When you see the Marching Band this year, you won’t see the classic gray and black formal uniform. Instead, you’ll see brand new sleek black pants, along with a colorful floral top. All of this is possible because of the band students hard work when raising money for the March-A-Thon fundraiser.

The March-A-Thon was conducted over the summer to help the band raise money and to introduce new supporters to the program.

“We wanted to increase exposure for Bowie High School and our band program within the community,”  Head Band Director Garth Gundersen said.

In an effort to raise awareness about the band in the areas surrounding the school, the band marched around Circle C neighborhoods next to the community center pool, played popular tunes, and went door to door handing out flyers asking for support.

“We marched through the neighborhoods around Bowie to promote Bowie High School, promote our band program, and thank the community for their support of this fundraiser and for our band program,” Gundersen said.

Freshman Kristian De La Garza was one of the students who marched around the neighborhood.

“It was really humid and everyone was super moist and sweaty, and it smelled bad, and then we had stuff to do after that too,” De La Garza said.

Senior Jack Barsotti agreed that it was hot and sweaty, but thought that the march was necessary for the fundraiser.

“Even though it was really hot and sticky outside, it was pretty fun, I’ve never marched through a neighborhood before and I liked seeing all the people come out of their houses in their pajamas,” Barsotti said. “It was necessary because it was beneficial to help raise funds for the band, and we desperately need those this year in order to get the uniforms to perform a great show”

Junior Hugo Tellez believes that the band made him who he is today, and was happy to help raise money.

“I enjoyed marching around the neighborhood because it showed what the Bowie band signified and who we are and how we perform,” Tellez said.

One of the main goals of the March-A-Thon was to raise enough money to afford new uniforms for the bands’ competition season.

“[We wanted to] raise funds for a new competition uniform that we will wear for our marching show this fall and thank the community for their support of Bowie High School,” Gundersen said.

Many of the band students felt connected with the community when they raised money and awareness of the band.

“I enjoyed the March-A-Thon because I felt like we were giving back to the people that were supporting us,” Tellez said.

Most of the students thought the new community exposure to the band was a welcomed change.

“It was great to be able to reach out to the community, which is something the Bowie band has never done before,” Barsotti said. “It made the band a little bit more interesting this year and now more people are aware of it, which is going to help us get funding.”

The band used a company called ‘SNAP! Fundraiser’ to get the message out and raise more money.

“SNAP is the most successful and recognized Online platform for raising funds Online,” Gundersen said. “They are very protective of the Online profiles and protect our students and families.”

For many people in the community, this was the first time they had seen the Bowie band.

“The most important aspect of the fundraiser was community exposure,” Gundersen said.

The band was able to raise $54,000, which was well over their goal of $40,000.

“We had a phenomenal fundraiser, with over 80 percent of the band participating,” Gundersen said.

The fundraiser was so successful that Gundersen decided to do the March-A-Thon annually.

“We are planning to make the March-A-Thon an annual event and make it in a different neighborhood that feeds into Bowie High School next year,” Gundersen said.

Although the March-A-Thon earned a lot of money for the band, the band’s main focus with the March-A-Thon was to bring the community together.

“Bowie High is a great school,” Gundersen said. “Community involvement in the school is what will continue to make Bowie one of the best schools in Austin.