Tom Brace Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 man... a few years ago some criticized the alumni for being selfish and not contributing money to the corps but only for themselves when we did the alumni project. (even though the alumni did present a check for $15,000 to the corps at the unjudged exhibition show a few days before finals in '06, and you could not participate in the project unless your alumni dues were paid in full...) Now a group of alumni get together and get money to a place that will allow some guys to march... and THEY get criticized for doing THAT! Danged if you do... danged if you don't. Good grief. no one was criticizing the effort...it was that it's an unusual approach. that's all good grief back Geno! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Slocum Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Garrett, I wouldn't worry about what DCP thinks about your efforts... The members of Madison (and likely some of their parents) appreciate your efforts, and that's really all that counts! The fact that the Madison Alumni are willing to step up and offer their assistance speaks volumes for the quality of the Madison Scouts organization and their Alumni. GO MADISON! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roark1 Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 G-Man, The haters will continue to hate no matter what anyone does. You will notice that these same haters provide little, if any, background in their profiles as to where or when they marched. Anonymous cowards, such as these haters, are not to be taken too seriously. Frankly, they’re really not worth the time. (T.B., this is in no way directed at you in any way, shape, or form. I have always read your comments to be supportive of the corps in a detached manner. You offer up points of view that we alums sometimes don’t/won’t see. Open, pointed discussion is always a good thing. I, for one, appreciate your point of view.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madalumni Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Loving it. Glam rock unis for the guard is a MUST And how about flying-v guitars that they could spin and toss? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayM Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 It seems like a logical enough thing to do, so I'm not sure why anyone is questioning the motives or the methodology. Maybe Madison should try to team up with a winterguard, and offer incentives to those who participate in both the winter and summer guard? How did Madison's guard fare when State Street Review was at the top of its game? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madalumni Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 How did Madison's guard fare when State Street Review was at the top of its game? Extremely well if I remember correctly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zackiedude Posted January 23, 2008 Share Posted January 23, 2008 Drum corps has become a rich white man's game as of late, simply because of the talent of musicians. A majority of musicians at many corps are college-bound or college-attending music majors because they are generally extremely talented. Along with an ability to attend college usually comes a larger cash pool from parents (ie more kids that go to college have better-off parents financially). The guard, however, has no college major (except dance, but dance majors are few and far between in the activity) to drive up the talent pool. Therefore, the guard tends to have less members attending college, and are generally worse off financially. When I marched Madison (recently), I'd say about 98% of the hornline/drumline either attended college or was going to attend college. The guard was at about 50-75% depending on the year. They were working full-time outsde of corps to pay to live -- they had no parents to take care of them. This is why I think the guard generally the biggest perpetrator in not being able to pay dues. A scholarship for the guard is not only a great idea for helping out less priviledged members, but for helping the corps as a whole. The guard has historically been the weak point and the corps is only as good as the sum of all it's parts. If the guard can suceed, then the corps can excel to new levels. Kudos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thirdcoast Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 WELL, ACTUALY TOM, IT SHOWS HOW MUCH THINGS HAVE STAYED THE SAME.... AS BROTHERS WHO HAVE ALL MARCHED IN THE MADISON SCOUTS GUARD, MANY OF US ARE FREINDS WHO NEVER EVEN MARCHED THE SAME YEARS TOGETHER. The guard alumni has a bond and brotherhood because of our bond to the Madison Scouts. Many of us have gotten to march with some of the best color guard years in the history of drum corps. As Madison Guard Alumni, we wanted to help our section of the drum corps..... We also know that there are young men out there who we would like to see build on the strong tradition of being a Madison scout guard member. A few "Color Guard" alumni wondered what they could do to get more kids interested in marching the Madison scouts. This is a section of an E mail I received from of my Madison Scout Brothers: ................................................................................ .................................................................... Hey my friends, A couple weeks ago, a bunch of us (---- -----, ----- -------, ------ -----, ---- -------, ----- -----, --- -------, ------- -------, --- ------- ) were gathered here in my living room, talking about the Corps, the Colorguard, and ways we, as alumni, can really make a difference in the section which has created a life-long bond for all of us over the past two and a half decades. We need to be honest with ourselves: The numbers of talented men auditioning for Scouts are not where they need to be. We all know how hard it is in the current guard environment for Scouts to recruit. When we marched, there were TWO options... now most every Corps accepts men into the ranks. Combine that with Scouts placement in 2007 and you can see that it is going to take a concerted effort from everyone who loves this Corps and section to help jump start the colorguard. That's where we come in. Flat out... we need you and your money. Here's what we want to do. Create a fund for the Scouts guard, to be used ONLY for the colorguard. This fund will help offset the dues for every guard member and will also create scholarships for the Corps to actively recruit some of the best guys in the activity to march with the Madison Scouts Colorguard. We'd like to see $500 from everyone (and then some) on this email list, but any and every amount is welcome. ---- ------ pledged the first $500 I am also pledging $500 (and another $600 toward specific member dues) DCI has increased the numbers allowed on the field. The Corps wants to march 40 in this year's Colorguard. They need us to reach out to everyone we know and talk up auditioning for Scouts. We all know current instructors who have the ear of guys who are currently marching. We all have additional Guard Alumni emails and contacts... make sure they know this fund is happening. Let them know now is the time for us all to stand together and help OUR section be the best it can possibly be. We can do this. It's important. I've never felt more connected to this group of guys than now. We need to do it because we ARE The Madison Scouts Colorguard. The men on this list represent some of the finest guard members to ever wear the uniform. Let's keep that tradition strong for many many years to come. May WE never walk alone! All the best for a happy holiday to you and your family. C---- PS - So... I go back over this note and look at all the email addresses above. Let me put this in terms you can ALL relate to.... I'm asking for the equivalent of 2 cocktails a week gentlemen. Can you spare that? LOL ($5.00 per cosmo x 2 per week x 52 weeks a year!) ................................................................................ .................................................................... This is why we are helping the Scouts Guard, WE ARE THE GUARD. David Martinez MadisonScout 86,87,88 20 years Police Detective Los Angeles Police Department MYNWA Rock on my man, Sue and I will see you this summer,great show here in Madison everybody will be invited. Thanks for the help on the post, thats what I call a family. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thirdcoast Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 Glad to hear things are going to great in Madison -but man, you really need to learn how to write proper sentences.Go Scouts!!! Man let me tell you something, you should see me before you ever judge me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thirdcoast Posted January 23, 2008 Author Share Posted January 23, 2008 agreed,....................love the report, but very hard to read and follow,.............Go Madison! Darn it, I am trying to get better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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