We're "Moving!"

The blog has been nice but it is being replaced for the most part by our facebook group and the wiki. Seems silly to keep posting information in 3 different places.

All schedules and sign-ups can now be found on the wiki. ---> http://exit52.wikispaces.com/

See you there.

~Mac

2/19/11 West Bloomfield Competition Tentative Schedule

Exit 52 & Almost Home will travel to West Bloomfield High School on Saturday, February 19, 2011.

Our Tentative Schedule is as follows. . .

• 10:00-11:30 -->Rehearsal for Exit 52
• 11:30-12:00 -->Rehearsal for Almost Home
  (I'm working on getting the MS or Bushnell Gym)
• 12:30 --> Depart Lowell (Location to be determined by rehearsal site)
  ***Travel time to West Bloomfield approx 2 hours 15 minutes***
• 3:00 --> Arrive West Bloomfield --> Parent Volunteers needed to man our fundraising table (If we get the ok to have it at the competition.) Sign up will be available soon.
• 4:00 --> Almost Home : Ready (In Uniform and Make-up)
• 4:30 --> Almost Home in Warm up
• 4:55 --> Almost Home to the Ready Line. (Exit 52 @ Ready Line in Uniform and Make-Up)
• 5:02 --> Almost Home Performs, "Awareness."
• 5:45 --> Exit 52 Stretches
• 6:39 --> Exit 52 in Warm Up
• 7:05 --> Exit 52 to the Ready Line. (Almost Home @ Ready Line to help with props.)
• 7:13 --> Exit 52 Performs, "Bring Me To Life."
• 8:47 --> Awards
  (Click here for detailed directions.)

View Larger Map

Best First Show of the Season Ever!

Almost Home presents their 2011 show, Awareness.

Exit 52 presents their 2011 show, Bring Me To Life.

This is how the kids were describing their performances at the Reeths-Puffer contest on Saturday. I heard things like, "That was our best first show of the season ever!", "We left it all on the floor and really brought the crowd to life." and more.

I don't know that I have even been as proud of Team Lowell than I was yesterday. Both groups went out there and gave it their all showing the audience and judges what this activity is all about. It's about doing your best and leaving the gym knowing you gave them all you had.

With that being said. . .

Congratulations to Almost Home for their 1st place finish in Auxiliary with a score of 42.00
The girls had a wonderful first performance of their 2011 show, "Awareness." There were a lot of people who became aware of the Pink Arrow Project and the work that our community is doing while watching some great color guard.

Auxiliary Class Results

1st-Almost Home 42.00 <--- Way to go!

2nd-Holt Winterguard 41.20

3rd-Reeths-Puffer Cadets 36.60

Another congratulations goes out to Exit 52 for their 2nd place finish in AAA with a score of 52.90. Exit 52 brought down the house with a very intense debut of their 2011 show, "Bring Me To Life." In addition to the 2nd place finish, Exit 52 earned significant recognition from the MCGC by surpassing the promotion score for AAA. This promotion is a indicator of not only the quality of the program itself but also the dedication of the members of Exit 52. Way to go! Not it's time to bring AA to life for the rest of the season.

AAA Class Results

1-Hartford Winterguard 54.10

2-Exit 52 52.90 <--- Woo Hoo!

3-Pandemonium Winterguard 48.30

4-Godwin Heights Color Guard 44.30

5-Luminosity of Saginaw Township 42.70

2011 MCGC Scholarship Application

It's that time of year again and the MCGC Scholarship Applications are again available.

MCGC Scholarships may be used for . . .

1. Drum and Bugle Corps dues and other similar programs such as touring music ensembles.

2. Winter guard, winter percussion ensemble and indoor band dues.

3. Color guard clinic fees such as Fred Miller clinics, Central Michigan University color guard clinics, and MSU

color guard clinics.

4. Music camps such as Interlochen Arts Academy and Blue Lakes Fine Arts camps.

5. Judges clinics

6. Fees for other marching activities

I will be getting scholarships apps printed and will have them by the end of this week. Applications are due by March 1. Please do not put this off until the last minute if you are planning on applying for a scholarship.

