newsletter
July 6, 2025

Weekly Newsletter - July 6, 2025

Sent 7/6/2025, 4:45 PM.

Welcome everyone!  And a special welcome to all our incoming new students - we are very glad to have you as part of this amazing band program.  My name is Jeremy Dencklau, your band booster president, and I'm very excited to kick off another great year of band at Eldorado.

This is the first of MANY newsletters the boosters will be sending out this year, typically on a weekly basis, usually on Sunday afternoon/evening.  We post these to our website so they can be searched and reviewed at any time.  All the newsletters for the year can be found in our News Archive section of the site.  It is very important that you take the time to read through these newsletters, as this is our primary means of getting information to you.  This particular newsletter is going to have plenty of things to cover, given we are about to start a brand new season of band. 

This is the standard format of these newsletters.  I start with a high-level overview of what is in the newsletter, followed by a run-down of what is happening over the next week with regards to band.  After that is all the details you need.  Last, but certainly not least, will be a word from Mr. Sayre - especially important for the students, as he frequently puts information in there on how the week will be going in class, so ALWAYS make sure to read through his section.

Feel free to explore our website - just know that much of it is still in process of being updated.  Any page with a red DRAFT header on it is still being finalized, but certainly familiarize yourself with the 

What's in this newsletter?

Here's what I have for you all this week:

• Field Cleanup - this coming Saturday, July 12, we'll be getting the practice field ready for band camp.  Many hands make light work!

• Calendar - our calendar is the best way to make sure you have all the information on what is coming - make sure you subscribe today!

• Band Camp - two weeks of intensive rehearsing, all you need to know

• Fundraising Update - details are coming soon

This week in band...

Tuesday 7/8

• 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM - Percussion Camp

Wednesday 7/9

• 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM - Percussion Camp

Thursday 7/10

• 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM - Percussion Camp

Friday 7/11

• 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM - Percussion Camp

Saturday 7/12

• 7:00 AM - Field Cleanup/Cage Cleanup

Now on to the details...

Field Cleanup

In order for the students to be able to have a successful band camp, the practice field needs to be cleaned up to get rid of all the dirt, debris, and weeds that gather over the winter, spring, and summer months.

We'll be meeting at the practice field (behind the baseball fields from the east parking lot) at 7 AM.  We're starting early to beat the heat of the day...  Many hands will make this go very quickly, plus you'll get the opportunity to meet other band parents.  Bring gloves and yard tools (like shovels, hoes, weed eaters/weed torches) and make sure they have your name on them so they don't go home with the wrong person.  Don't forget the sunscreen and water, and if you have a truck and can help haul away everything, that would be great as well.  Any parent, guardian, family member, friend, or student is welcome to come help out.

I hope to see you there!

Calendar

The band Google calendar is the best way to keep track of everything upcoming regarding band and color guard.  We work very hard to keep it as up-to-date as possible.  All the important dates for the year have already been added, and if anything new comes up or anything changes, that will be reflected on that calendar.

If you haven't yet, I highly recommend you subscribe to the calendar.  You can subscribe by doing the following:

1. Go to the Calendar page of the website (https://www.eldorado.band/Calendar)
2. In the lower-right corner of the embedded calendar is a little blue plus sign - click on the plus sign
3. The Eldorado Band calendar will now be joined to your own Google calendar

Band/Percussion Camp

Percussion camp begins this week and band camp begins next week!  Two weeks of intensive rehearsal gets new marchers up to speed, returning members back into the swing of things, and a sizable portion of our marching show on the field for the upcoming season.  There are some important things I want to make sure you know beforehand:

1. The calendar has all the band camp dates/times on it - make sure you subscribe.
2. There is a Band Camp page on the website that also has the schedule and other band camp related information, such as what you should bring
3. Speaking of what to bring - make sure the students are wearing cool, light-colored clothing and athletic/tennis shoes (no sandals, boots, crocs, flip-flops).  Bring LOTS of water (i.e., the largest water bottle you have) and sunscreen/hats.  And of course, all the supplies they need to play and maintain their instrument.
4. Make sure the students are getting outside this next week and a half to help acclimate themselves to the heat a bit before getting out there during band camp.  It will make the week much easier on them.  Also start getting up earlier - it will make the 7:30 AM report times much easier when they get here.
5. Bring a sack lunch, or money to buy lunch at surrounding restaurants near campus.
6. Pay attention to special days, such as marching shoe fitting day, or uniform fitting day for classes.  Those happen during lunch, so plan accordingly.

