Band members from two Fort Worth high schools met Saturday morning for a duel.

It was a battle of bands between Paschal High’s Panther Band and the Arlington Heights Yellow Jackets.

The two bands met shortly before noon at the Trinity Commons Shopping Center, located at Bellaire and Hulen.

The Panther Band, which has about 200 members, left Paschal High at 8 a.m. and marched through the neighborhoods of Overton Park and Westcliff toward Trinity Commons. Meanwhile, the Yellow Jackets departed from Thomas Place Community Center at 9 a.m. to meet them there.

While the sixth annual event serves as a fundraiser, Paschal band director Bryan Wright said “it is just as much a social event.”

“The Paschal March-A-Thon is the most anticipated fundraiser the band does each year,” a Fort Worth Independent School District press release said. “The money the band earns allows the band, as a whole, to participate in many marching competitions each fall.”

Paschal’s band raised about $10,000 last year, said David Tuttle, booster club coordinator for the band. Tuttle said although the event is geared toward raising money for the bands, he believes it also raises awareness for the entire FWISD arts program.

Debi Roche, booster club coordinator for the Yellow Jackets, said this is Arlington Heights second time participating in the March-A-Thon. The group, which has about 80 members counting its color guard, raised about $8,000 last year.

“It is a friendly thing,” she said. “Band families cross school lines.”

Eleventh-grader Brittney Cardoza, a saxophone player for the Yellow Jackets, waited in the Trinity Commons parking lot for Paschal’s Panther Band to arrive. Cardova, who has a friend in Paschal’s band, said the fundraiser helps boost everyone’s spirit.

“It really gets us all closer together,” she said. “It’s kind of just awesome.”