My PR class planned and executed the Relay For Life of Baldwin County Kickoff event on the Evening of November 19 at Northside Baptist Church. In the beginning, we all competed in teams of three to pitch ideas for the event, and it was decided that our theme would be "Celebrate a Memory." a birthday party extravaganza complete with a banner, balloon arch, hot dogs, hamburgers, baked beans, cole slaw, chips, cookies, cupcakes, and a candy bar.
Our class did a great job of working together to pull the event together. As a member of the media team, I wrote the press release about the event (which made front page of both of our local newspapers!) but once we got down to the "nitty gritty" so to speak I helped out the food and decorating teams as well. One thing that I have learned in my various jobs and as a student learning about PR is that versatility is the key. If you are assigned one task, be prepared to help out your teammates with others as needed. Although I wrote the press release, I also wrapped and tied ribbon around silverware, stirred a giant tub of baked beans, and grilled out with my best friend Nick who I recruited to help me man the grill. :) This brings up another important key to success: everyone should have a friend they could call on for help. Nick answered his phone one hour before we needed to start grilling and said he would be there, and he also helped out last year when our class did "paint the hill green" a PR event for GCSU Baseball. It nice to have friends that you can call on to be there no matter the task.
Another thing that we all learned during the event is that not everything will go as planned. Another PR class was responsible for bringing us 100 cupcakes, and only 2 people from that class remembered to bring them. Disaster was avoided thanks to Dr. Carter who went to a local grocery store and purchased them, but this event just shows that you should be prepared for anything. Things will fall through no matter what, and you have to be prepared to cope. Even with the grill sitation, Nick and I were cooking 100 hot dogs and 100 hamburgers on two small grills, one of which was falling apart. The burgers also were not exactly hand made patties, so some of them just fell right apart on the grill, nonetheless, as with any event, you just have to do the best you can with what you've got and remain positive.
In the end, the event was attended by over 100 guests, who watched a powerpoint presentation of local cancer survivors, enjoyed a delicious meal, and vowed to support the Relay For Life with their fight against cancer. I was honored to help make a difference with such a worthwhile organization and I am so proud of the work my classmates and I did. Way to go team PR Fantasy Football!
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