April 2002

Carolina Crown Debuts at SCBDA Indoor Championships

Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps debuted their 2002 program entitled, “Greek Mythology, Stories of Gods and Heroes,” at the first South Carolina Band Director’s Association Indoor Championships held at the Hornets Training Center in Ft. Mill, SC.  The competition, held on March 23, 2002, included over 15 high school winterguards and percussion lines from around the state.  Nearly three hundred and fifty spectators attended the event.

Finishing off the evening’s competition was Carolina Crown’s “stand-still” performance.  The corps played excerpts of  “Medusa,” music inspired by Samuel Barber and Marty McCartt, “Eros,” music by Michael Torke, Andrea Wright and Calvin Lewis, “Icarus,” music by Will Jennings and Joe Sample, and “Zeus,” music by Samuel Barber.  The performance culminated with some patriotic favorites including “America the Beautiful,” and “Semper Fidelis.”

The Championships competition coincided with Carolina Crown’s fourth rehearsal camp held the same weekend at the training center.  The corps rehearsed music Friday evening and Saturday morning, worked on drill Saturday afternoon at South Mecklenburg High School, and prepared for the exhibition performance Saturday evening.  Camp ended with a well-attended Show-and-Tell performance on Sunday afternoon.

Thanks go out to Martin Dickey, Ft. Mill High School band director and board member and David Ragsdale, South Mecklenburg High School band director for their assistance with the weekend.

Carolina Crown’s fifth rehearsal camp will be the weekend of April 19-21, 2002 and will be held at Ft. Mill High School in Ft. Mill, SC.

Carolina Crown Joins Food Lion Fundraising Groups

          You can now SAVE money on groceries while EARNING money for Carolina Crown!  Food Lion's MVP program allows you to choose Carolina Crown as your charity of choice and every time you shop using your card Carolina Crown earns money!

To join this program you may sign up online at http://www.foodlion.com, by calling customer service at 800-210-9569, or by visiting the customer service counter at any Food Lion.  

For online registration/sign-up you will need to click the "Lion Shop and Share" link from their homepage.  Then click the "New to Program" link and select SC as the state of your charity, Ft. Mill as the city, and Carolina Crown as the group. 

Carolina Crown has been participating in a similar program at Bi-Lo Stores.  For more information please visit the “What’s New” section of this website.

2nd Annual CrownClub Weekend Set for 4/19-21

Carolina Crown will be holding our 2nd annual CrownClub Weekend on April 20-21st.  This fun-filled educational weekend is open to everyone-  parents, fans, volunteers, alumni, etc.  This year's event is being held at the Hampton Inn in Rock Hill on the same weekend as Crown's April camp weekend.  This will give all the attendees the best of both worlds... a fun and educational "get-away" event combined with the excitement of a Crown camp!  And don't worry; we are securing some Ft. Mill Band Boosters to handle the cooking at the camp so everyone can attend!  So, what better way to spend a weekend than with other fans & supporters of Carolina Crown!

A tentative schedule of the weekend is as follows:

Saturday, April 20, 2002

9:30  AM        Welcome & Introductions – Bill Loelius, President of Carolina Crown and Kevin Smith, Carolina Crown Executive Director

9:45  AM       Our Mission… what does it mean to you? (A workshop focusing on the attendees’ ideas on what the words really mean.) – Brian Bambauer, Director of Operations

10:15  AM     Carolina Crown... where did we come up with this idea? – Kev

10:45  AM     Break

11:00  AM     Keynote Address:  Drum Corps International… how this all began! (The history of Drum Corps International through the eyes of a founding father.) – David Kampschroer, Founder and past-Director of the Blue Stars, Lacrosse, WI

12:30  PM     Lunch  (on own)

2:00  PM       Providing an experience our members will never forget! (A workshop that draws out the attendees’ ideas on how to make our members’ experiences more fulfilling.) - Brian

2:30  PM       What are you teaching those kids anyway? (music education, performance, lifelong excellence) - Michael Shapiro, Guard Designer/Caption Head & Larry Markiewicz, Brass Caption Head

3:30  PM       Break

3:45  PM       Carolina Crown from a member’s perspective… - David Roth, Laura Young, John Alexander, Ashley Davis, Amanda Kachurak, Peter Eichler, Matt Raynor, Michael Ptacin - Student Leadership Task Force 

5:30  PM       Adjourn for the day.  Get ready for dinner!