2011 MCGC Scholarship Application

Reeths-Puffer Contest --> Saturday 1/29

Here's the plan for this weekend. . .
We are very excited for the kids' first competition at Reeths-Puffer this weekend. Please take a few minutes to read over the schedule for the weekend and the notes toward the bottom.
If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask.
~Mac, Terry and Nance

Friday 01/28/11 - Rehearsal at LMS
Almost Home 6:00-8:00
Exit 52 6:00-11:00

Saturday 01/29/11 - Contest at Reeths-Puffer High School
*We are in need of parents to help man our fundraising booth at the contest this weekend. If everyone sits for an our or two no one has to sit the whole time*
Depart LMS @ 2:30 (Meet in front of school.) *Link to directions below*
Arrive Reeths-Puffer 3:40
Almost Home Performs 5:58
Exit 52 Performs 8:19
Awards 8:59

View Larger Map

Notes -->
Exit 52: Make sure you bring all of your uniform parts with you. I will have black eyeliner and eye shadow, please bring powder and lipstick. Please make sure to bring lots of hairspray or product so you can get your hair all funky for the show.
Almost Home: Please wear a pair of blue jeans for Saturday. They need to be jeans you can move in so no super tight jeans and nothing with holes in them. You should be getting your new Pink Arrow III shirt Friday night. You will need to bring those as well. I will have eye liner and eye shadow but you should bring your own powder and lipstick.

Other Notes. . .

• All marching members will get in for free but must sit in the back/side bleachers only while watching other units.
• Spectators must purchase a ticket. This will allow you to sit in the front bleachers for the duration of the contest. Ticket prices will most likely be $7.00 each with kids ages 5 & under free.
• Parents who volunteer to be chairpersons of varous guard jobs will receive a staff badge which will allow them entry into every MCGC event for free all season. There are still a couple of positions available (Trailer Driver, Concessions Coordinator) so please check with Mrs. Mac if you might be interested.
• All marching members are required to find two responsible High School aged or Adult Volunteers for our home show. Please start thinking about who you have available. The more people we get, the shorter the shifts will be. :) (More info to come on this soon.)
• Parents who volunteer for a 4 hour shift at the MCGC Championships on April 2nd at SVSU will be given complimentary entry to that contest (good for both Saturday and Sunday) Tickets for Championships are $12 per person for the weekend. . I have 4 positions open for this and I must have names turned in to the MCG by March 1st so let me know if you are interested. You will NOT be scheduled to work while your kids are performing.

2011 Season Information

Tentative Rehearsal Schedule
Tuesday and Thursdays @ LMS Choir Room
2:45-4:30 (HS will start at 3:00)

Fridays @ LMS Gym
MS --> 6:00-8:00 (Middle school will start Fridays in January)
HS --> 6:00-11:00

Tentative Competition Schedule
Sat 1/29/11 @ Reeths-Puffer HS
Sat 2/19/11 @ West Bloomfield HS
Sat 3/12/11 @ Lowell High School :)
Sun 3/13/11 @ Reeths-Puffer HS
Sat 3/26/11 @ Troy Athens HS
Sat 4/02/11 MCGC Championships @SVSU

Dues for 2011
Almost Home $125.00 + $50 in Ad Sales for Home Show Program
Exit 52 $250.00 + $100 in Ad Sales for Home Show Program

Time to Celebrate! Final Cut!

The new and final date for our celebration will be Saturday, April 24 from 1:00 pm to 4:00ish pm. All information found in the original Celebration statement is correct so please make sure you read through that posting and RSVP ASAP. I understand that this date isn't going to work for everyone and my apologies for this in advance, next season we will set the date in the beginning so that we can avoid any conflicts and have all members present to celebrate your hard work and efforts. Thanks for a great season everyone!

End of the Season Celebration has been postponed! Please continue to check the site for more information.

End of the season celebration!

Exit 52 and Almost Home end of the year celebration will be held this Sunday, April 18 at Lowell Lanes. The celebration will begin at 1:00 and last until approximately 4:00 pm. Bowling will be from 1:00 to 3:00 with pizza, coaches gifts and festivities immediately following in the dining area.

The guard will cover the cost for each of the 17 members and one parent per family. Additional family members are more than welcome for $10 each. This cost covers 2 hours of bowling, shoes, unlimited soft drinks and pizza dinner following our bowling time. This payment can be made at the bowling alley, but I will need to know the number of additional family members ASAP so that Lowell Lanes knows how many people to expect and how much pizza to have.

As mentioned at dinner technology is available so that we may view any videos, cd's etc. If memory serves me Amanda volunteered to put together any pictures others were willing to send her so that we may view the fabulous memories of the season. Please get your photo's to Amanda.

