Saturday, December 24, 2011

Holiday Party Wrap Up

Hello!

Last night's event was a great success!  We had approximately 40 people celebrating our club's goal of owning our own fields and clubhouse.  We had two different raffles, with upwards of 30 prizes awarded.  We had lots of delicious food and drinks.  And we had a substantial increase in our Vision Fund coffers!

Before I get into the details about the money raised, I'd like to give a few thanks to those individuals who made the event such a success.

Thanks to Rick and Cindy LaValla who purchased and prepared food and drinks, invited us all into their home and hosted the great event.

Thanks to Pat LaValla who pulled together one of the raffles and worked extremely hard during the event to help make sure everyone got checked in.

Thanks to Trevor Anderson for selling raffle tickets throughout the evening.

Thanks to Della Durr for her donation of a beautiful Holiday Wreath that was raffled off.  

Thanks to Dan Smith for pulling together many of the materials on display during the event, the other raffle, and working throughout the event to collect donations.

And many thanks to all those who attended, donated and otherwise supported our cause.  Without all of you, all our work would have been for naught!

And now for the exciting news.

With donations and raffle sales combined, we earned $2,495.00!  This is a great outcome - more than any Vision Fund event we've hosted so far, and doubling the total amount of money we've earned this year!

However... As I hinted in some of my earlier emails, we had a bit of a surprise in store.  In fact, it was the driving focus behind the event.

Rick LaValla has been working, for the last few years, on securing a large donation for the club.  The donation comes from the trust account of a very close friend of his who passed away in 2008.  Frank Parker became of big fan of rugby through his relationship with the LaVallas, and traveled the world attending rugby events.  I can never give his story true justice, you'll need to corner Rick for that.  However, Frank requested that a portion of his estate be donated to rugby.  As such, Rick presented Budd Bay Rugby Football Club with a check from Frank's trust for the Vision Fund.  The check was for $180,000.00!

This brings our evening's totals to $182,495.00, obviously a rather significant boost to our Vision Fund.  I am very excited about what this means for the future of our club.  Our own fields are suddenly within reach! Dan Smith, the Chair of our Vision Committee, will be reconvening the committee in January with renewed vigor and purpose as we now have the funds to start talking about making a purchase.  If you are interested in being a part of that process, please let us know, so we can keep you informed about the time and place of the upcoming meetings.

I hope this news brings some exciting cheer to your holiday festivities!  I know that it certainly brings a feeling of renewed vigor to our Vision as we move into the new year, and I am looking forward to seeing how we are able to grow in 2012.

Please have a safe and wonderful week!

-Kyle

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Last Reminder

Hello,

This is (probably) my last reminder about tomorrow's Vision Fund Holiday Party.  We're closing in on our participation goal so be sure to get your RSVP in!  We want to make sure we have enough food and drinks for everyone.  This is shaping up to be a great event, so if you find yourself in need of some fun to kick off the holiday weekend, put on a nice shirt and come on out!

When?
7-10 pm on Friday, December 23rd, 2011

Where? 
The Lavallas. 4537 Foxhall Drive NE, Olympia, WA 98516

Who?
You! And your friends, cousins, dates, uncles, coworkers, etc. Basically, if its someone who would like to support Budd Bay Rugby, they should be there!

What to bring?
Donations (suggested donations = $100, or $50 from paying members of BBRFC), as well as some extra funds to bid on some of our great auction items. We've got Budd Bay gear, New Zealand gear, World Cup gear, and even a Christmas Wreath! We will be accepting Cash, Check or Credit Card.

Will there be refreshments?
Appetizers, drinks, and lots of fun will be provided. Please bring ID if you intend to drink alcohol.

Where do I RSVP?
You can either email me - president@buddbayrugby.com, give me a call, or respond to the original invite if you received one. (If you didn't, sorry! Let me know and we will make sure you are on the distribution list).

