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DONNA WINCHESTERAbout 60 kids could miss a trip if boosters fail to quickly raise $250,000 more for the Seminole High marching band.
SEMINOLE - Short of a small miracle, about 60 members of the Warhawk Marching Band are likely to miss out on the trip of a lifetime.
Seminole High School band boosters remain about $250,000 shy of the $300,000 needed to send the band to the 2005 Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, Calif., after six months of fundraising.
Unless they can coax more money from individual and corporate sponsors, the difference between what has been raised and what is needed - about $1,500 per student - will have to come out of parents' pockets.
That will be difficult for about one-third of the the school's 180 band families, said band director Daniel "Chip" Wood.
"Most of the parents have good jobs, but for their kids to be in band, some have to work two or three jobs," he said.
For Alexis Wells and Pamela Warren-Wells, working three jobs between them still won't be enough to send their 14-year-old son, Anderson, to California. Coming up with more than $600 a year in regular band fees is already a stretch.
"I've basically resigned myself to the fact that he won't be going," Mrs. Warren-Wells said. "He still wants to participate with the practices, but $1,500 is not something that we have lying around. It's asking a lot, at least from our family."
Band boosters did not expect parents would be picking up the tab when Tournament of Roses officials contacted Wood a year ago to tell him the high school band was one of 17 in the world invited to play in the Rose Parade. They fully anticipated that an all-out fundraising effort and a supportive community would cover travel and lodging costs for the seven-day trip.
But four hurricanes in six weeks hurt fundraising efforts, Wood said. Several companies that had pledged funds, including Publix Super Markets, diverted the money to repairs and storm victims. A golf tournament scheduled for Oct. 9 - the weekend after Hurricane Jeanne scarred the Tampa Bay area - was canceled. An effort to lure a $20,000 sponsor with the promise of displaying its logo on the students' band uniforms fell flat and the opportunity to "Adopt a Warhawk" attracted only two donors.
"We were really hoping somebody like (George) Steinbrenner would come through," Wood said. "But every little bit has helped."
The city of Seminole made an early donation of $5,000 and raised another $5,000 at its annual Red, White and Blue Fourth of July event. The Seminole Chamber pitched in and ticket proceeds from a Devil Rays game added $4,600. Band members have washed cars, participated in family nights at area restaurants and have performed concerts.
Additionally, the Kiwanis Club donated the proceeds of its fall fundraiser. The Seminole High Class of 2004 kicked in about $5,000 and the Florida Orchestra gave $3,200 raised at last weekend's free concert in Vinoy Park. But the boosters acknowledge that their best efforts have not been enough.
"We've been working with a tour company that gave us a payment schedule," said Lori Hempfling, the booster club president. "They've been pretty flexible with us, but they're getting to the point where they have to put names on airline tickets."
While parents have been given the chance to pay into a fund to offset the cost of their children's trip by volunteering at fundraising events, some, including the Wells family, have been unable to do so. Trying to raise $300,000 while maintaining a regular marching band season has been another difficulty, said Hempfling, the booster club president. Besides performing at football games, the band has competed in two Bands of America regional competitions and several local contests including the Tarpon Springs Outdoor Music Festival.
Despite the shortfall, band parents remain optimistic that all of the students will be able to take the trip.
"We have to be hopeful that someone out there will make a last-minute end-of-the-year contribution," said David Peek, special events coordinator for the band boosters and the father of two band students. "We just wish they would let us know now because we have to write the final check to the travel company the first of the week."
As the band turns its attention to physical training and practicing for the two-hour, 51/2-mile parade route, fundraising will continue. A benefit concert with local jazz artists is in the works, along with a band concert slated for the grand opening of Sweet Bay Supermarket.
"I'm a little disappointed there hasn't been more community support, but I'm so grateful to the people who have supported us," Hempfling said. "They'll be able to sit back and watch the parade and say, "I helped them get there.' "