For this event I was apart of the set up committee. We were responsible for ensuring the decorations, lighting, tables, chairs and giveaway items were ready to go for the Gala the following night.
I learned how important the little details of set-up are and how much they contribute to the overall success of the event. We had to ensure there was proper lighting because the event would take place at night and guests needed to be able to see one another and where they were going. We also wanted to set up the lights in such a way where it created a romantic and rustic look for the event so we had to strategically plan how we would hang them.
The purpose of this event was to raise money for the Early Learning Center at the church it is an annual event targeting mostly older members of the church for donations.
(VIRTUAL) JUDGE FOR GRAPEVINE'S ANNUAL NATIONAL DEBATE TOURNAMENT 9 hours
For this event I was responsible for listening and flowing (taking notes) over preliminary rounds of Public Forum style debate. At the end of the round I would determine who was the winner based upon certain criteria including persuasiveness, meeting the framework determined during the round, impact weighing and contention significance. Once I chose a winner I also assigned speaker points for each speaker depending on how well they were able to effectively communicate their points.
From this experience I learned about a new style of virtual meetings. This tournament typically takes place in-person but due to CoVid needed to be moved completely online which included new methods of communication, cooperation with many types of technology and learning to pivot when something did not work. I also learned when you are working with a new set of people, particularly volunteers, you want to have multiple ways to be able to communicate with them in case one method fails and you need to get in touch.
Something else I learned was, many events that would not typically be considered an "online" event have the capability to do so and if you are able to incorporate online parts to your event it can increase your participation. Because this tournament was online, schools from all across the country were able to participate including Oregon, New York, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and more.
The purpose of this event was for students to compete against their peers in a State Level debate tournament where they could place and hopefully earn points to contribute to their total needed to compete in the national level debate tournament.
Bounce and Browse around Downtown Bryan *VIRTUAL* 3 hours
For this event I participated in a virtual scavenger hunt that took place using the Downtown Bryan website exploring the various restaurants, shops and businesses that make up the local area and learning some quick facts about them.
I learned there are a lot of businesses right here in Bryan that I had never heard of but would absolutely have visited before if I had known they existed. I also learned about the history of Downtown and some of the old buildings that are still being used today.
In terms of event management, this was another event that had to be moved online due to CoVid and from it I learned the importance of having an online presence for your business or event. These days, people are most likely to hear about your organization or event via online so if you do not have a clear, organized set up that makes it easy for people to find you online you are much less likely to be successful. This event was very successful because students could access it from their own personal device, did not have to go anywhere and heard about it via the internet/emails from professors.
The purpose of the event was to get attendees and volunteers like myself to be more informed about the local activity going on in the community as well as what businesses have to offer that patrons may not have known about prior to completing the scavenger hunt.
It was also a way for businesses to gain more of a following on social media because the scavenger hunt required you to follow your favorite small business you learned about on one of their social media accounts
Helped with set-up including putting up cones, tables, signage, chairs, wristbands
Welcomed in students and parents arriving at drop-off
Checked each student off the list to make sure they got checked in and asked a series of CoVid screening questions
Handed out wristbands and collected luggage to be loaded onto the bus
From this experience I learned about the process of check-in for an overnight type of event in which the participants were checking in at a different location than where the actual event would be taking place. There was a lot to consider especially with CoVid ensuring all students had been symptom free for at least 72 hours. I think this helped contribute to the event's success by asking participants before they even go out of the car if they had an exposure or symptoms.
The purpose of this event was to give high school students at Grace Bible Church a weekend away with no phones to experience fellowship with other believers, hear sermons about the Bible and take place in activities that would help push the students close towards the Lord.
Annual Fall Fest and Haunted House at Lincoln Center 5 hours
Responsible for set-up of various games & activities for children to participate in including race cars, cupcake walk, cotton candy, face painting, football toss and my assigned activity, Putt-Putt.
I learned from this experience about set-up and clean up for an outdoor festival style of event. There is a lot that has to be taken into consideration when you are moving things that are typically indoors, outdoors and finding the right layout so that none of that activities get overlooked or lost. Another big thing I learned was accounting for weather during outdoor events. This event in particular had very strong winds the entire time which made set-up for the event challenging. A lot of the activities would not stay still on their own and had to be fastened or taped or otherwise weighted down in order to function properly during the festival.
The purpose of this event was to provide a fall themed community event for children and families in the College Station/Bryan area.
Fall 2021 Friends of Chamber Music (FCM) 3.5 hours
Handed out programs and surveys to be completed by attendees
Conducted interviews among attendees to find out about their experience and give them a chance to comment on the performance
Entered information from paper surveys into an online database to be given to the Chamber of Commerce
I learned from this experience about what it takes to set-up and execute a concert. Especially one for this particular audience. Since they were appealing primarily to people 65 years and up in age there were certain things to consider when marketing and setting up the event. The event was primarily communicated to attendees through the Eagle, the local newspaper, which we found out accounted for how over half the participants found out about the event. During set-up we had to ensure there were ramps at all entrances in the case of walkers or wheelchairs and surveys were given out 1 per party in case someone in the party was unable to complete the survey.
The purpose of the event was to provide a free concert for the local community. The event's primary goal was to entertain and allow people to enjoy a classical brass quintet. Secondarily the event helped promote the artists that were performing, the church where the concert was hosted and the organization who put the concert on, the Friends of the Chamber of Music.
Attached gate, sponsor and entrance signage to various surfaces and arenas around the fair grounds
Organized sponsor signage to reflect sponsor contribution (i.e. the more money you contributed to the fair the better your spot was on the wall in terms of visibility)
Assisted in set-up for the welding event taking place the weekend before the rodeo including signage and other equipment
I learned primarily about sponsorships because the supervisor working with all the volunteers was the Sponsorship Coordinator. She is in charge of raising all the money necessary to put on the fair and rodeo via businesses and other sponsors. I learned about how to attract sponsors particularly local businesses were those wanting to give money because the audience of the advertising they would get from the rodeo would primarily be those of locals to Bryan/College Station. I also learned the importance of prioritizing sponsors and keeping them happy because often times they will donate to the same event year after year if they are pleased with how the event went.
The purpose of the event was to put on a Fair & Rodeo for the local community to enjoy, to generate income for the community by bringing in tourist dollars, allowing an opportunity for rodeo participants to compete and a way to showcase the Expo being used for the event.