If a fund raising effort by the W.S. Neal Band Boosters organization is successful, a paved walkway will be in place by the 2013-14 school year at the school’s football stadium.
Booster President Dewayne Burnham said the sale of brick pavers has begun with options available for those interested in helping the band.
“We have determined it would take about 2,000 brick pavers to fill the space available for the walkway we’ve planned,” Burnham said. “The path will lead from the southwest gate of the stadium to the field and would be used by band and football players at every home game.”
Burnham said those interested can purchase a paver that will be engraved with a message of their choice.
“We’ve seen these before and people typically will put their name or the name of loved ones on the paver to be put in the walkway,” Burnham said. “We have even provided an option for a larger paver for those who want to have more room for engraved information.”
Burnham said the cost of the pavers will be $50 for the cmaller block and $150 for the larger version.
“The engraving will be done with laster technology which means the images will last for many years to come,” Burnham said. “An emblem, such as a mascot, football or even a business-type logo can be engraved on the pavers.”
Burnham said the smaller pavers are 4-inches by 8-inches with the larger pavers measureing 8-inches by 8-inches in size.
“Anyone who is interested in helping can purchase the pavers,” Burnham said. “Parents, grandparents, friends, supports of the school, businesses, organizations — anyone interested in supporting the band and helping to make the stadium look even better.”
Burnham said the funds raised through the sale of the pavers will be used to purchase instruments needed for the band.
“We have several instruments that are being used now that are getting old and worn out,” Burham said. “We have already purchased new drums for the band this year and the cost of replacing any kind of instrument is getting very expensive. We are looking at replacing some sousaphones, french horns and some saxophones that are anywhere from 12 to 15 years old. Once the most needed replacements are made, we will work our way down to others that need to be replaced or add to those we already have.”
Burnham said although they hope to have enough pavers sold to make a good impression on the first installment, the process to fill the space will be a continuous fundraiser.
“It’s going to take a while to sell enough pavers to fill the area we want to see paved,” Burnham said. “We know this will be an ongoing process, but we hope to sell enough pavers initially to produce a nice looking start to the walkway. We will have blank pavers available to fill the unsold space until new pavers are sold to finish the job we have planned.”
Burnham said orders are now being taken with  forms for engraving information  also available.
To inquire about the purchase  of a paver or to obtain an engraving form, write to the W.S. Neal Band Boosters at P.O. Box 1915, Brewton, AL 36427 or contact any booster member.