September 7, 2025 Band Notes

Upcoming Events

Monday, September 8

• Full Band: 3-6pm; MHS
• Feed the Band 6-7pm
• Hilinski’s Hope Program (Required): 7:15-9pm; HS Auditorium

Tuesday, September 9

• Color Guard (Optional) Leadership Office Hour: 5-5:45pm; MHS Guard Room
• Full Band: 6-9pm; MHS
• Spirit Poster-Making (Optional): 6-7pm; MHS Staff Dining Room
• Coffee Talk: 7-8pm; MHS Staff Dining Room

Wednesday, September 10

• Wind Symphony / Symphonic Band Woodwinds Rehearsal: 3-5pm; MHS Band Room
• Color Guard (Optional) WG Skills Session: 5-5:45pm; MHS Large Commons
• Instrumentalist Competition Uniform Fittings: 5:30-8pm; Guitar Room
• Sign up in BoosterHub
• Color Guard: 6-9pm; MHS

Thursday, September 11

• Brass and Woodwinds: 3-6pm; MHS
• Percussion: 6-9pm; MHS

Friday, September 12

• Full Band: 3-6pm; MHS

Saturday, September 13

• Classic Uniform Fittings: 9am-12pm; Guitar Room
• Sign up in BoosterHub
• Color Guard - Show Flag Taping: 10am-12pm; MHS
• Color Guard - On-campus lunch break: 12-1pm
• Full Band: 1pm-9pm; MHS
• On-campus dinner break 4:30-5:30pm

Future planned events can be found on the updated band calendar: Mason Band Calendar.

Parent To Do Checklist For This Week

1. Instrumentalist students: sign up for Competition Uniform fittings for this Wednesday or Saturday.
2. Order Regency Tour Shirts TODAY Sunday, September 7.
1. Reminder: Each student will receive one cotton t-shirt as part of their consumables fee.
3. Come to Hilinski’s Hope - Mental Health Awareness Event this Monday, September 8 
1. Families are invited to attend as well.
4. For families needing travel waivers for Toledo.  Complete the BOA Toledo Travel Waiver Form by September 14
5. Senior Families
1. Complete the form for Senior Night by September 19. 
2. Please fill out the Senior Spotlight Note to be placed in the Invitational Competition Program. These are due by September 12. 
6. Purchase car raffle tickets, and spread the word about this fundraiser.
7. Sponsor a Trophy at the Mason Invitational (Oct. 11th) by September 19.

NEW INFORMATION

BOA Housing Update for Toledo

We are happy to report we have secured housing for our students, directors, staff and chaperones for the upcoming Bands of America trip to Toledo. The entire band will stay at the Delta Hotel Toledo in downtown Toledo for the BOA Northwest Ohio Regional (1 Night-Sept 20-21):

Delta Hotels Toledo
3100 Glendale Ave
Toledo, OH 43614

A few things to note regarding room assignments:

• Rooms will be 4 to a room
• Each room will have two Queen beds. (no King rooms this year)
• Students have submitted their preferred groups and have been assigned rooms
• Students may only room with students of the same gender assigned at birth.  
• We will be using the same room lists for BOTH TRIPS  this season! (Toledo and Indianapolis)

Fees

IMPORTANT: STUDENTS MUST BE CURRENT ON ALL FEES DUE TO DATE OR MAKE A PLAN WITH THE DIRECTORS in order to travel with the band! Our costs must be paid in advance, so it is critical that the band has student payments on time.

There are LOTS of Student Experience fees still outstanding. You should have received two invoices from Quickbooks, both of which are now PAST DUE:

1.  $400 - Due 8/1/25 sent from quickbooks@notification.intuit.com
2.  $400 - Due 9/1/25 sent from quickbooks@notification.intuit.com

If you have not yet paid either of those invoices, please pay them TODAY as it will greatly help us reduce the amount of work for our volunteers who work so hard on these experiences for our students! If you aren’t sure whether you have paid or not, you should have received a payment confirmation email from Quickbooks or if you find the original invoice emailed to you, click on “Review and Pay” and it will tell you your balance is $0.00. If you did not receive any invoices, please email treasurer@masonbandboosters.com. 