7:00  PM       Leave for dinner at a local restaurant (on own) and karaoke afterwards.

Sunday, April 21, 2002 

9:30 AM        Carolina Crown… it’s more than just a drum corps! – Kev, Brian, and Doug Madar (NightBEAT spokesperson)

10:15 AM      The Care & Feeding of Our Volunteers… (a brainstorming session for improving our volunteers’ experience) – Teri Brinson, Support Services Coordinator, and the new Carolina Crown Volunteer Committee

11:15 AM      Closing Remarks and Thanks! – Bill & Kev

11:30 AM      Adjourn.  Get ready for the real show! – all

12:30 AM      “Show & Tell” at Crown Camp

Registration Form

Please complete the registration form below and return by April 15, 2002.  If you are requesting a hotel room, please include your one-night room deposit so we can confirm your room in our Crown block (both Friday and Saturday night rooms are available!).

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Name: _________________________ # attending: _________

Address: _____________________________________________

Phone: ___________ e-mail address _____________________

# of rooms needed: _________@$58/night/room (incl. tax)

Night(s) requested: _______ Friday  _________ Saturday

Names of additional people if sharing room:__________________,

_______________________, ___________________________


Note - We need one night room deposit sent in now with the registration form (please finalize hotel bill at time of departure).

Credit card #____________________________ Exp.__________

Name as appears on card________________________________

Or send check to: Carolina Crown, 227 A Main Street, Fort Mill, SC 29715

Stay With Carolina Crown Fans While In Madison!

Carolina Crown has reserved a block of rooms at the Regent Apartment Hotel in Madison, WI for DCI finals.  This facility is across the street (and within walking distance) from Camp Randall Stadium.  Each suite is $70 per night and will accommodate up to four people.  These are studio apartment rooms with two bedrooms separated by a kitchenette and bath.  Each bedroom has two single beds.  There is limited parking.  The address is 1402 Regent Street, Madison, WI.

Please call the Crown office to reserve your room/suite.  It is imperative you pay a deposit of $70.00 no later than May 15, 2002.

We have some rooms to arrive Tuesday, 8/6/02, and Wednesday, 8/07/02 but most to arrive on Thursday, 8/08/02.  Please notify the office as soon as possible with your reservation details so we can adjust the number of suites and check-in dates.

A Word From Our President

Bill Loelius, Board of Directors President

What’s the value of a volunteer?  Well, it is evident that Carolina Crown couldn’t operate without the many cooks, drivers, seamstresses, mechanics, engineers, managers, and other various staff members that donate their time and talents.  This organization was built on volunteerism, and built well.  But that doesn’t answer the question.  How do we quantify the value of our volunteers?

We place a dollar value on virtually everything connected with Crown…the instruments, uniforms, vehicles, office equipment, food, fuel, etc.  Of course this is necessary to develop our annual budget, which is the primary tool for managing the organization.  Although we do estimate volunteer requirements in the planning process (i.e. how many people are needed for each camp, each leg of the tour, each fund-raiser, etc.), I don’t believe we have ever calculated the equivalent cost we would have to absorb if our volunteers ceased volunteering.

An article titled “Giving” in the March 8, 2002 Charlotte Observer shed some light on this topic that I thought you would find interesting.  Independent Sector, a private research organization, conducted a national survey on volunteering that concluded:

In 2000, nearly half of U.S. adults (84 million people) volunteered their time.

The average volunteer gave 3.6 hours of their time per week.

The annual hours volunteered was 15.5 billion.

Their work represented the equivalent of 9 million full-time employees.

But here’s the answer we’ve been looking for…

The study concluded that value of time given to non-profit organizations is $16.05 per hour.

So, if Crown wants to determine the expense our volunteers absorb by giving their time, what would the annual total be for 2002? 

