Are you smarter than a band geek?

That was the challenge set out to participants in the Cranston East Alumni Music Association’s dinner buffet and trivia fundraiser at Lemongrass Restaurant in Warwick on Saturday.

More than 100 tickets were sold, and donations valued at more than $2,000 were collected from a number of local businesses. In all, the event raised roughly $3,000.

East alumni, past and present band parents and friends of the school’s music program were among those on hand. The event was hosted by Larry Minick, who volunteered his time.

“The spirit of the Cranston East music program can never be broken. After all these years, I still credit this organization for shaping the person I am today and I am so grateful to give back and see the continued support from the local community,” said Sara Larrabee, a 2009 graduate and vice president of the Cranston East Music Alumni Association.

There were 13 teams playing trivia, and in the end, one team was victorious –Alek and the Marimba Maniacs.

“Our family has been involved for about six years. Once you're a Thunderbolt student or parent, you’re a Thunderbolt family member for life,” said Shelley Fusco, mother of two band students. “I’m simply amazed by the wonderful support of this great organization.”

According to Greg Arsenault, music teacher and director of bands at Cranston East, the money raised will go toward dues for the New England Scholastic Band Association, or NESBA, and show fees for NESBA competitions at other schools around New England. It will also provide for props for the Indoor Percussion Ensemble, the cost of gas and tolls during travel to competitions, and various other needs.

“The band will be fundraising for the foreseeable future,” Arsenault said. “The current budget is approximately $48,000. It splits pretty evenly between the band proper – which includes competitive marching band, Emerald Encore, concert band, and jazz band – and $24,000 for Indoor Percussion alone. The teaching staff and design professionals who help our students create amazing performances cost us $6,000-$8,000 per season. The props, floor tarp, drum wraps and costumes for Indoor Percussion cost close to $7,000.”

The music program continues to seek ways to defray costs, Arsenault said.

“We are in the beginning processes of seeking sponsorships for the band/color guard/percussion programs,” he said. “These sponsors will be featured on the band trailer, which we plan to get rewrapped with a newly designed wrap over the summer. It is our hope that we can fund this project, plus the marching band and Emerald Encore, with these funds. Our goal is to raise $20,000 in sponsorships.”

The elimination of elementary music programming several years ago due to budget constraints, Arsenault said, remains felt. He said the high school level is still hurting for musicians.

“We haven’t seen dramatic increases in numbers yet,” he said. “This year the band has 11 freshmen, four of whom opted to be a part of the competitive marching band. These students started instrument instruction in seventh grade, so they were not beneficiaries of the elementary instrumental music program. It will be one more year before we have freshmen who started in fifth grade, and next year for those who began playing in sixth grade. Last year we had 14 freshmen, eight of whom participated in competitive marching band. Five of those 14 students dropped band this year for various reasons.”

Arsenault said he is working diligently to keep the music program’s numbers up.

“I am doing everything I can do to increase the numbers,” he said.

The music program’s next large event will be held Saturday, March 16, at 4 p.m., when Cranston East plays host to over 25 color guards and indoor percussion groups in the Cranston East gymnasium. That event is part of the NESBA group and is open to the public.

More event details can be found on the “CHSE Indoor Percussion & Color Guard Competition” Facebook page.