NEW ORLEANS -- The Marine Corps Band New Orleans is scheduled to perform “Santa Meets Sousa,” a series of holiday concerts in multiple locations and dates throughout Dec. 2017.
Last year, the New Orleans community donated over 69,700 toys to the Marine Corps Toys for Tots program to be distributed to local families in the area in time for Christmas.
The free and open to the public concert series promotes the Toys for Tots program and is one of the best opportunities for people to donate. Toys for Tots collects new and unwrapped toys from Oct. to Dec. each year, and distributes those toys as Christmas gifts to children who may not otherwise receive gifts.
“Every year, Toys for Tots collects toys at our Christmas concerts, and the community always turns out and supports us with so many wonderful donations,” said Sgt. Dalton M. Guin, the enlisted conductor with Marine Corps Band New Orleans. “This year, we’ve got a few surprises and maybe an appearance from an old friend or two. Our concert band, jazz band, brass band and rock band will all be performing.”
Marine Corps Band New Orleans performs approximately 280 concerts, parades and ceremonies each year, entertaining more than six million people, not only in the greater New Orleans area but also nation-wide. This provides the band the ability to bring awareness to the Toys for Tots program.
“It’s always great to be a part of something that supports a cause like Toys for Tots,” Guin said. “It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and getting involved in the community is really the essence of what Christmas is about.”
The locations and dates for the concert series are as follows:
•Dec. 2: Brown Auditorium, University of Louisiana, Monroe, Louisiana, 7p.m.
•Dec. 3: Morgan City Municipal Auditorium, Morgan City, Louisiana, 7 p.m.
•Dec. 5: Northshore Harbor Center, Slidell, Louisiana, 7 p.m.
•Dec. 9: Saenger Theatre, New Orleans, 7:30 p.m.
For more information on the Toys for Tots program and how to donate, visit https://www.toysfortots.org/ .
More Media