Socastee’s Jazz Band hosted their 2nd annual Jazz Spaghetti Dinner Fundraiser on Friday, April 26. The event includes dinner and a show for those attending. This year, spaghetti and chicken bog were served, courtesy of band parents Lee Ann Buie and Mr. Joey Berentsen. Mr. William Jung, the school’s band director, hosts the event as a way to pay homage to the past Band program under Cheryl Polenick.
“[The event] is a spiritual successor to the Jazz Dinner Dance that used to be held by the band program by the previous director, which was largely successful,” he said. “The goal is to create an event where the band program can perform for members of the community in an environment that’s separate from the usual end-of-semester concerts.”
The spaghetti dinner also gives the band an opportunity to fundraise money to put towards their expenses. This year, over 200 people attended and the band raised over $3,000 to pay for instruments, travel fees, uniforms, and more. George Beck, the band’s booster club president, helped Mr. Jung to manage and organize this event, along with several other band parents.
“The spaghetti dinner contributes funds needed for upcoming events to supply snacks and drinks and to support travel funds needed for transportation and to pay staff,” he said. “My favorite part of the dinner is having parents get together and getting to know parents that we don’t get to meet throughout the year.”
Ximena Mendoza-Heredia (12), an alto saxophone player, has been a soloist during the spaghetti dinner for two years.
“Though it’s not perfect, my performance has definitely improved,” she said. “I used to be absolutely terrified and unable to stand in front of a crowd, but now I feel confident enough to be vulnerable and let me be me.”
This year’s program was unique in that Forestbrook Middle School students were invited to perform. During their selection “Drama for Your Mama”, the middle school and high school bands combined to perform together. The annual spaghetti dinner has been a great way to get Socastee’s community together to enjoy a musical evening. The band looks forward to hosting the event every year and performing for a diverse audience.
“[I love] seeing different members of the community come support,” said Mr. Jung. “Our general audience for our end of semester concerts are usually family members and friends, which is fantastic. However, at this fundraiser, we see many other members of the community that we don’t normally get to see, such as our middle school feeder band students who get to perform with us.”
