Location: American Cancer Society Office
Date: Wednesday, June 19, 2013; 6:30-7:30 pm
I arrived at the ACS offices and
saw that many members had already assembled.
Just like the set-up from previous month, the tables had been arranged
conference style with four sides, so that all of us could see each other. No sooner had we sat down, when Adam said
that he had an announcement to make and that he was leaving ACS and would no
longer be involved with this committee.
Well, that was a good start.
However, he did say that ACS had more than enough committed staff
members that would ensure that the event was a success, not to mention
volunteers like us. As with before, we
went around and introduced ourselves, along with what we had done over the past
month to promote the event. Truth be
told, I had not done much besides talk to my HR about a possibility of
promoting it within the office. I
mentioned that and was immediately shamed when I heard what some of the other
women had done in terms of recruitment.
I had however, signed up for our team ‘Saving Second Base’.
We started with a ‘Mission Moment’ where we heard how the
Government was banning teenagers under from tanning salons, even with parental
consent. Cancer prevention is being
taken seriously by everyone and this law would be an important step. Along with the good, there were the bad. We learned that the funding for IBCCP –
Illinois Breast and Cervical Cancer Program - had been cut, meaning there would
be less screenings for women. Finally we
heard about a program, where bags were being sent to Washington DC, where in
September they would be lit and placed all around the reflecting pool as a
promotion for ACS’ CAM program.
 |
| Fundraising is the main goal |
We then went around the room
getting updates from various sub-committee chairs. First up was Fundraising. One of the ideas was a Karaoke night at ‘Birds And Blokes’. I had heard about it from Polly, since One
Brick had their previous fund raiser there and at the end of the evening, had
learned about some of the hidden costs that they were not aware of. I warned about that and said that we should
check the fine print beforehand. Another
idea was selling plastic wristbands and bracelets which typically cost $0.70,
but we could sell for as much as $5. They
asked if we had any other ideas and I mentioned about ‘Young Professional’s Network’ who host fundraising soirees and
other networking events. I said that if
we could get listed on that, as well as other meet-ups, we would be in good
shape.
Next up was an update on the
Sponsorship and the person heading that sub-committee had called several
restaurants in the vicinity of Soldier Field.
We would distribute flyers that the walkers could take to the restaurant
and for every person coming in with a flyer; the restaurant would donate a part
of the proceeds back to the ACS. This
was a great idea and a similar concept was going to be implemented through 'Whole Foods' in that neighborhood. I suggested
that we promote an 'Amazon' link, through which any purchase made on their website through that link would net ACS a percentage of the amount spent. This is something One Brick uses to raise
money as well.
We then talked about the on-site
activities the day of the event and there was going to be a yoga instructor, as
well as an all-women band called ‘Hag’! All of them were doing this at no cost and
especially in ‘Hag’s’ case, one of
the members was a survivor and so more than keen to participate. There was also going to be a Kids Tent with
all sorts of activities such as Arts & Crafts and Tattoos etc. Having staffed similar events through One
Brick, I said that I could try and get some volunteers if they required
them. We next talked about getting to
and from Soldier Field, which is not very convenient, especially from the CTA
train station. Someone suggested that we
try and see if private cabs or the ‘Windy
City Limo’ could help transfer people to the CTA. One person said that this was after all a walk, and so people should not have a problem walking to the station after this. Well, this is a good point.
The final item on the agenda was
to talk about publicity. One thing we
would be doing is distributing flyers at the ‘Bears’ games by standing outside the stadium and handing them to
the people coming in. I asked if there
was a possibility of getting the ‘Bears’
to make an announcement during the game.
After all, the event was going to be held there. At this Adam and the others expressed their
reluctance to make this request. Having
seen how businesses go out of their way to help a cause such as Make-A-Wish, I was
surprised at their unwillingness to try this.
People want to help and sometimes just need to be asked. In any case, I did not pursue the topic much. With this, the meeting concluded and I wished
Adam the best for his career before heading out. It had been a good meeting and with 4 months
to go, it looked like we were on course.
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