The Hillside High School Immortal Sting Marching Band has been invited to perform in the 2027 Sugar Bowl Parade in New Orleans, and Patrick Jones II said the group is now seeking community support to make the trip happen. The band is raising money for 80 student musicians, with the trip expected to cost about $1,500 per student.
Jones said the group wants to raise enough within the next two months so every student can travel. For families, the immediate question is whether donations and sponsorships will close the gap in time for the band to send the full ensemble.
Patrick Jones II on funding
Jones said the opportunity could change students' paths. He said, “It's just an eye-opening experience. It would officially qualify them as professional musicians and performers. Great opportunity for them,” and added, “Something like this does require funds and for some of them, that's out of reach. We want to provide this opportunity to all. If we don't have enough, we may not be able to travel.”
He also said the band is looking for “partnerships, sponsorships, people in the community willing to invest in our youth and kids doing positive things and bringing light to Durham and Hillside.” That request gives donors a direct role in whether the trip reaches every student instead of only the ones who can afford it.
Kwame Hester in Hillside High School
Kwame Hester, a Hillside High School junior, said the program has already shaped how he works and performs. “Band has taught me to be disciplined. It's taught me time management and it's taught me to always have fun,” he said in an interview in the band room at Hillside High School.
Nadiyah Dumas, a senior, described the group as tightly linked through music and routine. “We all get along through church songs and gospel music. The drumline will play, and everybody will dance to it. Like a big family,” she said.
80 students for New Orleans
Eric Henry said the trip would bring different grade levels together around one event. “This would be a big experience for all of us being young kids. We have freshmen, sophomores, seniors. It would be a big opportunity for all of us to go as one big family,” he said.
The practical issue now is straightforward: the band has an invitation, but the trip depends on money. Some students would be traveling outside North Carolina for the first time, and the band is accepting donations and sponsorships to cover travel costs for the 2027 Sugar Bowl Parade in New Orleans.
That makes the next two months the deciding window for the full group. If the fundraising campaign reaches its goal in time, all 80 student musicians can make the trip; if it falls short, some students may have to stay behind.
