passion and commitment expressed by the corps leadership. My apologies

I usually don’t post on forums but I would like to counter some of the negativity being posted here about the Cadets. I am a retired music educator and a member of the Santa Clara Vanguard Admin staff. I have also been assisting the Cadets administratively in the office and at their winter camps since I reside in Pennsylvania and have worked in the past with Denise Bonfiglio, Cadets corps director and Michele Teevan, Cadets Operations Manager while they were with SCV. Here are my observations: The corps took possession of a brand new set of Yamaha brass at their December camp in Salem, New Jersey. I would know since i personally inventoried each horn. At the winter camps I have had the opportunity to observe the educational staff and their interaction with the prospective members and I am impressed with their professionalism and the quantity and quality of their instruction. There is a lot of good teaching taking place. I am also impressed with the commitment and work ethic of the volunteers and members of the Cadets Volunteer Association, Many of these people no longer have students in the Cadets but they continue to volunteer because of the love they have for the corps, and for each other. Denise Bonfiglio, Corps Director and Ron Lambert, Assistant Corps Director personally addressed the prospective members and expressed their commitment to returning the Cadets to their rightful place among the upper echelon of DCI Michele Teevan, Operations Manager and Justin Moore, Director of Operations are super organized and are doing their best to make sure everything is in place at camps so the prospective members have a positive and enjoyable Cadets experience. I heard many vets, volunteers, and instructional staff comment Positively about how organized and professional the camps are being run compared to previous years. I was also impressed with the “show and tell” that was presented at the December Camp. The corps performed a few minutes of the opener and although I cannot divulge any information concerning the 2020 production I will sum the opener up with one word, tempo. The brass sound great playing a Jay Bocook horn book and the percussion will not disappoint. I think the 2020 corps will give people who have “fallen out of love” with the Cadets the past few years the opportunity to fall back in love with them. Right now they need the support of the drum corps community and less negativity. End of rant

My school never housed a corps before. When I approached administration about housing I told them i would be on site the entire time the corps was there. i slept in my office and ate my meals with the corps. It was great! I had the chance to watch how a world class corps rehearses, had the opportunity to interact with members and staff and see everything that goes on "behind the scene." I called it Drum Corps Fantasy Camp. It opened doors for me to become involved when I retired and there were absolutely no problems. My school has been housing corps for 12 years now.

I do not get paid by DCI for assisting with housing, it is something I got involved in when I was teaching. I was one of those band directors who housed a corps (Vanguard) and contacted other band directors to house a corps. It did open doors for me and now that i am retired from teaching, I have the opportunity to tour with a World Class corps.

I have been assisting DCI with securing housing sites for the Allentown show for the past 11 years and am also on the Vanguard Administration staff so I can speak about the problems associated with finding housing sites. DCI has 2 people who work full time year round on securing housing and believe me, they earn their pay. They contact schools that have housed corps to check on availability for the following year and attempt to find additional sites by making personal contact with the band director or HS principal. Word of mouth also helps, usually by asking the band director if he knows if another school's band director would be interested in housing a corps. This is what I did in the Allentown area for many years. Unfortunately, some band directors cannot be bothered and don't return phone calls, email inquiries, or refuse to meet in person. Also, If a school has a good experience housing a particular corps, it is easier for that corps, or another one to return there the following year. If the school has a bad experience, forget it that housing site is lost, sometimes for good. Which happens alot. Some administrators do not like outside groups using their facilities, although DCI does pay a housing stipend. It is also difficult scheduling facilities due to increased use by sports teams in the summer. As previously stated, some schools are only open Monday through Thursday and close Friday through Sunday to save on the use of utilities. Also, some corps want stadium use, 2-3 additional rehearsal facilities, turf fields, etc which limits the pool of available schools. Liability is also a big issue, even though each corps carries insurance naming the district as an additional insured and most schools require the corps to sign a Hold Harmless Agreement with a provision not to sue. These are just some of the problems . It is not an easy job!

Hotel housing

Good Morning Everyone! As of Wednesday Aug 1 we still do not have housing but we are continuing to work on this problem. I am leaving now to finish tour with the Vanguard but if you have any other ideas or contacts, please do not hesitate to contact me. We have followed up with every suggestion we have received, as well as making our own contacts so we are not leaving any stone unturned. If you are attending any shows, stop by the Vanguard and ask for me so I can thank you personally! Mike

Yes the original housing fell through. Something happened between the housing contact and the school district. When the school district was contacted last week to finalize details, they did not have a clue what was going on.

Not yet. Still looking for Genesis and Oregon Crusaders. The promising conversations we had yesterday fell through today. We are still looking!

My school never housed a corps prior to 2008. When i requested to house the Vanguard i told my administration I would remain on site with them the entire time they were there. I was the middle school band Director so i slept in my office, ate with the corps, and was at the practice field observing every rehearsal. Learned alot and met some great people ( staff, volunteers, corps members) and never had a problem. I called it " Drum corps fantasy camp." Housed them for 10 years and eventually joined the admin staff. If they are properly supervised, no problems. Unfortunately not everyone is willing to do this.

There are a number of reasons that school districts do not want to house a corps but I don't want to list them for fear of ticking someone off. I will say that DCI and I contacted a number of school districts multiple times in March and did not receive a reply. Also, the DCI Housing Co-ordinator spent 2 days in the Allentown area personally visiting schools but he was lucky to even get in the front door, let alone talk to an administrator or band director.