The memorial service for the late Dr. William P. Foster scheduled for Friday, September 3, at 6 p.m. has been moved from Lee Hall Auditorium to the Alfred Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center and Teaching Gymnasium.The public viewing scheduled for Friday, September 3, from noon to 6 p.m. has also been moved to the Alfred Lawson Jr. Multipurpose Center and Teaching Gymnasium.
Foster served as the band’s director from 1946 until his retirement in 1998. He is credited with revolutionizing marching band techniques and reshaping the world’s concept of the collegiate marching band. Foster brought more than 30 new techniques to the band that have now become standard operating procedures for high school and college bands nationwide.
Foster’s funeral is scheduled for Saturday, September 4, at 11 a.m. in Lee Hall Auditorium on FAMU’s campus and will be preceded by a public concert of tribute at 10 a.m. as performed by the FAMU Department of Music. A public viewing is also scheduled for Saturday, September 4, from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. in Lee Hall Auditorium. To accommodate the overflow of attendees, a live broadcast of Foster’s funeral will be in the Grand Ballroom.
In lieu of flowers, donations are requested to be made to the “William P. and Mary Ann Foster Endowed Scholarship Fund” at FAMU in support of FAMU band scholarships.