PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) — A band that has been helping youth in Portsmouth now needs help from its community.

Based in Portsmouth, the New Generation Marching Warriors range in age from six to 17 and have 88 members. They have helped numerous children go to college through grants, but now, they need help from the community to continue their work.

“My father started the band as a church organization in ’92,” said band director Chris Hines. “We travel all over the country. We’ve been to Chicago, New York, we’ve won national competitions. Just back in October, I was on WAVY because Missy Elliott gave us the $5,000.”

They’ve helped children, some of whom have grown to be very successful members of society.

“Darryl Tapp is a former member, he played in the NFL. We’ve got doctors, lawyers that come from this organization,” Hines said.

This year, they’re giving $1,500 in scholarships to help kids go to college. But they’re also in need themselves. The Monday after Norfolk’s Illumination Parade last year, Hines said they were told recently by the city they’d need to move the instruments out of the Neighborhood Facility, where they had kept them for a few months. Then they were told they could store them in a pod outside the facility, but they would still need to come up with a $1 million insurance policy.

“We’ve had quotes from $500 to $2,500,” Hines said.

They operate on fundraisers, or out of Hines’ own pocket. So, they’ve set up a GoFundMe to help with costs. He said the dream, though, would be to find a new facility altogether.

“That will allow us to operate in our own realm without having to share with the basketball team or baseball team,” Hines said.

Click here to visit their GoFundMe page: Fundraiser for Christopher Hines by Laquetta Anderson : Support New Generation Marching Band’s Journey, or reach out to band director Chris Hines at 757-778-3831.