Coaches donations. I have collected funds from a few families while we were in Saginaw, I know there is a time crunch and not having practice makes it a little difficult to collect prior to our event but.....If each family could give their money to Brianna at school this week or drop off your $20 contribution to the Middle School that would be very helpful.

RSVP is a MUST: Please email me (Diane Heikkila) at either dheikkila@lowellschools.com or dmheikki@aol.com with the number of family members that will be attending on Sunday. Please list the subject as "guard" so that I will recognize your response.

Any comments, questions and/or suggestions are welcome. Thank you all for your time and efforts this season!

Signed, GMGW 1 & 2
Guard moms gone wild! Stacey and Diane

Almost Home Brings Home the Gold!

Saginaw, MI
March 27, 2010

2010 Almost Home --> Be OK From Left to Right: Back Row: Robert Becker, Keith Burns, Sharon MacDermaid, Sarah Mundwiler Front Row: Emily Mundwiler, Rachael Yomtoob, Mackenzie Bush, Ciera Bowden, Riley Breimayer.

2010 Exit 52 --> Fireflies
From Left to Right:
Back Row: Lindsey Schuller, Keith Burns, Sharon MacDermaid
3rd Row: Karen Mae Wesolek, Kayla Blough, Amanda Wilson, Sarah Mundwiler.
2nd Row: Rachel Phelps, Alison Huffman, Nicole Bagin, Danielle Bagin, Bree Heikkila
Front Row: Kayleigh Davies, Robert Becker, Jodi Carvill


The Michigan Color Guard Circuit held its 35rd annual championship competition at Saginaw Valley State University on Saturday, March 27, 2008. Two local guards were on hand to compete for top honors.

Exit 52, consisting of 12 members from Lowell High School and Almost Home, consisting of 5 members from Lowell Middle School. Both came to SVSU for the MCGC championships event with high hopes of winning big. Exit 52 is in its 4th year of competition in the MCGC and performed their 2010 program Fireflies set to the music of Owl City. The show opened with a flag solo by Robert Becker and a full guard dance section followed by the entire guard on flag. Exit 52 featured their rifle line in the middle section of the show and included a partner feature with the flag line and the rifle line. The last section of the show featured the entire guard on impressive gold flags. Six of the flags contained hidden gold and neon green confetti which was thrown out of the flags during the final flag feature which represented fireflies. As the confetti fell to the floor, the show concluded with a flag solo by Sarah Mundwiler who ended the show holding a jar of light up fireflies. The guard received an excellent crowd response and had a great ending to their 2010 competition season.

Almost Home is in their 3rd year of competition and performed to the song, Be OK by Ingrid Michaelson. Almost Home had a strong regular season and had their best performance of the year on Saturday. The show featured soloists Rachael Yomtoob and Emily Mundwiler and was a crowd favorite all season. Almost Home was the 2008 Flag Line Class Champion. They went into the Championships event in 2nd place putting them in medal contention again this year. At the awards ceremony on Saturday afternoon Exit 52 placed 4th in AA Class competing against 12 guards. It was a very close finish with just over 2 points between 1st and 4th place. Almost Home returned the title of Flag Line Class Champions to Lowell by once again placing 1st at the MCGC Championships.

All of the students involved in Exit 52 and Almost home have worked for countless hours on these programs and deserve kudos for all of their hard work and dedication.

Exit 52 and Almost Home are under the Direction of Sharon MacDermaid. The Staff of Exit 52 also includes, Karen Mae Wesolek, Lindsey Schueller, Keith Burns and Brian Liwak. The Staff of Almost Home also includes Keith Burns and Junior Staff Members Robert Becker and Sarah Mundwiler.


Thanks you all for your support during our 2010 competition season.

Full Scores from the MCGC Championships are available for download from the MCGC Guard Scores Link

Championships Update

The MCGC CHampionship Schedule is now available for download on the MCGC site.
Follow this link (MCGC Guard Championships Schedule) for details.

The game plan at this point is to meeting in the Hotel Lobby at 8:45am on Saturday so we can get to unit check in around 9:00am. Almost Home will need to be ready to perform with their uniforms on and their make up done. Exit 52 will need to be presentable but not in uniform or show makeup.
Almost Home performs at 10:21. Their awards are at 3:17. :)

Exit 52 will need to head back to the hotel to get ready and should be ready in uniform and full makeup at the 1st awards ceremony at 3:17. We will meet in the turf room at 4:15 to begin our warm up. All Exit 52 members should bring a beach towel with them to sit on in case it is nice enough to stretch outside.
Exit 52 performs at 5:25 and their awards are at 8:45. :)

Mae performs with Interplay World at 8:35 pm.

