Band boosters to host farewell, thank-you dinner for instructors

Saturday, May 5, 2012

The Nevada High School Band Boosters are hosting a farewell and thank-you dinner for high school and middle school band instructors Tom and Amanda Meyer on Friday, May 11, at the Marmaduke Park Community Building.

The Nevada High School band director, Meyer, has accepted a position in Ozark, Mo., and he and his wife Amanda, who directs the middle school band, will be leaving the Nevada R-5 School district after 11 years of service. According to Band Booster President Pookie DeCocq, "they're going to be missed tremendously."

The Meyerses are held in high regard for their work in the district because "they have built up a tremendous program for our kids," DeCocq said. They have also helped the booster club to grow.

According to DeCocq, the band boosters was a weak organization before the Meyerses came to town. She said they have helped the organization grow along with the district's band programs. Their meetings usually have 30 to 40 of more than 100 members present and every member contributes in some way during the year, said DeCocq, but the Meyerses have had the most impact on their students.

DeCocq said the two- week summer band camp is one way the Meyerses have impacted the band program in the district. Kids attending the camp and playing in the band get much more than musical instruction. They begin with fitness training; playing in a marching band can be very strenuous. The band members learn discipline and teamwork and they increase their individual instrumental skills. Outside staff members are brought in for the camp and according to DeCocq, the Meyerses often put them up in their home. Everyone wants to "work with the Meyerses," she said.

DeCocq also said some of the band members took the news that the Meyerses were leaving pretty hard. "It's going to be a real adjustment for them," she said.

R-5 Superintendent David Stephens said they "have done a great job in the district -- they've led a very strong instrumental program."

No one wants to see them go, but the move they are making puts them closer to family. "It's a good move for them," DeCocq said.

The Friday evening event will have two segments and begin at 5:30 with a dinner for members of the high school and middle school bands, their parents, family and staff members. The band boosters are providing pulled pork.

Students in grades six through 12 are asked to bring specific items to round out the menu. The public is invited to have cake and ice cream from 7 to 8 p.m. Everyone is encouraged to bring a lawn chair.

Seniors should bring one gallon of ice cream; juniors need to bring a dessert; sophomores bring a cold side dish such as veggies, salads, coleslaw, potato salad, fruit, etc.; freshmen should bring a hot side dish like a casserole, baked beans, cheesy potatoes or similar items.

Eighth grade students should bring a bag of hamburger buns to class by Thursday, May 10; seventh grade students should bring a bag of hamburger buns to class by Thursday, May 10; and sixth grade students should bring a bag of chips to class by Thursday, May 10. For more information, call DeCocq at (417) 667-1261.