Montclair Schools Rock!—A Helluva Party, No Matter Which School You’re In

“Years ago, I was at a fundraiser called a Bare Bones party. It took place in one of the Junior League show houses before the designers went in and started to work. It was a very relaxed environment and everyone was having so much fun, and I started to think, wouldn’t it be great to make a casual, comfortable event that could raise this kind of money for the schools. Something that everyone wanted to go to just because it’s fun,” recalls Carol Ewertsen, Montclair parent and MFEE board member. “So a bunch of us got together and we put together Rocks.”

Montclair Schools Rock on Saturday evening, Oct. 22 is that fun, casual event—jeans-and-sneakers casual, by design. 

“Everything about the night has been orchestrated so that most—nearly all—the proceeds go back to the schools,” Ewertsen says of the district cash cow that has grown to a $100K event. “We’ve found that if people don’t have to spend a lot getting ready for a party—new dress, hair, nails—they’re likely to contribute more when they’re there.” 

She speaks from experience. The Rocks crew is gearing up for their eighth annual fundraising party—an event that just keeps getting better every year. 

“The first event was a band, keg beer and wine, and some pizza for sale by the slice,” says Ewertsen. That night, the group raised $27,000 for the MFEE (Montclair Fund for Educational Excellence, the local education fund for Montclair’s public schools) and the money was divided equally among the district’s 11 schools. “After that first year, we decided to funnel the money into the high school and the middle schools.”

That decision was largely due to the active fundraising capabilities of the elementary school PTAs.

“All the kids in the district end up in the high school, and there’s no central fundraising body there—it’s all booster clubs," says Ewertsen. "We thought this would be a way to fund big projects that would benefit every kid in the district.” 

The proceeds are typically split like this: 50% for high school academic projects, 25% for high school athletic equipment or upgrades, and 25% to be divided among the three middle schools. “We have an extremely talented and dedicated group of volunteers running these events,” says Ewertsen, who shares that one of the most coveted posts is "bartender."

"If people show up once, they come back every year,” she says, adding, though, that the jump from $27,000 to $100,000 has mostly to do with private contributions made by individual families. “Many families donate between $1,000 and $5,000 as an overall investment in the town’s school system. We continue to get a lot of elementary families—people who want to support the high school now, for when their kids go in the future.”

Indeed, most of the Rocks volunteers began this endeavor when their own children were in early elementary school. Most of those kids are now at the high school, able to reap the rewards. Rewards which have included: 

• Science Lab (partially funded by a donation from Hoffman LaRoche)
• AP Foreign Language Lab
• Calc and Geometry Lab
• Writing Lab
• Global Studies Lab
• Science Lab
• Equipment for the weight room at the Furlong Field House
• Video Equipment for training and game reviews.
• 3-Sport Scoreboard (in the works)

“Montclair Schools Rock has been a fantastic source of funding,” says Lois Whipple, executive director of the MFEE. “It’s so great to have a dedicated group of volunteers that we can count on to generate substantial enough income that we can execute these large scale projects.”

Cranetown, a local band named after Montclair’s original moniker, will spend the night delivering flawless renditions of Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, Van Morrison, The Band—even a bit of Grateful Dead for the diehards.  Included in the night’s line-up are nine Montclair dads: Bob Carrigan, Tom Creaser, Joel Dorow, Doug Ewertsen, Marty Field, Don Giordano, Rob Maskin, Jose Romano, and Race Taylor from WPLJ-FM.

“From the stage, it’s great to see the wide mix of people from town all having a blast at a well-timed party that kicks off the school year,” says Tom Creaser, a sax and keyboard player for Cranetown who was lured out of a 10-year music hiatus to play with the band in 2004. “It’s a blast for me—I’m usually dancing on the back of the stage by the second set.”

This year the event will be held at the Charles H. Bullock Elementary School.

“We still have wine and keg beer, but we’ve added a low-carb component—martinis and cosmos,” says Ewertsen. The $50 ticket entitles you to open bar and finger food, dancing, schmoozing and fun. “It feels like an Oktoberfest. Classic Rock. Keg beer. Hanging with friends. It doesn’t get any better than that.”

Montclair Schools Rock! 2011 will take place Saturday, October 22 from 7-11 p.m. at the Charles H. Bullock School, 55 Washington Street, Montclair. For tickets, download the flyer from the MFEE Website here. Dress is casual. Bring your dancing shoes!