September 20, 2020

Greetings fellow Alumni Band members!

Let’s Go Mountaineers!  After months of uncertainty, NCAA football is finally underway and our Mountaineers are off to a great start for the 2020 season.  We hope each of you will try to catch a game by radio or TV throughout the season and sing Country Roads with each victory.

Upcoming Events

Although Homecoming events are cancelled, we will be holding our 2020 Annual WVU Alumni Band, Inc. meeting.  The meeting will be a virtual Zoom meeting on Tuesday, October 13, 2020 at 7:30pm.  This is a member only meeting.  Those members with current paid membership will receive more information about registration for the event.

Adopt-A-Dot Campaign Updates

We continue to raise funds for the new Alumni Band Practice Facility.  We have currently sold over 100 dots!  Thank you to those who have already participated. Former Pride Director, Don Wilcox, has shared with us his support for this new facility.

The project of providing a long-needed all-weather practice facility for the Pride of West Virginia is one that has been dear to my heart for many years.  From our years of practice at the infamous “Mud Bowl” with its ankle-deep puddles, to eventually our paved parking lot by the Coliseum which was the band’s happy home for many years, it has been a long journey of almost 50 years.

The idea of an actual indoor facility [covered pavilion] for the marching band was a dream of mine for almost half a century, and maybe the time has finally come!  I would love to come back for Homecoming and share such a wonderful facility with the band that will always be Number ONE in my heart. 

Let’s get it built! 

Don Wilcox

Retired, Director of Bands Emeritus, West Virginia University

WVU Marching Band Director, 1971 - 1998

For more information about the practice facility or to purchase a dot, please go to https://give.wvu.edu/pridepracticefacility.  For a more economical option, please remember that you can purchase your dot with a monthly payment plan.  

WVU Alumni Association Pride Webinar

If you weren’t able to participate in the WVU Alumni Association live webinar WVU Check In: The Pride of WV, with the new Pride Director, Dr. Cheldon Williams, and Dean of the College of Creative Arts, Keith Jackson, be sure to check out the recording here. Together, they provided an update about the marching band, the new Pride practice facility, and other programs at the College of Creative Arts.

Finally, if you haven't paid your 2020 dues, please do so as soon as you are able. We rely on that money to pay for our website, storage unit, insurance, and startup money for fundraising events, as well as office supplies, to name a few. Without your dues, we will not have an organization.  Fees for homecoming only pay for homecoming events and do not fund our general operating costs. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at info@wvualumniband.org.

Stay safe and Let’s Go Mountaineers!

Sincerely,

Officers and Board of Directors, WVU Alumni Band Inc., 2019-2020