Let’s have some fun with this.  Our Annual CrownClub Weekend is coming up on April 20 –21^st.  If you attend this event, you will have the opportunity to guess the annual dollar value of our volunteer’s time.  I will award a nice prize on Saturday evening for the guess that’s closest to my “official estimate.”   

Now get out your calculators, and I’ll see you on April 20^th!

Thanks for your time,

Bill Loelius

President

Carolina Crown, Inc.

Volunteer Profile - Steve Tant

Steve Tant is originally from Raleigh, NC and now resides in Charlotte, NC. He is the owner of Advantage Signs.

Steve Tant stumbled upon one of the early Charlotte Drum Corps Association (now Carolina Crown Inc.) meetings at the Western Sizzler near his Sign Shop.  From the very first moment he was hooked!   A 1981-2 Spirit soprano line alumnus and MAC enthusiast (too bad), Steve jumped right in after that fist meeting and was able to help Carolina Crown establish some much needed credibility.   NightBEAT founding Chairperson and friend Doug Madar remembers, "We had a terrific graphic designer (Andy Crews), and now we had the right person to implement all those tremendous graphics.   Our rag tag bunch of early vehicles at least looked great.   As one of the early faculty members commented upon seeing our new truck with Carolina Crown graphics said, 'Wow, I guess we get high truck' (as in high drums, etc.)."

Steve and wife Gwen, better known as "La Gwenda" to some of her closest(?) friends, have been tremendous volunteers.   Not only did they donate thousands of dollars worth of signage, but were very active on various committees.  In 1991, Steve and Gwen functioned as NightBEAT Contest Director and Show Chair.  1991 is known as the hangman's noose year.  Steve still has the hangman's noose left for us at the Parks and Recreation Annex building the corps called home at the time.  That year NightBEAT was cancelled due to lightning, and some demented soul left us a noose, as he/she was annoyed because they couldn't get a refund.

Speaking of "The ANNEX"... "How long has it been since you've heard "The Annex?", continues Doug.  "That was our first corps hall and home.  It was a dungeon like place that we worked very hard to clean and make functional. Even though it was a dungeon, the sign over the entrance made it look wonderful.  Thanks to Steve!"

After their daughter Cathlene was born, Gwen took a back seat to be a mother but still has been the NightBEAT tabulator every year since.  Steve took on expanded NightBEAT rolls and has probably done every single thing one could do on the NightBEAT committee.  There isn't anything NightBEAT-related that he hasn't done!

Steve (and Gwen) have been major Carolina Crown contributors.  Sponsorships, programs, signage, ticket seller, contest director, assistant show chair, NB Chair, board member, funny-man and friend to all.  Oh, lets not forget RAMD... Or maybe we better forget it!

Anyway, thanks Steve for all you have done for Carolina Crown all these years! We would not be where we are today without your support!

Icarus

(Note - Icarus is the mythological character that the 2002 Carolina Crown show will depict in its third production set to the music of Will Jennings and Joe Sample.  Watch for next month's CrownBeat where we will discuss the Greek myth of Medusa, the basis for the 4th production in our 2002 show.)

Icarus was the son of Daedalus.  Daedalus had built a labyrinth for King Minos, an intricate structure of inter-connecting passages through which it was difficult to find one's way.  Afterward, Daedalus lost the favor of the king, and was shut up within the walls of his own invention in a tower.  He contrived to make his escape from his prison, but could not leave the island by sea, as the king kept strict watch on all the vessels and permitted none to sail without being carefully searched.  "Minos may control the land and sea," said Daedalus, "but not the regions of the air. I will try that way."

The great craftsman's genius would not suffer captivity.  So he set to work to fabricate wings for himself and his young son Icarus.  He wrought feathers together, beginning with the smallest and adding larger, so as to form an increasing surface.  The larger ones he secured with thread and the smaller ones with wax, and gave the whole a gentle curvature like the wings of a bird.  Icarus, the boy, stood and looked on, sometimes running to gather up the feathers which the wind had blown away, and then handling the wax and working it over with his fingers, by his play impeding his father in his labors.  When at last the work was done, the artist, waving his wings, found himself buoyed upward and hung suspended, poising himself on the beaten air.  He next equipped his son in the same manner and taught him how to fly, as a bird tempts her young ones from the lofty nest into the air.  When all was prepared for flight he said, "Icarus, my son, I charge you to keep at a moderate height, for if you fly too low near the sea the damp will clog your wings, and if too high the heat of the sun will melt them.  Keep near me and you will be safe."

