We discussed four topics:

• Assign some roles and responsibilities
• Brainstorm ideas for our team’s theme that will drive decoration, costume, on-site fundraiser, etc.
• Come up with options for our Fight Back message, i.e. the cancer-related topic we want to educate people about.
• Discuss potential pre-event and on-site fundraisers.

Team Theme

The 2012 Cambrian Relay for Life theme is “Relay Nation,” and all teams are supposed to come up with a team theme that ties in to that. We decided that the first themes WE thought of (Aloha, Cowboy and Mardi Gras) would come to mind for other people, and we wanted to differentiate ourselves by picking something off the beaten path. Here’s the list of ideas we came up with. We’ll give everybody a few days to come up with other alternatives, and Greg will “call a vote” via email in a week or two.

• Route 66
• Fisherman / “Deadliest Catch”
• Lumberjack
• Disney
• Area 51
• Hollywood

Fight Back Message

Cheri “Kaler” George’s “I ♥ Kale” t-shirt gave us the idea of making the consumption of Kale the focus of our fight back message.  Kale is one of the best cancer-fighting foods around, and we’re gonna make sure everybody at the 2012 Cambrian Relay for Life knows it!

Kale is a superstar in the arena of carotenoids and flavonoids, two powerful antioxidants that protect our cells from free radicals that cause oxidative stress. The key flavonoids kaempferol and quercitin (not to dismiss the 45 other distinctive flavonoids in kale) have also been shown to specifically fight against the formation of cancerous cells. With the addition of high doses of well-known antioxidants like vitamin C, vitamin A, and manganese, kale is certainly a smart choice in the battle against cellular oxidation.

Not only do kale’s antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities work together to prevent and even combat cancer, a healthy diet of kale also provides glucosinolates, which have been shown to prevent colon, breast, bladder, prostate, ovarian cancers, as well as gastric cancer.

Fundraisers

Lots of good ideas on the fundraising front. We talked mostly about pre-Relay fundraisers because they are, well, before the event, and coming up sooner than the Relay itself. : ) Here are the ideas we discussed, and what we’re doing about them.

• Bowling Party/Tournament: Basic idea is some sort of party or tournament at a bowling alley, with pretty much everything from there TBD. Aaron Arasato is going to reach out to Cambrian Bowl and other local alleys to see what they’re willing to do in terms of donating or discounting lanes, food, etc. If such an event is feasible, he’ll lead the effort of organizing, and we’d need a couple people to help with planning and execution.
• Wigs-n-Stache Karaoke Party: Some sort of social event built around karaoke, hopefully at Branham Lounge. Cheri will reach out to Dave and Tony to see what they/we might be able to do, Tony Mercado will lead the organization effort, and I’m betting Angie Hicks would be willing to work with him on that.
• Garage Sale: Team members pool their “stuff” at a garage sale hosted by Stacy and Tony, proceeds go to our Relay effort.
• Poker Tournament or Casino Night: We didn’t discuss this much beyond the basic idea, but John Shroeder said a tournament that his team ran last year generated a few thousand dollars and we all agreed we know enough people who’d be interested to make this a potential lucrative event. Need somebody to assess feasibility and execution.
• Silicon Valley Tweetup: Greg’s friend Gabe who organized the Tweetup at Strike/Vallco last year expressed willingness to organize another such event in March. 100+ people paying $10 a pop adds up quick.

Roles & Responsibilities

As always Proud Spartans step UP! And in a few cases, I assigned people the specialized tasks they’ve done such a good job of two years running.

• Campsite Setup: John, Greg
• Scheduling: Joe
• Fight Back Message: Cheri, could use 1-2 people to help
• Theme Execution: (campsite, costumes) Michelle, will need 2-3 people to help
• On-Site Fundraiser: Tied in with theme execution, but separate task.
  
• Food: Francine, Angela
• Bowling Fundraiser: Aaron recon, will need help if it happens
• Karaoke Fundraiser: Cheri on recon with Branham Lounge, Tony M and Angie to run if it happens
• Garage Sale: Stacy and Tony S
• Tweetup: Greg on recon, will want somebody else to run if it happens
• Auction/Raffle: Need a chair and a couple helpers to coordinate solicitation of items, determination of how to best maximize money, and execute auction or raffle as part of pre-relay events, at the event itself, etc.