By Susie Kang, Crescenta Valley High School, Grade 10
March 28, 2011___
On March 19, 2011, Crescenta Valley High School’s outdoor quad was busy as the Instrumental Music Department hosted their second annual Korean Barbecue. Despite the gloomy day and the inaccurate forecast for rain, the La Crescenta community still came together to support its public high school in its annual fundraiser.
The first annual Crescenta Valley Instrumental Music (CVIM) Korean BBQ was a huge success, raising approximately $5000, so the new coordinators had high expectations to live up to; however, they did not fail to impress the community with this year’s turn out. This year, the barbecue consisted of homemade gourmet Korean food, live music, entertainment, raffles, and a rummage sale. A team of 40 parents, headed by Anna Choe and Janice Lee, planned for three months alongside CVHS’s music director, Matthew Schick, to make this event successful.
500 pounds of galbi was bought to feed 900 people, and that food ended up being just the right amount to satisfy everyone. This year, approximately 750 tickets were presold at $10 each by CVHS parents and students and 100 more were sold at the door.
Food, though being the main attraction, was not the only thing keeping the people happy. Raffle tickets were sold at $1 per ticket to have a chance to win the grand prize: two park hopper tickets for Disneyland. All prizes were generously donated by parents and local stores.
Being a fundraiser for CVIM, the event included live music. Various student groups and bands performed including CV’s Jazz Band. Alongside the raffles and music, there was a new addition to the event: performing entertainment. CV’s color guard team and a group of black belts from La Crescenta’s World Class Tae-Kwon-Do made an appearance, each making a 10 minute performance. This gave the people at the picnic something entertaining to watch while eating.
A lot of preparation was put into ensuring a great event; however, rain was the one problem that many people looked over until a few days before the event. The weather forecast had been predicting rain for one week, and the coordinators were very concerned that the barbecue may have to be forced inside the cafeteria. Luckily, the rain failed to appear. Although the day was gloomy, many people still showed up and had a great time.
“This is a good opportunity to bring the La Crescenta community together. Even though we’re serving Korean food, this is a community effort,” co-planner Anna Choe said.
This held true as man CVHS students, including those not involved in instrumental music, attended with their parents. Clearly CV was just the place to be that Saturday morning.