We are working to send each family a statement via email as we did prior to Mini-Camp. This statement will include any past due fees.

Note that Experience Fee #3 is not due yet, and will be due on 10/1/2025.

Marching Band 101 for Parents - 9/7 Edition

Be sure to check in to Marching Band 101 next week for an overview of what to expect during competitions! 

Why is it called Color Guard?

Marching bands find their origins in military traditions. Militaries used music for keeping formation, signaling, and morale. Drums kept the pace for marching soldiers. Fifes, bugles, and trumpets were used for signaling and communication, particularly over the sounds of conflict. Regimental flags served as a focal point and source of morale for soldiers. The earliest form of Color Guard was a military detachment responsible for carrying and protecting the national and regimental flags (or “colors”) during battle. Ergo, color guard literally guarded the regiment’s colors. You can often see these types of color guards represented by the various military branches at sporting events and other occasions where the national anthem is performed. 

As the popularity and prevalence of high school and college marching bands spread, adding  artistic and creative components, color guard evolved into an art form that adds visual and artistic appeal to performances. The guard uses several props that harken back to its military origins. You will see flags, rifles and sabres twirling through the air. These days the rifles and sabres are made of a high-impact plastic rather than steel and wood. Color guard adds a beautiful layer of artistry and athleticism to the band’s performance, being an essential component of communicating the show’s story. 

Outside of the marching band season, color guard competes as a standalone activity through organizations such as Winter Guard International. 

Website Tip:

As the season goes on you’ll see and hear a lot of acronyms used when discussing competitions. The Mason Bands website contains a helpful Glossary of Acronyms. Check it out! 

Parent Section Ambassadors

Freshmen parents should have received an email introducing your Section Parent Ambassador. They are a great resource for quick questions and an opportunity to meet other parents in your student’s section. If you did not receive an email, please reach out to vp-membership@masonbandboosters.com 

Tailgate ‘25 Was a Success!

Many thanks to Laura Deardorff & Jun You (plus daughter Mandy) for running the very popular band Plinko game and to Pete Hackman & Shari Whited for bringing the Audi out to promote our raffle.

Way to show the community the things boosters do behind the scenes to support our amazing band program!

REMINDERS

Hilinski’s Hope - Mental Wellness Event - TOMORROW

Please join us on Monday, September 8, at 7:15 pm in the Auditorium for a very special program, presented by the Hilinski’s Hope Foundation. The Hilinski’s Hope Foundation promotes awareness and education of mental health and wellness for student athletes.

The program features a live talk with Kym & Mark Hilinski, and honors the life of their son, Tyler (Wazzu college football quarterback)

This program is for parents as well as students - we encourage all Band families to attend.

Students will have an after school rehearsal that day, with dinner provided (Feed the Band), followed by the program. Parents and other family members are invited to join us in the Auditorium for the presentation.

We are honored and grateful to be able to host this event, thanks to funding by the Jacob Langbein Fund. For more information, or to donate to the fund, click here to visit the page on our website

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY:  Looking for Feed the Band assistance for this event.  Please check BoosterHub for more information.

Regency Tour Shirt Orders Due TODAY!

2025 Regency Tour Shirts are now available to order on Friday Threads! Click here to see the options and order.

The order window closes TODAY, Sunday, September 7 at 11:59pm. THERE WILL NOT BE ANOTHER CHANCE TO ORDER!

Additional Information:

• The shirt will not look like the picture - the actual design remains a secret until the students get the shirts.
• Each band and guard student will receive one cotton T-shirt as part of their consumables fee, which will be delivered to them at school.
• Any shirts for parents, family members, or friends, and any additional shirts your student wants would need to be ordered directly from Friday Threads.
• Options include:
• Short- or long-sleeve cotton shirt
• Short- or long-sleeve drifit shirt
• Hooded long-sleeve t-shirt
• Crew neck fleece
• Hooded fleece
• You can have your order shipped to you or opt to pick it up at the store when it is ready.
• Keep in mind that shirts will not be ready until right before the Toledo Regional, so if you have it shipped you likely won't receive it in time.

For any questions, please reach out to spirit@masonbandboosters.com.

The 2025 Car Raffle is Here!

This gorgeous 2025 Audi Q3 S line 45 TFSI quattro could be yours! 