While he gave him these instructions and fitted the wings to his shoulders, the face of the father was wet with tears, and his hands trembled.  He kissed the boy; not knowing it was for the last time.  Then rising on his wings he flew off, and looked back from his own flight to see how his son managed his wings.  As they flew the plowman stopped his work to gaze, and the shepherd leaned on his staff and watched them, astonished at the sight, and thinking they were gods who could thus cleave the air.

They passed Samos and Delos on the left and Lebynthos on the right, when the boy, exulting in his career, began to leave the guidance of his companion and soar upward as if to reach heaven.  The nearness of the blazing sun softened the wax, which held the feathers together, and they came off.  He fluttered with his arms, but no feathers remained to hold the air.  While his mouth uttered cries to his father it was submerged in the blue waters of the sea, which was thenceforth called by his name.  His father cried, "Icarus, Icarus, where are you?"  At last he saw the feathers floating on the water, and bitterly lamenting his own arts, he buried the body and called the land Icaria in memory of his child.  Daedalus arrived safe in Sicily, where he built a temple to Apollo and hung up his wings, an offering to the god.
                                                            

Meet The Percussion Faculty

Paul Rennick has his B.S. in Music Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a M.M. in Performance from the University of North Texas where he is a member of the percussion faculty. Having taught, written, and arranged for many of the most successful percussion ensembles in the country, Paul is recognized as a leader in the field of marching percussion. He has been a featured clinician at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, several Muic Educator’s Association Conventions, as well as many Percussive Arts Society State Conventions.           Paul is the director and arranger for the Contemporary-Pop Percussion Ensemble which has featured some of the world’s most renowned percussionists as guest artists. Since 1989 Paul has written and designed the shows for the 12-time PAS National Champion University of North Texas Indoor Drumline. He has also been percussion arranger and caption head for the Concord Blue Devils, Sky Ryders, and Velvet Knights Drum & Bugle Corps, and is currently the director of percussion for the Carolina Crown Drum & Bugle Corps. Most recently Paul has served as music composer/arranger, instructor, and percussion manager for the Tony & Emmy Award winning production of blast!, currently on tour throughout the U.S.           An active arranger and instructor for schools across the United States and Canada, his credits include numerous P.A.S., W.G.I., B.O.A., and MACDBA National Championships. Paul has been a clinician and contributing writer for the Yamaha Corporation and is currently on staff as a National Artist/Clinician with the Pearl Corporation, Innovative Percussion, Remo Inc., and the Avedis Zildjian Co.. He is also a member of the P.A.S. Marching Committee, and has many percussion ensemble works published through Drop 6 Media.

Sandi Sheuerman has a B.M. in percussion performance from the University of North Texas and is currently working toward her Master degree in music performance.  This is Sandi’s fifth year with the corps as the front ensemble instructor, arranger and mallet specialist.  She has studied with Leigh Howard Stevens, Ed Soph, and Hsin-Yi Wu. .  Sandi also performed with Star of Indiana’s “Blast” in London in 2000.  Sandi is currently living in Texas and actively performing, teaching and arranging.  

        Jeff Queen is a four time individual Snare Drum Competition winner, two time DCI champion (1994-95), and two time P.A.S. champion (1994-1995).  Jeff marched with the University of North Texax Indoor Drumline, Blue Knights, Santa Clara Vanguard, Velvet Knights, and Bluecoats Drum and Bugle Corps.  He has taught with the Blue Knights and the UNT indoor drumline.  Jeff taught with Carolina Crown in 1998 and 1999 and returns in 2002 after performing with Blast! in London (2000) and on Broadway (2001).    Jeff currently lives in New York City and is a freelance arranger, performer, adjudicator and clinician.