Diane Heikkila is getting the goodie bags together for the kids and is organizing the group dinner on Friday night. More info on that soon.

It's hard to believe this season is coming to an end. I am very proud of both of our guards and I am looking forward to a wonderful weekend at SVSU.

Grand Blanc Contest Results

This past weekend Exit 52 & Almost Home traveled to Grand Blanc for their final regular season contest of the 2010 competition season. Both groups had outstanding performances and I could not be more proud of a group of kids than I am of all of them right now.

Exit 52 placed 2nd again this week which has then ranked 2nd in the state in their class going into Championships this weekend. Almost Home placed 3rd but it was sure a close one with only 0.5 points between 2nd and 3rd. Almost Home is now ranked 3rd heading into Championships.

Scores from Our Classes. . .

Flag Line
1 Reeths-Puffer Cadets Green 89.00
2 Reeths-Puffer Cadets White 87.80
3 Almost Home 87.30
4 Marysville Junior Flagline 74.50

AA
1 Lake Shore Aria 73.40
2 Exit 52 71.50
3 Inspiration 70.90
4 Maumee Winter Guard 68.80
5 Reeths-Puffer JV Winterguard 68.20
6 Troy High Winter Guard 67.50
7 Troy Athens Alias Winterguard 65.30
8 Godwin Heights Color Guard 64.30
9 Mount Pleasant High School Winter Guard 64.20
10 LHS Mystique 58.60

Both groups will be traveling to Saginaw on Friday to compete on Saturday at Saginaw Valley State University and are both in medal contention being ranked 2nd and 3rd.

Advance discount tickets for MCGC Championships

This weekend is the last weekend to purchase advance discount tickets for MCGC Championships.

Advanced Ticket Prices are as follows:
Individual ticket prices are $10.00
Family packet of (4) for $35.00.

Tickets are available at the MCGC Merchandise booth at both the Grand Blanc and Milford shows.

Reeths-Puffer Contest Results

Once again, congratulations are in order for both Exit 52 and Almost Home after a strong showing at the Reeths-Puffer contest on Saturday, March 13, 2010.

Almost Home has their best performance of the season and brought home well deserved 1st place honors.
Flag Line Class Results
1^st Almost Home 73.20
2^nd Reeths-Puffer Cadets Green 67.90
3^rd Reeths-Puffer Cadets White 66.70
4^th Muskegon Catholic Central Crusaders 66.30
Exit 52 had a strong showing and got great crowd response with our added fireflies and "sparkles."
AA Class Results
1^st Reeths-Puffer JV Winterguard 65.60
2^nd Exit 52 63.60
3^rd Mount Pleasant High School Winter Guard 60.90
4^th Portage Northern 59.00
5^th Zephyros 57.10Great job to Team Lowell. Two more weeks to get out there and give it your all.

Pre-Order Your MCGC Championship Videos Today!

The MCGC has contracted a new video company, Alliance Media, to produce our Championships Videos this year. You have the opportunity to purchase MCGC Championship DVD's for significantly lower cost if you order them now compared to the price they will the day of the event.
Please take a moment to follow the link below and consider ordering your videos early. It will be one less thing to worry about the day of the even and you'll save yourself some money at the same time. :)

http://www.alliancemedia1.com/product_pages/2010mcgc.php
--> Link to pre-order MCGC Championship Videos








http://alliancemedianetwork.com/
---> Alliance Media Home Page. Get Online Access to MCGC Events and events from all over the country.

Grand Blanc Contest - Saturday 3/20

Here's the plan for the weekend of the Interplay Contest @ Grand Blanc. . .

Fri 03/19 Rehearsal at LMS for Exit 52 and Almost Home 7:00-9:30
Dress Runs @ 9:00 Invite your friends and family to come watch.

Saturday 03/20 - Contest @ Grand Blanc

---> I (Mrs. Mac) need to be at the contest when it starts at 11:00 so I will be leaving early Saturday morning. Those wishing to carpool should meet at LMS same as always so you can travel together. There is no rest stop built into this trip since it is less than 2 hours. Please eat before you leave or bring a bag lunch to eat on the way, or plan on eat at the concession stand once you arrive. :)

• Depart LMS @ 11:45
• Arrive Grand Blanc @ 1:30
• Almost Home Performs @ 3:00
• Exit 52 Performs @ 6:14
• Awards 8:52
  
  

Reeths-Puffer Contest - Saturday 3/13

Here's the plan for this weekend. . .

