[SBU Board] holiday party, read on

[Ann Romeo]

OK, so I think I found a good venue (thanks, Patti): Eastlake Bar & Grill
in Seattle.  I am about to negotiate the event with our contact at the
venue, but I want to lay out a few things about this:

   - the rent of the space is $200.
   - We are on the hook for at least $750 in food and drink.
   - My thinking: everyone gets one drink token (drinks run about $6 to
   $9/drink), for about $400 in drinks (assuming about 40 people, 1 token..),
   then after than cash bar.
   - Food: will be finger food and salads and desserts, about $300 (or
   making up what we're on the hook for).
   - there will be tax, tip that will need to be worked into the total. I'm
   guessing this will cost about $1100 (if not more) by the time it is done.
   - My general research indicates that this is about the best price we're
   probably be able to get if we use a bar or restaurant.

My question for all of you: what is your feeling: should be spend unit's
money on this?

I have to tell you, in the distant past, the unit used to pay for a
sit-down dinner for the holiday party at a restaurant.  Since I've been on
the board, we've usually done these at a unit member's home, giving them a
budget for booze and main course, and the rest of us bring a side.  We've
also done these at a local bar, with the unit picking up the drinks and we
individually paid for our meals.

Why do we have this party?  it's a way to greet the new board members, fete
the retiring ones, and mingle with our non-board member better halfs. We
get to thank the non-board members who contribute to the organization
(David Wright, David Taylor, MattK, Jenni, Sharon, etc.) The conversations
are great, and relaxed, and in general, this is a good time.

My personal thoughts are mixed:  I always have enjoyed these events in the
past.  I like the idea of a restaurant or bar handling the prep and
cleanup, however, I prefer the less expense of someone's home.  On the
other hand, we haven't made a lot this year on our tournaments, and I
wonder if this is a wise use of our money.

As President, I'm very much inclined to go ahead with the party. But, as
you probably can tell, I tend to like a wide-open discussion, and use that
as a basis for decisions.

I'm interested in your thoughts, then I'll figure out what to do.


Ann Romeo
Personal email: annromeo at gmail.com
Local home: 206-526-0871
Work email: Ann.Romeo at ORCInternational.com
Work direct dial: 212-463-6331
My cell: 425-615-1413 (text ok)
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.celestial.com/pipermail/sbuboard/attachments/20180930/061eea1a/attachment-0001.html>