Teddy Holcomb joined Carolina Crown from Botetourt, VA, where he attended and graduated from Lord Botetourt High School in 1996. After graduating, he moved to Lynchburg, VA to teach at E.C. Glass High School ('96-'97). That summer (1997) Teddy marched in the Bass Line for The Crossmen Drum & Bugle Corps. He also taught with  Dobyns-Bennett High School ('97-'01), Sullivan North High School ('00-'01), and the East Tennessee State University Bass Line ('99). Taking a year off from Drum Corps he then went back to march and age-out in (1999) with The Bluecoats Drum & Bugle Corps, marching in the Bass Line. Teddy has also been involved in WGI, marching in the Bass Line at Music City Mystique out of Nashville, TN, ('99-'00). This is Teddy’s second year with Carolina Crown as our bass drum technician. 

Cymbal Tech Jeremy Gomez is currently studying percussion at the University of North Texas.  On Feb. 4th Jeremy took on the new role of fatherhood, and his time this summer will be split between Crown and little Maryann Renee. He is an active drumset player in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area as well as a performer with the North Texas Steel Band, Drumline, South Indian Cross-Cultural Ensemble, and Lab Bands. Jeremy also studies South Indian drumming and recently went to India to see the music first hand. He has been on staff at Crown since 1998.

    David Stedronsky joins the percussion faculty this season as the snare technician.  David, born in Chicago, has lived the last 17 years in Dallas, TX.  He attended Marcus HS and the University of North Texas.  David also marched in the PASIC Championship UNT drumline in 1998 and Carolina Crown in 1998, 2000 and 2001.  David is planning to attend a music conservatory in Phoenix, AZ in the fall and study sound production and engineering.

Carolina Crown To Host First Annual Summer Camp

Carolina Crown will be hosting a one-day instructional camp for high school students grades 9-12.  Students can participate in one of three captions:  Percussion (battery and front ensemble), colorguard, or drum major.  The camp will be held at Clover High School in Clover, SC on Saturday, 6/01/02.  Tuition for the camp is $50 and includes instruction, lunch, and a participant T-shirt. 

Marching Percussion and Front Ensemble

          Camp curriculum designed to benefit students interested in marching percussion.  Syllabus includes fundamental playing technique, successful warm-up procedures, and cadences for snare, tenor (quad), bass drum, cymbals and front ensemble keyboard instruments (pit).  Percussion faculty includes Carolina Crown Percussion Caption Head and arranger Paul Rennick. 

Colorguard

          Classes designed to benefit students interested in colorguard.  Topics include basic to advanced equipment and movement techniques, choreography, teaching techniques and leadership.  Guard faculty members include Carolina Crown Caption Head and Designer Michael Shapiro.

Drum Major

          Classes designed to benefit current drum majors or those interested in becoming a drum major.  Topics include conducting, marching, vocal commands, salutes and successful leadership techniques.  Faculty includes Carolina Crown’s own Jake Wade, Larry Markiewicz, and Brian Bambauer.

Registration information will be posted soon on the "What's New" section of this website.

Honor Band Events In Full Swing

The first annual Cleveland/Rutherford County Honor Band was the weekend of  3/15-16, at Gardner-Webb University. We had about 80 students in the band from five of the seven possible middle schools. Ms. Donna Tucker, a renowned music educator from Roanoke, Virginia served as the group's guest conductor.  Dr. Oland Summers, Dr. Matt Whitfield and David Whitesides were very helpful with the organization/preparation of the event.  Saturday's concert had about 350 people in attendance!  Allan Whitney and Rena Morton assisted with the lunch and souvenir sales, which included 34 CD's and 31photos, which were produced and mailed to each school last week.

