Shameless Plug - www.forwardmarch.org

[Falcon30]

Hi fellow band alums and current members.

Please allow me to shamelessly plug my soon-to-be charitable foundation: the Forward March Foundation. We are a group of band people who are trying to get an indoor Stadium / museum / band camp facility built in northern Ohio.

Right now, we are trying to get officially incorporated and recognized as an official 401 (c)(3) charity, then we are going for grants and other funding.

Even if you have NO DESIRE to donate, please check out the website and see if you like the idea. Conceptual drawings will be up in days.

Thanks!

[FliccGirl]

*FliccGirl's TBS-Outreach-Chair Radar goes on high alert*

Falcon30, what organizations have you contacted about support and donations? How old is this project? And what kinds of events (specifically) do you have in mind? etc etc etc

[ZiggyZoomba]

Hi fellow band alums and current members.

Please allow me to shamelessly plug my soon-to-be charitable foundation: the Forward March Foundation. We are a group of band people who are trying to get an indoor Stadium / museum / band camp facility built in northern Ohio.

Right now, we are trying to get officially incorporated and recognized as an official 401 (c)(3) charity, then we are going for grants and other funding.

Even if you have NO DESIRE to donate, please check out the website and see if you like the idea. Conceptual drawings will be up in days.

Thanks!

You've got my support!! I sent some $$ your way via PayPal and I hope others are able to do the same. I think it's such a cool idea!!

And per my previous email to you, please let me know if I can help in any other way!!

[Falcon30]

*FliccGirl's TBS-Outreach-Chair Radar goes on high alert*

Falcon30, what organizations have you contacted about support and donations? How old is this project? And what kinds of events (specifically) do you have in mind? etc etc etc

hi Flicc...

We have not contacted any organizations about donations yet. We are not "Officially" a "charity" as recognized by the government. Right now, I have spread the word by mouth to band director friends and this board

This project in essence is 5 years old. I worked with a band director nearing retirement who threatened to build a stadium of his own because he was sick of not being able to host events there due to the athletic boosters iron fist control of the facility.

That thought has been stewing in my mind for years. I finally (after marching season at a new school, encountering the SAME issues at my 3rd school district) started looking up prices for field turf, stands, and thinking of events to fill the stadium up.

Everyone thinks this is a great idea, and I am obsessed with seeing it through. We think that having a stadium, museum and camp facility makes it a year-round facility.

The website has a bunch of stuff on it about what we plan on doing. I am also making contacts so we can put on benefit concerts and try to raise money that way. In the immediate future, we are just trying to raise the couple of hundred dollars necessary to be incorporated and file as a 501 C3 charity with the IRS. After that, we think we have a great shot ot some grant money.

Please feel free to mail me if you have any other questions, or just post it here.

Jake
[email protected]

[Falcon30]

Hi fellow band alums and current members.

Please allow me to shamelessly plug my soon-to-be charitable foundation: the Forward March Foundation. We are a group of band people who are trying to get an indoor Stadium / museum / band camp facility built in northern Ohio.

Right now, we are trying to get officially incorporated and recognized as an official 401 (c)(3) charity, then we are going for grants and other funding.

Even if you have NO DESIRE to donate, please check out the website and see if you like the idea. Conceptual drawings will be up in days.

Thanks!

You've got my support!! I sent some $$ your way via PayPal and I hope others are able to do the same. I think it's such a cool idea!!

And per my previous email to you, please let me know if I can help in any other way!!

Grant - I will hold you to that offer of help, and thanks so much for the support. I have already dumped so much money into it, every donation helps.

[Falcon30]

Even if you have NO DESIRE to donate, please check out the website and see if you like the idea. Conceptual drawings will be up in days.

Thanks!

Did someone say conceptual drawings?????

These are kinda the basic ideas for the stadium.

[FliccGirl]

Seating only on one side! BRILLIANT! I heartily approve.

Will you have highschool or college hashes, or both?

[goofyeuph]

Very nice!! You can tell it's meant for marching band and not football. Have you considered talking to the various Greek organizations that are based in music here at BG? I find it hard to believe that out of the 4 in the music building that someone wouldn't be willing to chip in a few bucks. Incase you don't know who they are, Phi Mu Alpha and Sigma Alpha Iota are based in music in general. Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma are based specificly in band. I would think between the 4 you could get some sort of help.

[FliccGirl]

I'm thinking that once you get this up and running as an official charity, you could get help from those organizations on a NATIONAL, or at least a district/state level. It's worth a try, anyway.

Keep the updates coming! I'm really excited about this!

[Falcon30]

Seating only on one side! BRILLIANT! I heartily approve.

Will you have highschool or college hashes, or both?

why both, of course!

I hope to host a College/ University band show someday.

[Falcon30]

Very nice!! You can tell it's meant for marching band and not football. Have you considered talking to the various Greek organizations that are based in music here at BG? I find it hard to believe that out of the 4 in the music building that someone wouldn't be willing to chip in a few bucks. Incase you don't know who they are, Phi Mu Alpha and Sigma Alpha Iota are based in music in general. Kappa Kappa Psi and Tau Beta Sigma are based specificly in band. I would think between the 4 you could get some sort of help.

I was in KKPsi and VP of Phi Mu Alpha....I will definitely make some official contact soon.

This will be a national program in a few years. Ohio is a big Marching Band State, but it is nowhere near Indiana or Texas to name a few. I have heard that Wisconsin would be a great place to build one of these complexes...The one in Ohio is only the beginning. (actually, we are trying to figure out where to get one built in Northern Ohio - halfway between Cleveland and Toledo (i.e. Sandusky) or closer to Cleveland and Akron. A lot will depend on how much money we raise, grants we get, community support, etc. etc. etc. Once the Northern one is built and successful, we will be looking to build in the Cinci/Dayton/Columbus triangle. Lots of competition bands there. It cold host BOA events and more.)

I am so glad to have more than just our trustees excited about this.

[FliccGirl]

What all do you have to do to get incorporated as an official charity, and is there anything we can do to help? And how long do you think it'll be before you are official?

Details! lol

[Falcon30]

What all do you have to do to get incorporated as an official charity, and is there anything we can do to help? And how long do you think it'll be before you are official?

Details! lol

First, we have to incorporate. A "charity" can not be a 'random group.' It has to have some official business designation.

Incorporation is $125...that is what we are going for now. We will soon be known as Forward March Foundation, Inc. Then we can fill out about 4 forms and the fees with each to be 'recognized' by the state and the IRS as a non-profit charitable group in support of the arts in IRS section 501 (C)(3).

As soon as that happens, we will begin our organized fundraising.

you can help now by donating via paypal, or mailing a small donation. (info is on the website: http://www.forwardmarch.org/donations.html)

We have the paperwork taken care of, we just need a little more capital to get started (I have spent about $100 of my own money and easily 100+ hours of my own time...things are set up really well, but I am running out of 'spare' money)

Very soon, we will need help with marketing, and I will definitely ask for help here. We will be trying to organize benefit concerts soon, and I will definitely need help with that.

For anyone who wants to help, I PROMISE that I have something for you to do soon.