Robyn Demaray and Lynnette Moore Are Going to Co-Chair the Fireworks Committee

Tornadoes Fireworks Fundraiser Information

The Fireworks tent is coming! This is one of two mandatory fundraisers we do and your participation in this event is extremely important.

We are contracted with TNT Fireworks to run a tent to resell fireworks. There is another party responsible for the permit for the tent/location, but the Tornadoes Swim Team is responsible for the sales. This event takes a massive amount of coordination by the board, the committee, and our swim family volunteers to make it a success. The funds that we raise will determine our ability to keep monthly dues reasonable. Pool costs and payroll for coaches are our team’s biggest expenses, so we need to raise as much money as possible to help offset those costs. You help by volunteering at the tent, bringing your kids to hold signs at the tent, and spreading the word about our tent to your friends and families. This event is a lot of work, but it is also a lot of fun. The kids holding signs on the sidewalk, wearing wigs, waving at cars is our best marketing tool.

DETAILS:

 Robyn Demaray and Lynnette Moore are going to co-chair the fireworks committee.

 LOCATION: The fireworks tent is located at the Fred Meyer off I-5 and 78th in Hazel Dell. This tent will be open June 28th through July 4th (7 days) – June 27th will be our setup day.

 The booth will be open 10am – 10pm daily (June 28th it opens at 12noon)

 Volunteers are crucial to having a successful fundraiser! Our goal for this fundraiser is to raise $15,000 to $20,000 for the team!

o All families are required to help. Even if your swimmer is on a leave of absence during the fundraiser, you are still required to volunteer. If you are on the team during the fireworks fundraiser event, you are required to volunteer. Each family is required to commit to 10 hours of adult (18 and over) working time. We strongly encourage families to bring their swimmers and other children to help hold signs to draw in customers, but only adult hours count towards the minimum requirement for each family. If you are unable to commit to 10 hours of volunteer time your swim account will be billed $250 for the buy-out.

o Our team does only two required major fundraisers per year. Swim-a-thon and Fireworks booth. We make the buy-out participation high because we would rather have your volunteer hours than your money. There are various ways you can help out, so if you are concerned about the time commitment, please email Lynnette Moore ([email protected]) and we can discuss it.

o Positions needed:

. Sign making: Every year we need to make new signs for our street crew to hold. This project requires writing slogans on signs that we can have the kids color in at a sign coloring party (we need about 40- 50 signs). Because this is a huge project, this is a possible alternative for a family who is unable to do the fireworks tent volunteer hours.

. Initial setup and inventory: Help with the opening of boxes and displaying of fireworks. You will off- load the inventory from a trailer and place the product in designated locations of the tent. This group will also decorate the tent, put up flags, set up the tables, post required signage, etc. This position will take place the day before the booth is set to open (June 27th). We really need lots of muscle for this day!

. Overnight security: You will be responsible for closing up the stand and securing it, then spending the night inside the fireworks tent onsite. You can watch videos, play games, listen to music, etc., but you must stay awake. Two adults are required and in addition to securing the stand at night, you will also assist with morning opening of the tent. These positions are typically scheduled for 12 hours. If the requirement for each family is 10 hours, completing this 12 hour shift will obviously suffice for your minimum requirement. (7 nights of security needed)

. Sales Assistants: Assist customers, restock shelves, help cashier with bagging purchases. In order to work in the tent we will ask that you attend a short training session to learn about the fireworks we will be selling, what to recommend to customers, how the fireworks numbering system works, etc. A couple of training sessions will be announced later, watch your email! All sales reps need to be at least 16 years old, we really need the kids out on the sidewalk holding signs and not in the tent, because it will be crowded with customers.

. Cashiers: Work the cash register by ringing up sales and bagging purchases. Volunteers in this position will need to learn the price list and inventory items. They will also attend a special training to understand cash/credit card management. In order to do this position you MUST know how to count back change and we would prefer people who have worked with cash before. This job is extremely important to minimize losses due to miscounted money! If you are interested in this particular position, please contact Lynnette Moore.

. Supervise Sign Holders: Adult volunteers in these positions will supervise the youth holding up signs outside the tent on the sidewalks. All adults, swimmers, and family members are encouraged to come out and hold up signs to pull in customers. The more kids holding up signs, the more attractive our fireworks tent becomes. This position will also help run contests for kids. (For example: Get 100 honks and all participants get a free popsicle, or most spirited sign holder, etc.)

. Inventory and Closeout: On July 4th this group will consolidate products as the day comes to a close, prep for and take a final inventory count, and secure the site for the final night. This includes un- decorating the tent, putting away flags, emptying trash, etc. Then a team will need to load unsold products back on the trailer for transport back to the TNT facility. We need more muscle and hard workers for this job! You may be working until midnight, but the more volunteers we have, the quicker this process will go.

 Sign-ups for these positions will be made available on the website beginning the first week of June. We would like to pre-select the cashier positions as those require a set commitment and training, so please notify us ASAP if you would like to be a cashier.

 We will have a sign making party before the end of June to color signs for families to hold to advertise our booth. This is the best way to attract people driving by our tent, so these signs will be very important.

 We will email a flyer out in June that you can print and pass out to neighbors, friends, post on public bulletin boards, etc. to get the word out about our fireworks tent. The flyer will also be posted on our website, social media, etc.

 We also ask families to each bring 2 cases of bottled water for volunteers to drink while working and we also sell the water to customers for $1.00 a bottle for extra fundraising money for the team.  Volunteer incentives: Because this fireworks booth is extremely important to our team and your help is crucial in making this fundraiser successful, the board will offer incentives to both the fireworks committee members and volunteers who work on July 4th, or for those adults we feel go above and beyond in volunteering to help. For your active participation in the fireworks committee we will offer a credit on your swim account for one swimmer for monthly dues the months of September, October, and November 2017. This position will require your dedication and we want to reward those members who put forth the kind of effort needed to do this job

 Please contact Lynnette Moore ([email protected]) or Robyn Demaray ([email protected]) if you have any questions!