Mason Band Boosters is thrilled to once again be partnering with Audi Cincinnati East for our 2025 Car Raffle. A HUGE thank you to them for the donation! We are very excited! 

This fundraiser is a very important one for our organization as it helps provide some much needed funds to help with the expenses of our program as well as allows us to reach outside of our band family and community to help raise funds!

We Need Each And Every Family To Help Reach Our Goal Of Selling 4,000 Tickets And To Give Away This Fabulous Vehicle Or A Cash Prize!  

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW NOW

Raffle Period - Raffle runs NOW until November 7th at 5pm OR until 4,000 tickets are sold...whichever comes first!

Drawing - Saturday, November 8th, 2025 at the MSBA AAAAA Championships, hosted at Mason. Need not be present to win!

Prizes - 

• Grand Prize -  2025 Audi Q3 S line 45 TFSI quattro or a cash prize!
• 2nd Place Prize - $1000 cash  
• 3rd Place Prize - $500 Cash

Car Raffle Rules And Regulations - Please Click Here for complete Car Raffle rules and regulations. Must be 18 years of age or older and a Resident of Ohio to purchase or be named on the ticket.

Ticket Prices - 1 ticket-$25 or 5 for $100 (to same individual)

• Note: If purchasing a bundle, all tickets in the bundle must have the same name, address and phone number with them.      

Ticket Purchases - Tickets can be purchased two ways:

1. Online via the 2025 Car Raffle Ticket Order Form
2. In person at home football games and the Mason Invitational

Band Family Sales - We are NOT distributing paper tickets to band families this year, but we are still asking each family to sell (or buy) at least 9 tickets to help make this a successful fundraiser.

• Please share the link and QR code with family and friends. Feel free to share it via social media as well.

Information regarding the Car Raffle can be found on our website Here. 

Questions? - Please direct those to carraffle@masonbandboosters.com.

Instrumentalists COMPETITION Uniform Fittings (ALL Instrumentalists)

Competition Uniforms for the instrumentalists are here. ALL instrumentalists need to come get fit for their competition uniform. It is important for everyone to sign up for one of these slots because we will wear these at our competition in Toledo. Please sign up for any day. Fittings will be at the high school in the guitar room (where we did classic fittings). 

Please wear tight fitting shorts, tank top, and socks to your fitting. 

• Wednesday, September 10 -  5:30-8pm
• Saturday, September 13 - 9am -12pm

Note: Guard members do not need to sign up.

Sign up HERE or go to the BoosterHub app.

Please email uniforms@masonbandboosters.com with any questions.

Sponsor a Trophy

If you or a family member would like to join us on the field to present a trophy at the Mason Invitational please fill out the Trophy Sponsorship form.. All submissions must be completed by September 19, 2025.  

Individual Portraits Sign-Ups and Group Photo Orders are Live!

Don’t miss this! Sign up by September 21!

Individual portraits for both instrumentalists and color guard this year will be:

• Tuesday, September 23 from 2:30pm to 5pm
• Tuesday, September 30, from 2:30pm to 5pm

Click here to order and schedule your timeslot. The popular time slots go quickly, so don’t wait till the last minute!

This year, your timeslot is the time you should arrive at school to get your uniform, change, and be photo ready in the auditorium. Plan on around 45 minutes total to get ready, take photos, and change back out of your uniform. 

For new families, this is when marchers can get their picture taken for the show-themed buttons that you see everywhere, especially on competition days! There is also an option for digital photos, which is extremely popular for things like social media posts for our competitions.

Top 4 Regrets After Portrait Day

How portrait days work and fun swag you don’t want to miss

Poster-Making Session

We are having a poster-making session this Tuesday, September 9, 6-7pm in the MHS Staff Dining Room. This is completely optional - it's intended for any parents who want to make a poster and need some help ideas, or who just want to hang out with other parents and have fun!

Bring photos if you’d like to personalize your handmade poster. These posters can also be used for Nationals hall decorating & send-off or you can make another one later.

Please email spirit@masonbandboosters.com with questions.

