By Isaiah Rosario, Staff Writer
The Manhattan College Pep Band is on its way to London! The band is set to cheer on the men’s basketball team as they play Northeastern on Nov. 24 and Army or Princeton on Nov. 26.
Fundraising will play a tremendous role in the students’ trip to London. The contributions that Pep Band receives are going to go straight to students and staff to help lower the costs of tickets and other expenses on the trip.
Jacob Robinson, director of Pep Band, spoke about how the students are fundraising for their trip to London. He said they are funding the trip by getting donations from alumni, family and various businesses.
Student Engagement is looking forward to planning an itinerary for students in all three spirit squads during their day off in London. Pep Band will join the Jasper Dancers and cheer team on the trip.
Robinson spoke about his excitement about traveling to London with his group of students.
“It’s going to be a bit of an experience bringing some music from here,” Robinson said. “I’ve only been once before … Going in with a great group of students is going to make it much more fun.”
Excitement is not just coming from the director but also the students of the Pep Band. Emily Peters, a senior at Manhattan, spoke to The Quadrangle to share her excitement for the upcoming trip.
“I’m very excited,” Peters said. “The year before we were freshmen, [Pep Band] went to Ireland with the basketball team. It’s finally our turn to go on an international trip with the team, so we’re all very excited about this.”
Ashley Danz, who is also a senior, is just as ecstatic as Peters about the trip.
“I have the same excitement [as Peters],” Danz said. “I wasn’t able to go on the Orlando trip last year. This is my first actual trip with the Pep Band and it’s a big one. It’s very exciting to go international with the Pep Band to support the basketball team somewhere other than our home field.”
With a once in a lifetime trip like this, there most certainly be a lot to take in. Students and staff in Pep Band are looking forward to getting the most that they can out of a trip like this.
“I’ve never been anywhere other than the United States, so a huge thing is just exposure to new places,” Danz said. “The main thing is that we’re going out there to support the basketball team. So the more support we can give, the better. I’m excited about the games themselves and I’m also excited to just simply see London.”
Danz and Peters both have the same perspective when it comes to what they want to get out of this trip.
“I’m excited to travel,” Peters said. “I’m also excited to go to another country with the Pep Band, and all these kids that I love, and also to support our basketball team.”
The band has put in a lot of work behind the scenes to make the London trip happen. Robinson explains the importance of the teamwork necessary to make this trip a successful one.
“I want the band to feel like they’re working together to make a pretty large-scale event happen,” Robinson said. “Music is a specialized thing, so it takes a lot of work to bring music to people and I think a lot of folks don’t realize what work goes into that. For us, that means bringing a lot of equipment and performing in the space. We have to spend a lot more time preparing and moving through the airports and getting to the location with all of our stuff than we can do performing.”
Robinson explained what he wants students to get out of the trip and to show what hard work does.
“What I want the students to get out of it is an experience where they’re working hard towards something together,” Robinson said. “Understanding that we’re going through an event like this teaches people how important it is to have music, what it takes and what goes into it which like I said, is a lot more than what meets the eye. It’s also a chance for the students to get to know one another in a context other than just at school, which is good for building relationships [with each other].”Those wishing to support Pep Band can do so through the group’s GoFundMe, called “Send Manhattan College Pep Band to London.”