Dear Parents/Guardians
We in St Canices N.S. are all justifiably very proud of our musicians and our music programme. We are proud of the many achievements of the children over the years and we know how much fun they have in playing music together. However running a music programme of this size and nature costs a lot of money and requires funding on an ongoing basis! The registration fees and instrument hire fees are not enough to fund the programme. The bi-annual Maytime Melodies concert is our main fundraiser and we rely heavily upon all monies raised by the concert to buy the many things required for the programme. For example, this year alone we have spent in excess of €1,000 on new music stands, replacing many of the older stands which were in a bad state of repair; we have to pay for the repair, replacement and maintenance of instruments on an ongoing basis, a new cello costs about €450 and in the past couple of years we have had to replace a number of cellos.
Traditionally, people involved in businesses locally have been given the opportunity to support the programme by advertising in the Maytime Melodies Programme. Following a suggestion by some parents, it has been decided this year to extend this facility to all parents/guardians of children involved in the programme who may wish to be associated with and support the programme by becoming “Friends of Maytime Melodies”. The names of all “Friends” will be published in our Concert programme. If you would like to become a Maytime Melodies Friend, please submit a cheque for €20 made payable to St Canices Instrumental Music Programme by Friday 9 May 2014. Please ensure you put the cheque in a sealed envelope with your name and the name of your child on the outside. Cheques can be left in the post box in Mrs O Leary’s room. All funds received will go directly towards our wonderful music programme and ensure that our children will continue to enjoy the benefits of the programme for many years to come!