Mad Monks Dine & Donate

Our next Dine & Donate event will be at Mad Monks Pizza Company, located at 753 Reading Road on Monday, September 29th from 6pm-9pm. This Dine and Donate event is during the Monday Night Football game for the Bengals. The band will get a portion of all pizza sales that evening. No flyer is necessary, just mention you are supporting the Mason band when ordering. 

Sponsorship

Know a company that would like to see their name and logo on the band’s semi trucks, t-shirts, website, and programs? All while helping our our amazing band program continue to thrive?

We are always looking for new sponsors!  We cannot do all the wonderful things we do as an organization without the generous support of our sponsors. 

If you own, work for, or know of a business or person who may be interested in sponsoring our program, please forward their contact info to our Sponsorship committee-Jennifer Rodway and Marlo Swanson at sponsorship@masonbandboosters.com. We are a 501c Non-profit and happy to talk to anyone. 

You can also find more information on our website.

Competition Subcommittee Leads Needed

The competition committee is in need of your help!  We are looking for subcommittee leads to handle several different areas for the Mason Invitational on 10/11 and the MSBA Championship on 11/8. 

Competitions are an important fundraiser for the boosters, but most importantly provide a high quality competition experience for the many bands and students we host.  Subcommittee leads are vital to making sure we continue our reputation as one of the best marching band competitions in the area. Please note that shadow positions will learn the ropes from current leads who have seniors, with the shadow taking over the role next year.  

Areas with Openings:

• Band Check-In/Band Guides/Water Station - shadow needed
• Programs - shadow needed
• Spectator Parking - sub-committee lead needed, partner with Competition co-chairs

Please email the competition committee at competitions@masonbandboosters.com for more information.

And as a reminder, ALL marching band families are required to donate their time to help with each competition.  Signups for volunteer shifts will be posted in BoosterHub as we get closer.

Senior/Family Night

Attention Seniors and Senior Families: The William Mason High School Marching Band senior night is one of the most looked forward to and special events we do throughout the year. We want to honor our seniors and their families for their dedication to our program. In the midst of our planning, we need to collect a little information from our seniors so they can be honored accordingly!

Please fill out this form 2025 Mason Marching Band Senior Night Information with the names of those planning to escort your student during the on-field recognition of seniors. Traditionally, escorts have included: parents, step-parents, guardians, siblings, and/or grandparents. We will need the list of all those escorting the student - including phonetic spelling so that everyone can be recognized. Please submit this information NO LATER THAN Friday, September 19th, 2025.  

Also, please fill out the Senior Spotlight Note to be placed in the Invitational Competition Program. These are due by September 12, 2025. 

The 2025 Senior Night/Family Showcase will take place on Friday, October 3rd. Below you will find the schedule for the night for your planning purposes.  Thanks so much for your help!

Please contact Kaja Harper at seniors@masonbandboosters.com with any questions.

Secret Buddy Reminder

We are glad so many students chose to participate in Secret Buddy this year!  Here are the remaining dates during band season to bring secret buddy items.  Please make sure everyone takes good care of their buddy! 

• Full Band 3-6pm Rehearsal Friday, September 19th
• Home Football Game Friday, September 26th (HOCO)
• Mason Band Invitational Saturday, October 11th
• Home Football Game Friday, October 24th  
• MSBA Championship Saturday, November 8th
• BOA Grand Nationals Friday, November 14th  

Any questions, please reach out to vp-studentexperience@masonbandboosters.com

Uniform Lookbooks

Instrumentalists

See here for the 2025 Instrumentalist Look Book, which contains information for the summer and classic uniform, including undergarments for classic and competition uniforms. 

If you have any questions, please contact the Uniform Crew at uniforms@masonbandboosters.com. 

Color Guard

See here for the 2025 CG Season Lookbook, which contains information for the competition show hair and makeup, as well as other looks throughout the season.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Erica Sleppy (sleppye@masonohioschools.com). Have a great rest of your week!

Toledo Regional Ticket Information

Tickets can now be purchased online here for the BOA Northwest Ohio Regional Championship happening at the Glass Bowl in Toledo on Saturday, September 20. However, all tickets for this event are General Admission, so there is no need to purchase these way ahead of time. (For veteran parents, this is different from the Indianapolis Super Regional we did in past years). That said, BOA does recommend that you purchase your tickets online before arriving.

