“State of the CMBAA”
CMB Alumni –
We still have more football games this season to cheer on the Hoos, and the excitement will continue as we see what shows the Cavalier Marching Band has in store for us for the last three games. But with Homecoming behind us, that means our Alumni Association just had its elections for new board members and we have some new faces to introduce! Welcome to Kayla Berry, Amy Cruz, Nick Ferraro, Taylor Fisher, and Jackie Sullivan! I love that we have interest from bandmembers in the first year of the CMB all the way to this past graduating class. Excited for the energy you’ll bring to the Board, and can’t wait to see you in action.
It’s great that year after year our alumni continue to participate in our reliable events – we had two fun bar nights at Arlington Rooftop cheering on the Hoos during basketball season, a great turnout for our Reunions event in June celebrating the classes of 2008 and 2013, and over 100 brackets made with a record level of donations for the March Madness bracket challenge (meaning the biggest prizes ever!). We also were overwhelmed with the support and love you all showed for Travis Cook, donating towards flowers at his funeral and then again participating in the Race for Hope 5K in Washington, DC. And maybe we’ve just gotten lucky with the picture choices, but our #TBT posts really seem to bring up some great memories on social media, alongside our updated website with the complete halftime show history.
And if you all missed having the chance to perform at Scott Stadium this year, don’t worry, we are incredibly excited to bring our alum back to Charlottesville to play at JPJ. That’s right, this basketball season there will be an alumni band. More details later in the newsletter on this!
After being on the Board for this organization for four years, I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with a lot of our alumni. It’s been such a privilege to be on this side of things and help facilitate social events for you all, and continue to have that same Wahoo spirit. I have no doubt the new Chair will do a fantastic job and I will continue to support from the sidelines. Just remember that all of you can always find ways to support the CMBAA, from volunteering at football games through our connection with RMC, to sending us alumni updates or photos we can share on social media, to purchasing merchandise or just donating on our website. Every little bit helps – I’ve seen firsthand what one person and what 100 of you can do.
Thank you to the boardmembers I’ve had the chance to work alongside these past few years, and to all of you for supporting me and the CMBAA. Our slogan continues to be true, “life doesn’t end when you step off the field.” It’s been amazing to stay in the mix with all my band family even years after graduation, and I have no doubt that will continue.
As always, Go Hoos!
Kyle Ruempler
Chair, CMBAA Board of Directors 2017-2018