Fri 03/12 Rehearsal at LMS for Exit 52 and Almost Home 7:00-9:30
Dress Runs @ 9:00 Invite your friends and family to come watch.

Saturday 03/13 - Contest @ Reeths-Puffer

• Depart LMS @ 1:30
• Arrive Reeths-Puffer 2:40
• Almost Home Performs @ 4:10
• Exit 52 Performs @ 6:05
• Awards 6:37

West Bloom field Show Results

The Lowell Winter Guards performed their 2010 Programs Fireflies (Exit 52) and BE OK (Almost Home) at West Bloomfield with two strong finishes. Congratulations to all the performers. :)

Exit 52 placed 1st out of 6 guards with another strong performance with a score of 65.10

AA

1	Exit 52	65.10
2	Reeths-Puffer JV Winterguard	64.00
3	Godwin Heights Color Guard	63.40
4	Troy High Winter Guard	62.70
5	Troy Athens Alias Winterguard	60.70
6	Storm	54.40

Almost Home placed 2nd out of 6 guards and also had an impressive 2nd place finish with a score of 57.80

Flag Line
1 Reeths-Puffer Cadets Green 64.00 2 Almost Home 57.80 3 Reeths-Puffer Cadets White 54.00 4 Muskegon Catholic Central Crusaders 52.20 5 Impact 47.50 6 Marysville Junior Flagline 46.00

A complete list of scores is available at the MCGC website at the link below:
West Bloomfield Show Scores

Championships Program Ad Information

For anyone interested in purchasing ad space for a booster ad in the MCGC Championships program here some information and a link to the ad sales form.

Attention All Guard and Drum Line Units!
The Michigan Color Guard Circuit Championship Competition is fast approaching and this year will be held on Saturday, March 27 and Sunday, March 28, 2010.
We would like to give your unit opportunity to show your pride and hard work to all the people who come and enjoy the music, dancing, marching, and competition with a Unit ad in the MCGC
Championship program.
The Heritage High School Music Boosters is creating and selling the 2010 MCGC Championship
programs. We would like to offer your unit space in the program. Each participating unit will have their standard information listed in the Unit Information Pages. This is about a 1/4 of a page at no charge. The optional ad purchase would allow your unit to create and say anything you would like about your unit, show, season, parents, instructors, etc. The unit ads are half the price of the business ads!

Unit Program Advertising Pricing
Description Size Price
One Quarter Page Portrait, B/W or Grayscale 5”H x 3¾”W $25.00
One Half Page Landscape, B/W or Grayscale 5”h x 7½”W $50.00
Inside Full Page Portrait, B/W or Grayscale 10”H x 7½”W $75.00

West Bloomfield Show

Show Highlights. . .
4:26 PM Almost Home
6:49 PM Exit 52
7:12 PM Interplay A ---> Including Exit 52 Alumni Dakota Bunn
7:58 PM Interplay World ---> Including our very own Mae!
8:08 PM End/Awards

All guard members are responsible for arranging transportation to and from the contest site. Members should bring money for concessions for dinner. Parent drivers may choose to stop to eat on the way home but should make sure that all members riding with them are aware of the stop ahead of time so they will have money to get something to eat. :)

Unless you have a staff badge, for being a chairperson of a committee, all drivers and spectators will be responsible for paying their own admission to the contest. Admission prices are usually around $7-$8 per person.

We will be leaving Lowell Middle School at 12:00 noon. Provided that there is no bad weather we should be able to make a lunch stop in Howell at M-59 (it's tradition now right?) and still make it to the school with plenty of time to get Almost Home settled in an into warm up. :)

So. . . here's the plan:
12:00 Depart LMS
---> 750 Foreman St, Lowell, MI 49331 - (616) 987-2800
1:30 Arrive Howell McDonalds (Exit 133)
--->1360 N Burkhart Rd, Howell, MI 48855 - (517) 548-5348
2:00 Depart McDonald's
3:00 Arrive West Bloomfield High School
--->(4925 Orchard Lake Rd, West Bloomfield, MI 48323 - (248) 865-6720)

Link to Map