RFL Float - Santa Maria Parade 12-4-10

Santa Maria Parade of Lights

Here are some snaps of the Relay for Life Parade Float. I didn't have time to go and help with the decorations so I made purple pom poms for the kids. The flat bed was beautiful. I am not sure who was in charge of decorating it, but it was pretty nice. I also DVRed the parade on TV so I will post the video on UTube soon.

Here is the Parade Info

Santa Maria's Christmas Parade December 4, 2010, parade starts at 5:20 p.m. We are #54 in the Line Up on Stowell between Broadway and Depot St. Wear your western gear and/or Christmas attire. Bring canned food for the Rotary Food Drive! Dress warm,  it gets really cold! Have a merry  time "Wrangling 4 A Cure"! Note:  We will be decorating early on Saturday at Eames Trucking Yard on            the corner of Betteravia and "A" St., starting at 10:30 a.m. Come and            join us.            There will be no decorating at the actual staging area for the parade.             If you do not want to decorate, but be in the parade, you should be             at the staging area no later than 5 p.m. and ready to walk or ride             on Entry #54!

Parade News

Santa Maria Parade of Lights is on December 4th at 5:20 pm.  Be there and line up at 4:00 pm.  Check the ASC web link above for more details as the day approches.  Remember, "Think purple and cowboys."

The Orcutt Parade will be on December 11th at noon.  Line up at 11:30 am. 

I will scan the flier and attach it soon.

Fundraisers

Click here for active fundraisers.

Important holiday fundraisers for gifts and gift wrapping:
1.  Gift Wrapping at the Mall Dec 17th - Dec 23rd.
2.  Candle party on Nov 29th.
3.  Avon party on Dec 6th

Pick up some gifts, get them wrapped, and support other teams for Relay for Life.  Thanks.

Team Captain's Meeting - November 18th, 2010

Here we go again....

The first Team Captain's meeting of the year!!!!

Important information:
1.  Theme this year is "Wrangling for a Cure."  We were told to think purple and cowboys.  I wonder if I can order a purple cowboy hat.
2.  The event days are July 9th and 10th, 2011.
3.  There is an early registration this year.  If you register by February 15th, 2011 you will be able to avoid the $10 registration fee.
4.  Last year we had 90 teams, 329 survivors, and we raised over $235,631.  WE WERE 14th IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA FOR FUND RAISING DOLLARS!!!!  Way to go everyone!  That is amazing!  Since the start of Relay for Life in Santa Maria, we have raised over 2 MILLION dollars.  OH MY GOSH!!!!!!
5.  The goals for 2011 are...100 teams, 350 survivors (I guess I should make my husband sign up this year), 1234 walkers, 1300 luminarias, and raise $250,000.

Look at Them Apples

$5,791.30 - The team total as of July 11th, 2010. I think that we have to share some of our money with the other 2 Marian Teams, team Mission Hope and team WOW. It is all good. All the money ends up in the same place. I know for sure that $3700 was money that our team personally raised. We have to split the other $2000 three ways with the other teams. I will know more on July 29th. The wrap-up meeting is then.

Santa Maria Times Article

Here is the link to the Santa Maria Times article about the Event.

http://www.santamariatimes.com/news/local/article_87773738-8cb5-11df-9eea-001cc4c03286.html

There is no video from KCOY that I can find.  I will keep looking.

A Special Thank You to Team Members

There was so much going on during the day that I didn't get pictures of every team member that showed up.  There was a steady stream of team members who came to walk the event.  Team members that I remember as walkers: Christina, Colleen, Terry, Stacey, BJ, Lesley, Marcy, Linda and myself. Thank You!

Also, there were lots of team members that disappeared into the snack booth that were never seen again.  Most worked the snack bar for hours and I am not sure how many worked or how many hours they worked.  Here are the team members I remember working the snack bar all hours of the day and night: Stacey, Terry, Eddie, Maggie, Pete, Linda, Terri, and Two Feathers.  There are probably more so let me know.  I know that there were at least 3 people in the snack bar the whole time.  THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU.  You worked harder than all of us.

Quest Fitness was there doing a obstacle course.  They were also doing a raffle for our team.  The kids loved jumping through all the hoops and stuff.  Thank you Mario and Susan for your help.

Thanks to everyone who helped out.  I am sure that I am forgetting some people.   We had an awesome team of people.  Some team members helped out with fundraising but couldn't get to the event.  Some people came to walk and keep the relay going.  Some people helped with set-up and clean-up.  Whatever time and energy you gave to our team, I am truly thankful for everything.

Thank You,
Tara

Clean Up

The committee members have this event down to a science. They basically had the whole event cleaned up within an hour after the closing ceremony.

Closing Ceremony - Fight Back

At the fight back ceremony we give the tally of money raised. We raised $246,477.15 as of 5:00 pm on Saturday night. They were still counting some money that was trickling in afterwards. Last count the money raised was over $248,000.
We also release balloons at the ceremony. Each balloon has a message on it. It is what we hope for in the next year. They are also to remember the spirits of those who has passed away. May their spirits fly free.

Terry and Stacey

Terry and Stacey have been pround members of the team for years. Terry has worked as the team captain along with Maggie and Stacey comes from Arizona every year to help us put up the tents. These two were the only team members to stay for the full 24 hours of the relay. Actually, they probably were there for more like 32 hours straight. Thanks Guys!!

Maggie with BJ

BJ's mother, Kay started our team, Wild Wild West. She passed away from cancer a few years ago. BJ still comes out to support the team and honor his mother.

Luminaria Ceremony - Remember

We light these luminaria bags to remember those who have died from cancer. It is always very emotional. I got the honor of lighting some of the luminaria bags. We light them at sunset and the light from the candles illuminates the track all night long. There was some rain at night, but the candles were relit and they burned until 8:00 am the next morning.

Cardboard Car Races

This was just one of the heats. I couldn't leave the booth to watch the whole event. Next year I am going to make one of these cars. It seems like so much trouble, but it looks like a lot of fun. These cars are only made with cardboard and duct tape. They are pretty stylish.

Crazy Hat Contest

Start of the Relay and Some Relayers

It never ceases to amaze me at the craziness that goes on at the Relay. One team was selling "Tu-Tus for Ta-Tas". I guess this guy was showing his support. Most people were in some sort of 50's costume. There were some really cute kids wearing costumes as well. People get around the track however they can. There are kids in strollers, people in wheelchairs, people with walkers, people jogging, and kids in wagons. There is even a place to rock in a rocking chair so you can "Rock the Walk." I am always amazed at the way people show their support for this event.

Opening Ceremony - Celebrate

More Decorations

I love the purple, sparkle table skirts. The records were nice and cute. Maggie did the photo boards in the back. We didn't win the prize for best decoration though. Some teams had whole 50's diners in their tents. It was fun though.

Decorations

If you can't tell... We have records for the 50's theme and western gear for our team.