Also, don't forget the band family picnic on Thursday evening, July 17th at El Oso Grande park.  Bring yourself some dinner, and come hang out with the band community.  The boosters will be there as well to answer any questions and provide opportunities to volunteer this year.  You don't want to miss this - its such a great opportunity to get to know the rest of this amazing community.  I really hope you can make it!

DON'T FORGET! There will be a very important parent meeting at the end of band camp.  While the students are rehearsing that morning, the boosters and parents will be meeting in the Eldorado PAC at 9 AM and will be going over EVERYTHING you need to know as a parent (not just new parents, but returning parents as well), including finances/fees, schedules, rules, chaperoning/volunteering, uniform care - literally everything.  After we get done, we will go up to the practice field and watch the students perform what they learned over those weeks.  Mark your calendars!!

Fundraising Update

We are still working out the final details on our summer fundraising campaigns.  Be on the lookout for an announcement from our Fundraising committee this week with all the details.

Our summer fundraisers are the best opportunity to lower band program shared costs for all band families, so it will be in the best interest of all families to give this effort some attention when we launch. 

Go Eagles!

JD

a word from Mr. Sayre...

Hello Eldorado Band Community,

Welcome to the 2025–2026 Eldorado school year! Mr. Snowden and I are excited to see you soon. The Eldorado Band community is a special place, and we’re eager to welcome our new members while continuing to build on the pride and excellence brought by our veteran students. We hope you were able to use your summer to rest, recharge, and maybe even miss us a little. Our Carmen-themed show brings the heat—so start getting used to the sun, the sass, and the sound. Olé!

We’re looking forward to seeing many of you either this week at Percussion Camp on Tuesday, or following week for Color Guard Camp, New Member Day, and finally, our first full day with all EHS Band students.

There are a few important things you and your family can do to prepare:

• Get outside. If you’ve spent most of your summer indoors in ideal comfort, transitioning to band camp might be a bit of a shock (in a good way!). We’ll be outdoors often, doing physical activities, so start acclimating now. A little discomfort now will pay off big time later.

• Gear up. Make sure you bring the right supplies: closed-toe athletic shoes, a LARGE water container, sunscreen, and clothes suitable for sun, heat, and lots of physical activity.

• Adjust your routine. Start waking up earlier so you can eat a solid breakfast and be ready to go on the field before 7:30 AM. Getting back to school routine is hard enough but doing that AND learning a bunch of new skills is a lot to do.

• Stay informed. Subscribe to the Eldorado Band Boosters’ Google Calendar and get in touch with your section leaders or peers.  Also take a look at the handbook at www.eldorado.band and get informed about our policies.  There will be additions and adjustments in the coming week but the majority of the wording should be the same.  We will talk about this at the parent meeting on July 26th.

Attendance at band camp is mandatory. Outside of the highly infrequent conflict with other official EHS events or legal obligations, the expectation is for all members to be present and ON TIME. Our marching show is designed with full participation in mind.

Band camp allows us to learn in two weeks what would normally take months of class time. Our program thrives on being efficient—we rehearse less than most, but accomplish more. That only works because our students recognize the value of their individual contributions to the success of the whole. If you have an absence - please fill out THIS FORM and let the directors know as soon as possible.  

We can’t wait to get started—see you soon! Check out the Eldorado Band Calendar to get specific information about times, dates, and places so you don’t miss out. 

Go Eagles!

Mr. Sayre