STUDENTS TO GET BANQUET DESPITE CHARITABLE ACT.

Byline: Joanne Crawford Education

Chaparral Elementary School drill team and drum corps members got to enjoy a year-end banquet despite giving up money originally set aside for the event to a high school student hurt in a car accident.

Chaparral principal Rob Burlinger was moved and impressed by the team's decision and subsequently provided school funds to ensure that the students still could hold the banquet, said team coordinator Michelle Butler.

``Back in January, we had a rummage sale fund-raiser here and raised $519,'' Butler said. ``Those funds were to have been applied toward the drill team banquet. After they had the rummage sale, about a week later, we learned of a local high school youth who had been hurt in a car accident. He was in critical condition and the parents did not have insurance.''

Drill team members voted to donate all the funds that had been raised during the rummage sale toward Palmdale High School student Luis Segovia's medical expenses.

The group, made up of fifth- and sixth-grade boys and girls, practices at least three to four hours a week after school, she said.

``It's just been great working with them,'' Butler said. ``They have so much energy and so much love and they just love being a part of it, which makes it special for me.''

The group has performed in parades in Palmdale and Lancaster, at Lancaster's Poppy Festival, the Quartz Hill Almond Festival and at Magic Mountain.

The team is seeking sponsors to help pay for much needed equipment to enhance the program for next year, Butler said.

``We would really love to expand our program to include short flags,'' Butler said. ``It helps with coordination, it gives the girls an opportunity to dance. As a team, they develop structure and discipline. It really would provide a lot of positive things for them.''

The group also could use gloves, banners, practice T-shirts and especially a good sound system because the students perform primarily to recorded music, Butler said.

``They perform to hip-hop music, and top-40 contemporary pop music such as the Spice Girls, Janet Jackson and the Backstreet Boys,'' Butler said. ``We do have a small band and we have performed with them at an assembly, but most of the time we use recorded music.''

Parents of the team members paid for uniforms, she said.

``The girls' uniforms are black one-piece with a flared skirt that has a yellow and gold black stripe along the edge,'' Butler said. ``The boys wear black pants and drill team T-shirts with black and gold lettering and the bobcat mascot on it.''

Incoming members for next year, most likely, will have to audition for the team, Butler said.

``Last year, because it was a new program, they did not have to audition,'' she said. ``Everyone was welcome, but the program has become very, very popular, so we will see how many people express interest. We would like to pick everyone . . . but we kind of have to limit it to maybe 50 because there is only one of me.''

For more information on sponsoring the Chaparral Elementary Drill Team and Drum Corp., contact Butler at the school at [phone].

LANCASTER - The Lancaster Elementary School ``Day Dreamers'' choir continues to seek support from local businesses or individuals interested in sponsoring student members or providing musical equipment in good condition.

For more information on the third- through sixth-grade singers, contact Kim Ellis-Bricker at [phone].