The Old Hammondtown School band is looking to fine-tune its program with pennies and pasta.

Band Director Paul Halpainy wants to buy new uniforms and instruments for his students and repair older instruments ­– all without added cost to parents.

“At the end of last year I said to Paul, ‘All the teachers have parents helping them raise money. You need some parents’,” said band mom Diane Merlo, who is leading the march for new funds with Sue Cunningham.

Purchasing new uniforms is the number one priority. Currently, the band’s uniforms are at least 20-years-old. With several concerts each year and two competitions, Halpainy would like to find simple uniforms that would work both onstage and in parades.

Merlo estimated that it would cost $1,200 to $1,500 to outfit the 57 fifth and sixth grade students in the band.

Halpainy would like to have the new uniforms for his kids this year.

That’s where pennies and pasta come in.

In September, the band started its “Time for change” penny drive. Each classroom received a jar to fill, with the incentive that the class with the most money would receive $50 worth of books for its room.

“By the first week, some were already full,” said Merlo. “The support from the whole school was amazing.”

As the pennies continue to clink in classrooms across the school, the band also hopes to raise several thousand dollars through its Fun Shaped Pasta sale.

Merlo said she was hoping to find a fundraiser that was fun and nutritious.

“With today’s economy, I’m about practicality,” she said.

Merlo found a small family-owned business that sells shaped pasta ranging from football team logos to Christmas trees and that would give the band 40 percent of their sales.

With wheat, vegetable and gluten free options, Merlo hopes there will be something for everyone.

“Almost all of it is super healthy,” she said. “I’m kind of shocked nobody has done it around here before.”

Students started selling the pasta on October 1 and will continue knocking on their neighbor’s doors through October 19. Merlo said online sales will run to the end of November.

A larger Band Blast fundraiser is also in the works for the spring semester.

For those interesting in supporting the pasta drive, visit www.funpastafundraising.com/shop/old-hammondtown-school-band. Alternatively, contact Diane Merlo at 508-758-1324 or rmerlo63@msn.com