After in-depth dialogue and much debate, we have concluded that in order to position ourselves for future growth, significant changes need to be made in our organization. These changes are considerably larger in scope than those that we envisioned when we took the helm at the start of last season.
The 2007 season was a great success for us. Thanks to a dedicated and professional instructional staff which worked tirelessly not only in producing and implementing our program, but in providing leadership and direction to our corps members. Our staff performed second to none. As a result, our drum corps was given the absolute best chance to succeed. Thanks to these efforts, as well as those of the 2007 class of Sunrisers and the veteran Alumni who returned to participate, all of whom endured a challenging season, we ended the competitive season in a place we never really expected to be. We can only thank the staff, marching members and devoted Alumni for the faith they had in their organization.
2007 was a rewarding season; however, it did bring to light some opportunities for improvement. Our administration will now go about the business of meeting the challenge of making The Sunrisers the best organization possible.
It is clear that The Sunrisers organization needs to undergo some retooling in order take “the next step”. This will require extensive time and resources which simply cannot be tapped during the course of a normal competitive season. It is for this reason that we have decided to forego competition in DCA for the 2008 season and begin the transformation with the goal of a emerging with a stronger foundation in 2009 and beyond.
We are disappointed that we will not be competing in DCA in 2008. We do plan to provide quality learning and performance opportunities for this season with an eye on our competitive future. The sooner we complete the management-related tasks at hand, the quicker we’ll get back on the competitive field with the rest of our drum corps family.
Sincere thanks go out to DCA management, our fans and Alumni and of course our Competing Corps members for their commitment during these transitions. We wish our fellow DCA Corps the absolute best for the 2008 season.
Look for a better and stronger version of the Sunrisers in 2009!
Sincerely,
Jim Dyckman
Director of Operations – The Sunrisers
