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Herd Charity
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Side2Side, Step by Step
This is a step-by-step guide to leading a Side to Side project.
1) Pick an organization. Local, non-profit, helps people in need, and doesn't discriminate based on religion or race or anything. Get their mission statement, some brochures, and ask if they'd like us to raise some money for them. See if there is anything we can collect for them like canned goods (food bank) or toiletries (homeless shleter) or toys (child care center). Often, the venue owner has some good ideas about this.
2) Very important: ask the venue owner AND the producer/promoter of the show (sometimes the same, sometimes different) for permission. Give them the scoop on Herd Charity (see below). If they want to know more about Herd Charity, get their number, the Prez will call them. If they want to know if we are affiliated with the band, tell them we are fan-based, but we have the band's support. Tell them they can talk to Barnaby about it if they want.
3) Write to the Herd Charity PRez to let her know what is happening. Prez will forward info to Barnaby. Jordy will have a donation from the band. Just ask him for it when you see him at the fest. On the list of prizes you can list one prize as "donation from Donna the Buffalo."
4) Figure out how you're going to raise money: raffle (get prizes donated from local businesses, buy tickets from an office supply store, have people put their name and number on the tickets), fifty-fifty drawing, straight donations.... other ideas? I guess you could get really creative and make up Donna Bingo cards, with songs in the squares, and each person marks off the songs as they are played, and the first one (and second and third, depending on how many prizes you have) to cross off five in a row wins the prize. Hmmm, just came up with that one. Sounds FUN. Labor intensive, maybe, but fun. You charge money for the cards. You or someone would have to keep a setlist to check the winners.
5) Write to the Herd. Tell them what you're doing. Ask them to bring stuff. Ask them to help out. Someone at the show WILL help, but mostly you'll feel like you are in this alone until that person shows up out of the blue and really does help, just when you need it most. Trust me on this. It has happened every time.
6) Prepare signs and stuff ahead of time. Container for money, boxes for stuff, container for tickets if you are selling them. Be sure to take a supply of pens and paper. This should not cost much, and you can consider it your donation to the cause. Or if someone asks if they can help, you might suggest that they donate these items. The Prez has all of these things in our traveling Herd Charity Box, but it costs more to mail them than to buy new. So, unless you know someone coming from the direction of the Prez and willing to pick up the box, buy them at your local office supply. Or.... ask the office supply to donate them! (They might want official tax-free number, which we don't have yet. But you may be able to use the number of the charity for whom you are raising money.)
7) If you're having a drawing, you'll have to coordinate with the stage manager. If you don't like to get on stage, you might find someone from the Herd to do it, or maybe the emcee would do it. This person must be sober at the time of the drawing <smile>, and it is good if they have a helper to write each prize on each winning ticket. At this point you may realize the importantce of people who buy tickets writing legibly and putting their area code and phone number on the ticket. The winners won't always be there, and you'll have to get the prizes to them somehow. It has also worked to have the drawing at the table and list the winners on the display. At festivals, sometimes there is dead stage time during which a raffle drawing is fine. This does not happen at one-night shows, and in this case, the drawing should be done at the table near the end of the show.
8) Show up when the gates open, HAVE FUN, and make sure you wrap it all up in the end. Tell the venue owner and promoter Thanks and let them know what the outcome was; tell the Herd Charity Prez the same and she will let the band know.
9) Get the stuff and the money to the organization, get a receipt for Herd Charity, and get the prizes to the winners.
10) Write to the Prez and send the receipt. The receipt is very important for Herd Charity records. Also, tell the Prez what worked and what didn't.
11) Write to the Herd and tell them all about it!
Any questions, feel free to reply or call. Do not stress out. If you start worrying, remember, everything will be okay. Take a break, go listen to some music. Everything will work. We have seen it happen many times.
And did I tell you the most important part? HAVE FUN with it, spread the love, and receive the goodness that people give you for caring enough to do this.
Thanks a bunch!
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