A year-and-a-half-long effort to revitalize the Horace Maynard Middle School’s band program has culminated in a major success, as the school secured a $40,000 grant worth of new musical instruments through the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation and the hard work of Ms. Hope Williams, the school’s band director.

“The application process was extensive, requiring an insane amount of paperwork on school demographics, including providing data from former HMMS Assistant Principal, Mr. Epperson”, stated Hope Williams. A major component of the application highlighted that approximately 98% of the band members rely on school-borrowed instruments. The school also demonstrated its significant need by showing foundation representatives that it currently borrows many instruments from the high school to meet student demand.

HMMS was the only school in Tennessee listed for adoption on the foundation's campaign page, which set a fundraising goal of $17,000. After a year of anticipation, Ms. Williams checked the campaign status a few weeks ago and was thrilled to see the goal had been met.
Upon further discussion with the foundation, the school learned that the $17,000 goal being met allowed the foundation to provide a staggering $40,000 worth of instruments. The funding was provided by the Morgan Wallen Foundation, a partner of Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation, which chose to fund the campaign.

The music program is set to receive 22 brand-new instruments, significantly upgrading their inventory. The grant will include:
4 Alto Saxophones
1 Tuba
5 Clarinets
4 Trumpets
4 Flutes
4 Trombones

This grant helps fulfill a long-standing goal to replace the program's outdated instruments. The school will still need to continue fundraising efforts, as the grant does not cover essential supplies and maintenance items like reeds, oil, and repairs for both the new and existing instruments. Nevertheless, the successful campaign marks an amazing milestone for the HMMS band.