To: All Interested Members
From: Living Ministries Christmas Angel Telethon Committee
Subject: Christmas Angel Telethon Planning Meeting
Location: LIfe Works; 906 New York Street, Longview, WA
Date: Wednesday October 10, 2012
Attendance: Karen Gidderon, Tom Stebbins, Summer Clemenson, Norma Davey, Linda Haarstad, John Hanna, Ammouniha Darno, Lonnie, Chandler & Mary Knowles
The meeting was called to order by Christmas Angel Telethon Chair, Karen Gidderon at 6:14 PM.
Summer Clemenson shared 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 and then led us in prayer during our invocation.
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3
Karen directed the group to introduce themselves:
Linda Haarstad, Christmas Angel Telethon Co-Chair, will be coordinating people who arrive at the telethon and volunteers to make sure things run smoothly. She is looking for someone to share the task during hours that she can’t be there. (3 am to 8 am on Sunday December 9th)
Tom Stebbins will be in charge of our sound. He also could use a volunteer to share this job.
Summer Clemenson is handling most of the marketing aspects of the telethon and will be continuing to update the website and Facebook and Twitter during the event. She will also fill in any role necessary during the telethon, including helping with video production and streaming.
Norma Davey is our 3rd host. She is filling the position that Bryan Calhoun filled last year, but is unable to fill this year. She will also be helping with social networking and marketing aspects of the event.
Karen Gidderon is our 1st host and will probably do most of the live interviews that happen during the event. She will probably help with some of the video production when she is available.
Karen defined the term “Meaningful Donation” as a donation of any amount that is meaningful to each giver. All gifts are good and acceptable and will add to the overall amount that the telethon brings in for Salvation Army’s Christmas Angel Community Center. All performers and people being interviewed will be asked to give a meaningful donation.
Karen also educated the group on changes to the Neighbors in Need program, a non profit started by The Daily News to help benevolent organizations reach those in need during Christmastime. For over 20 years all funds donated to the Neighbors in Need program were given to Salvation Army to feed families, senior citizens and shut-ins during Christmas but due to program changes, CAP and St. Vincent D’Paul received 2/3 of the donations last year and Salvation Army is not on the program to receive any funds this year and were not promised dollars in the future. Living Ministries’ goal is to fill the $40,000 budget gap for Salvation Army through Christmas Angel Telethon, a 24-hour live event, streamed lived at www.CowlitzChristmasAngel.com.
Norma asked about our marketing plan. She was informed about the following:
- Business cards with all the information about the event were created. We ordered 5,000 to give out to committee members, volunteers and bell-ringers to help distribute to the community, sponsors and people who would like to come or to be part of the telethon.
- A team of volunteers that currently consists of Karen and Tom (more are welcome) will begin canvasing businesses to seek sponsors and people to volunteer to help with the event, bell ringers (we plan to have drive-up bell ringers throughout the entire telethon) and raffle/prize donations next week.
- CowlitzChristmasAngel.com is fully maintained and updated regularly with more details and information to educate those who visit the site.
- Flyers have been designed by Exclaim Media and are available for download on the site. We plan to print flyers next month to canvas businesses that will let us use their windows to advertise.
- Exclaim Media has created a video PSA that has been playing on the website and on KLTV, and been shared on Facebook for the last month. Since our loss of Bryan Calhoun and the addition of Norma as our 3rd host, an updated PSA has just been completed and will be turned into KLTV next week. Comcast will also be contacted to see how they can help share the PSA.
- Our garage sale fundraiser to help begin the fundraising process has already got the attention of The Daily News, who graciously shared our advertisement for the event on Saturday October 20, 2012 at Salvation Army.
- We plan to see if Valley Bugler will donate ad space again this year for Christmas Angel Telethon and will also approach Columbia River Reader and our contact at The Daily News.
- Planning meeting ads are distributed at several churches who place the ads in their church bulletins.
Linda suggested that we get containers that we can put our flyer on to give to sponsors to put out at their businesses to collect donations from the community to bring with them to the telethon. Summer suggested that the cans be universal in size so one label can be created and used to mark the cans. Linda offered to look for those containers.
Summer said that she would be contacting all the sponsors from last year to see if they were on board for the same as last year:
Music and More Productions lent us their sound equipment. This year we also will ask for a tent and outdoor heaters for drive up bell ringing.
Cascade Networks installed a data pad at The Longview FOE last year and left it there. The data pad gave commercial quality bandwidth to assure better transmission of the telethon. This year we will also ask for a bank of phone lines that roll for callers.
Exclaim Media has already supplied all print art and online marketing as well as the video PSA. They are also planning a Connect the Dots special around the Garage Sale to advertise the telethon on their show on KLTV.
Longview FOE is already onboard with allowing us use of their building again.
Knotty Wares is working on a raffle item to donate.
It was suggested that a list of local churches should be compiled to reach and communicate what we are doing. This will be created next week when, LM Public Relations Specialist, Jamie Holloway, is in town.
Linda suggested that the Pastor’s Prayer Group and TRiHOP be contacted to see if their churches are on board to be part of this event.
John Hanna said that he would mention the need for help at Celebrate Recovery, where he is a group leader at Longview Church of the Nazarene.
Summer said that she would contact John Coleman, LM Committee Member and Director for Stir It Up Coffee to see if he would share what he uses for a contract and release form for their concerts to help us create necessary communication between, Tom and his sound crew, Exclaim Media and their video production crew and the bands.
It was suggested by Linda that we reach the music directors at the schools to see if their students were interested in performing or helping.
Karen explained what interviews would consist of for the group.
Norma suggested that we create an account at Rally.org to help with getting financial donations for the telethon.
Norma, Karen and Summer will meet on Monday October 15th at 10 AM at Evangel to talk about other Social Networking Strategies to help communicate our goals better and entice participation and donations.
John suggested that we check out ChristianMagicians.com for performers for Christmas Angel Telethon.
It was decided that our next planning meeting will be Thursday October 25th at 6 pm at Longview FOE.
The meeting was adjourned at 7:27 pm.
Respectfully Submitted,
Summer Clemenson
Living Ministries Executive Director/President
