My name is Roy Martin, and I am the Director of Bands for Center Point, TX Independent School District, a really small school district just down the river from Kerrville, Texas. This area became ground zero in the national news during the 4th of July 2025 Guadalupe River Flood that killed so many. The Guadalupe River runs right through the heart of Center Point, and our school district was a hub of activity as many emergency crews based here. International news outlets were all over the place. I witnessed educators with CPISD working tirelessly to help. After the news cycle changed, all the cameras left, and the big corporate donors made their very public tax-deductible donations to various causes, this small school district remains not only income-poor and budget-short, but morale has secretly taken a beating.

I came on board this year after 20 years of teaching public school and 3 years teaching at the university level locally at Schreiner University. I took this position because I love connecting with small-school kids, but as importantly, I felt led to come to this school district, as I already live very close by and they could not find anyone after the floods to teach their band kids.

At the end of one school year of very hard work and investing as much of myself as humanly possible as a widower raising two young children myself, these band kids need many things: instruments, equipment, etc. But my experience and heart tell me that they need, above all else right now, a morale boost.

This is why I'm here. I want to take them to San Antonio for the Drum Corps International Summer Tour Competition stop, called "DCI Southwestern" in July so they can see some of the best the marching band world has to offer - to walk among the corps warming up in the parking lot and to watch the finished shows inside the Alamodome. I've seen it motivate my previous students in the past and feel these need it more than any before.

After crunching the numbers, the trip, with everything involved, would cost between $2,000 and $3,000, depending on what tickets are available in the end. If this funding is successful and more funds are raised than are needed for this, I will shift the rest of the funds towards purchasing some new instruments to replace some in the inventory that average 30+ years old.

I truly appreciate anything that helps these kids. They have worked so, so hard for me this year and really deserve it. Thank you!