Thanks to the following schools, directors, volunteers and supporters for all their help making this event a success:  Gil Doggett, Chris Cole, Paul Hendricks, Nelson McDaniel, John Mode, Kathy Weir, David Whitesides, Dr. Oland Summers, Dr. Matt Whitfield,  Kings Mountain MS, Chase MS, Crest MS, Shelby MS, East Rutherford MS, Gardner-Webb University

The First Annual Cabarrus County Middle School Honor Band, held the weekend of March 1 and 2, was extremely successful.  Dr. Larry Marks, Director of Bands at UNC-Charlotte served as the group's guest conductor.  All four middle schools in the county participated, and the first annual honor band had 84 participants on stage.  Blair Smith and the Band Boosters at Robinson High School were very helpful setting up the stage, serving lunch on Saturday, refreshments during rehearsal breaks and ushering during the concert.  Over 350 family and friends attended the Saturday afternoon concert!  Rena Morton sold nearly 30 group photo's and over 40 CD's!  All participating directors and parent survey's were very positive.  It was suggested that we host a High School event next year in conjunction with the Middle School Honor Band.

Thanks to the following schools, organizations, supporters and volunteers for making the event such a success: Sarah Frazier, Audrey Murphy, Edd Powell, Mac Abercrombie, Blair Smith, Cathy Jewett, Robinson Band Boosters, Cabarrus County Schools, J.N. Fries MS, Mt. Pleasant MS, Northwest Cabarrus MS, Concord MS.

A Letter From Our Drum Major

Laura Young

“TEAM CROWN”

We all have our favorite sports teams that we live and die with during the season.  For many of us, its football that is king, and then in the spring after the Superbowl, we change gears and root, root, root for the home team...if they don't win it's a shame.  But what team are we supposed to support in the summer after all the baseball cleats have been hung up for the year and football players are just beginning training for next fall?  DRUM CORPS of course!

Our draft is over and the team is chosen for the 2002 season and what a promising team it is.  Our hornline is tougher than the Iron Curtain defense of the Steelers of the 70's, our percussion section can play faster than Michael Johnson can run the 200 meter, and our show is more riveting than the three pointer at the buzzer that wins the game.  Put your money on Team Crown this season, because they look like one of the most promising picks of this year.

Still not convinced that Carolina Crown is the team for you?  Well here are some quick stats that might change your mind:

Our team is led by a group of veteran marchers that knocked your socks off in the 2001 season.

Our rookies are all first round draft picks and dedicated to making this team the strongest it's ever been.

We've got a killer coaching staff and a program for 2002 that is worthy of the gods.

And all our members are handling everything we throw their way with poise and ease.

So with our spring training winding down and the 2002 season close at hand, team Crown looks like it's ready to take on the world this summer.  So come on out and root, root, root for Carolina Crown because they're going up, up, up!

Eye Spy Carolina Crown Alumni

Mary Ann Licamele (G 99-00) graduated from Georgetown University in May ’01 with a degree in Management.  She is currently teaching math in Beverly, MA to 7-9th graders.

Tony Fulmore (G 00-01) is currently marching with Crown Guard this winter and looking forward to a great ending season at WGI.  And for some big news!! He is now a member of Blast starting right after WGI.  Good luck Tony!

Marie-Claire Allen (B 01) UPDATE!!! Marie and husband Logan are expecting on August 28th 2002, and just found out that it will be twins!! One is a girl and the other refused to cooperate (must be a boy) so she will keep us posted.

Loraine Womble (B 97-00,DM 01) received the espirit de corps award at the Georgia Southern Marching Band banquet in December 2001.  The band of 200+ voted for “the person you would most like to clone” to determine the winner and stated it was her determination and “don’t give up” attitude that won them over.  Congratulations Loraine!

Brian Turner (P 91-93) is currently teaching percussion at White Knoll High School. He was tour coordinator for Crown in 1999, the Crossmen transportation coordinator in 2001, and has joined the Administrative Team for Carolina Crown 2002.

Mark Teal (P 97-00) is currently at UNT and working with Hebron High School in Lewisville, TX as pit tech and private percussion teacher.  He was also a member of the Crown faculty in 2001.

Paul Jennings (B 99-00) is currently attending York Technical College in Rock Hill, SC

Laura Gasper (G 00-01) is currently working as a Spanish Translator at Subsidiary of NCR.

If you would like to be included in our next Eye Spy article, please send an email including your name, years and section you marched in, and current career/family info to crown@carolinacrown.org.