As a member of the University of Connecticut Marching Band in 2008, Justin McManus remembers when they received their brand-new uniforms. They were the first to wear them and were happy to have something new.
McManus is now the director of UConn marching band, as well as an assistant professor of music at UConn. His marching band students are still wearing the uniforms he received back in 2008.
“These uniforms are meant to have around a 10-year quality period meaning that they are typically replaced after 10 years,” said McManus. “These uniforms are now 7 years past their time, and it is time to replace them.”
UConn marching band students are responsible for repairing their own uniforms every year, but due to weather conditions, wear and tear, overall overuse and old age, some uniforms have become unrepairable.
“Some uniforms are held together with safety pins and carabiners, like hiking carabiners, because they’re just so damaged that they’re kind of held together literally by a wing and a prayer some days,” said McManus.
McManus and the band are holding a fundraiser to raise money to buy new and updated uniforms. The fundraiser, called the UCMB uniform campaign, is open to anyone who wishes to donate, and McManus says that any little amount helps. The band’s goal is to reach $75,000 though their fundraising efforts, according to McManus.
“We have some folks who are like, I want to donate 10 uniforms worth to the campaign and some who say “I can’t do a full uniform, but I can do a fraction of one,” said McManus. “We are grateful for every penny that comes in gets us one step closer to that ultimate goal.”
The fundraiser is in partnership with the UConn Foundation, who is helping fund the project as well. Donations can be made on the UConn Foundation website.
McManus said he believes that this fundraising effort will help improve the overall quality of the UConn Marching Band’s success and will allow the students to move more freely when performing.
“I think everything will just fit better once we have new uniforms,” said McManus. “If something doesn’t quite fit around the shoulders and then you add rips and tears and things are actually falling off, it makes the act of marching harder because you might be tripping over fabric or holding an instrument might be more difficult because things are drooping off of you.”
McManus said that the students are very excited at the idea of new uniforms. If the fundraiser is a success and all goes to plan, UCMB can expect to receive their new uniforms by the Fall 2026 semester.
“The students are very excited,” said McManus. “I think just the notion of needing to do less repair is exciting for them, and then just having something new and something fresh, it’s at a turning point.”
So far, around $50,000 has been raised for the campaign, but they still have a way to go, according to McManus. The most important thing to him is that these uniforms allow students to have the best time they can in UCMB.
“It’s an aspect of university that just touches so many lives in such a positive way,” said McManus. “People are giving to this campaign, and it is going to benefit that student wearing the uniforms, and that’s certainly important. We want that student to have a good experience.”
More information about the campaign can be found on the fundraiser website.