Mason will hopefully perform twice that Saturday:

• Prelims - guaranteed
• Finals - likely, yet never guaranteed

You can purchase tickets for Prelims and Finals separately if you are only able to attend one or the other, or you can purchase a Day Pass that gets you into both events. Note that students, military, and senior citizens get a discounted rate, and children 10 and under are free.

Band students and volunteers who are part of our Travel Team for this event do not need tickets. Only those who are NOT volunteering at the event and wish to travel and watch the Band perform need to buy tickets. Totally OPTIONAL for families as students will be bussed via charter buses to and from Toledo. 

More information can be found at https://marching.musicforall.org/northwest-ohio-regional/.

Medical Secretary Notes

TRAVEL MEDICATION REMINDERS:

1. Per school policy, students may not have any medications in their possession while participating in band (while at school or traveling) unless a DMS with ‘self-carry’ form has been turned in. All medications go through our Medical Secretary and need to be dropped off by a parent by arranging a time with Sally McDonald, our Medical Secretary.
2. You can continue to submit DMS forms as the need arises. Please think ahead to get them filled out by your doctor and submitted prior to our travel dates. Our Band Aid team is here to serve all students who will need medications while traveling. Medication drop off times will be posted prior to trips.
3.  Click Here to access our Medication Policy (i.e. blank DMS forms and upload instructions).  
4. Current Medication Drop Off Times – Please sign up on Booster Hub for a time! REMINDERS: the slots on Booster Hub are for parents dropping off medications–not for volunteering to help. Also, there are multiple slots per time period. Typically the drop off takes less than 5 minutes. 
1. BOA REGIONAL TOLEDO: travel timing: 9/20 3:30 a.m. - 9/21 1:00 p.m.
1. Tuesday 9/16/25 5:30-6:30, staff dining room
2. Friday 9/19/25 during practice, red tent  3-6 
2. MSBA Invite Miamisburg: travel 10/25 only
1. 10/24/25 during practice 3-5, red tent
3. BOA GRAND NATIONALS: travel 11/13 - 11/16
1. 11/10/15 practice, probably at Let’s Play, time tbd
2. 11/12/25 practice, probably at Let’s Play, time tbd
3. 11/13/25 early practice, before we leave at Let’s Play, time tbd

If you have any questions, please contact Sally McDonald at medicalsecretary@masonbandboosters.com

2025 Marching Band Next Steps

Marching Band Registration Next Steps:

• Registration Guide is now live.
• PAST DUE: 
• 2025 MARCHING BAND COMMITMENT & FINANCIAL AGREEMENT
• Band School Fee #1, $400 via PaySchools Central or check to Mason City Schools
• Band School Fee #2, $400 via PaySchools Central or check to Mason City Schools
• Band School Fee #3, $400 via PaySchools Central or check to Mason City Schools
• Student Experience Fee #1, $400 to Mason Band Boosters
• Invoice were sent on 7/19 via email from: quickbooks@notification.intuit.com
• Student Experience Fee #2, $400 to Mason Band Boosters
• Invoice were sent on 8/19 via email from: quickbooks@notification.intuit.com
• FINAL FORMS
• Fill out all forms
• Upload a current physical
• Complete Student Care Forms
• HWBP: Health And Wellbeing Profile
• SCP: Student Care Plan and Upload SCP Electronically
• DMS: Dispensing Medication at School and Upload DMS Electronically
• Accept BoosterHub Invite

Other Marching Band Documents: 

• Marching Band Summer Dates 2025 - One Pager
• Marching Band Summer Dates 2025 - Packet
• 2025 Marching Band Drop Form
• 2025 Marching Band Handbook
• Color Guard Handbook Extension

IMPORTANT: For all payments by check - please include the student’s name and student ID and the fee you are paying on the memo line of the check. Example: “Jane Doe 987654 Band Fee 1”

School fees are available in PaySchools Central. You will find the fees under Performing Arts. Scroll to the bottom of that section and look for the ones that start with "NEXT SEASON". All three school fees are live and payable, with the due date for each listed in the name. 

Members of Our Band Family Need Us

Thank you to those that donated so far. Fuz and the Burton family have greatly appreciated your support. You can still donate to the GoFundMe.