-Kyle

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Vision Fund Holiday Party - Follow Up

Hello,

After yesterday's email I got a few requests for more information about our upcoming Vision Fund Holiday Party.  If you'd like, you can view the original invitation in its entirety here.  But for those of you who would like the abbreviated version, here you go:

When? 
7-10 pm on Friday, December 23rd, 2011

Where? 
The Lavallas.  4537 Foxhall Drive NE, Olympia, WA 98516

Who? 
You!  And your friends, cousins, dates, uncles, coworkers, etc.  Basically, if its someone who would like to support Budd Bay Rugby, they should be there!

What to bring? 
Donations (suggested donations = $100, or $50 from paying members of BBRFC), as well as some extra funds to bid on some of our great auction items.  We've got Budd Bay gear, New Zealand gear, World Cup gear, and even a Christmas Wreath!  We will be accepting Cash, Check or Credit Card.

Will there be refreshments?
Appetizers, drinks, and lots of fun will be provided.  Please bring ID if you intend to drink alcohol.

Where do I RSVP?
You can either email me - president@buddbayrugby.com, give me a call, or respond to the original invite if you received one.  (If you didn't, sorry!  Let me know and we will make sure you are on the distribution list).    We would prefer you RSVP by Wednesday so we have enough food and drink for everyone.  But don't worry, if you are suddenly available Friday night, we still want you to come!

Wow, that's a lot of great information!
Thank you, I try!  Feel free to email me with any other questions you might have.

:) See you Friday,
-Kyle

Monday, December 19, 2011

Vision Fund Holiday Party (and other news)

Hello,

The end of the year is upon us!  Fortunately, that does not mean that things are winding down.  Our biggest event is coming up quickly - this Friday!  Our Vision Fund Holiday party starts at 7pm on Friday, December 23rd.  For more information, read the invite.  You can RSVP at any time - let us know if you are coming so we can have enough food and drink!  This is going to be a great event, with a focus on building this club towards a better future.  We will be doing lots of socializing, a little fundraising (silent auction!) and making serious progress towards reaching our goals of owning our own fields.  We really want you to be there to be a part of this great step.

Of course - we've got other things going on too!  The Barbarians have started practicing.  Missed it?  Don't worry, its not too late.  Join them at Skyhwaks Park, Tuesday and Thursday, 6-8 pm.  The Steelheads will be starting on January 3rd, with the Buffaloes and Bandits starting shortly thereafter.  You can register online at any time!

As always, you can check out the minutes from our recent board meetings online, and get all sorts of other information about the club and the latest goings-ons.  We're working on some other big changes as well as we go into the new year, so keep checking back.  You won't want to miss out on any of the great stuff we have planned!

On behalf of the board, I would like to wish all of our Players, Parents, Coaches, Volunteers and Supporters a very Happy Holidays!  I'll be back once more before the year is out with a report on the Vision Fund Holiday party, and hopefully I will see you all there.  In the mean time, enjoy whatever fun plans you've made for the coming weeks!

-Kyle

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Holiday Invitation

Hello,

You are cordially invited to Budd Bay RFCs annual holiday gathering and Vision Fund fundraiser.  The BBRFC Vision is to own our own fields, supporting the long-term needs of our club and the community as we continue to develop rugby throughout the area.  For more information on the Vision Fund visit our Vision Fund page - http://www.buddbayrugby.com/vision.

Come be part of something special this year as we celebrate the holidays, hear stories of an impressive man and ardent rugby fan and witness the Vision Fund receive a significant contribution. Show your support for the club's long lived dream of owning its own fields - and learn just how close we really are.

Come share your rugby stories and holiday wishes over spirits and appetizers, graciously provided by Budd Bay RFC and the LaVallas. Finger food, martinis, wine and beer will be provided.

As a fundraiser for our club's very own fields, we are suggesting a minimum donation of $100 per person. If you are an active, paying member a minimum donation of $50 is suggested. Whatever you can give, we hope you can join us for the fun!

We'll also have a couple of goodies hot off the boat from this year's Rugby World Cup for auction, thanks to founder Evan Wollen.

So, don't wait! Space is limited to the first 40 revelers, RSVP today! If you didn't already receive an Evite, reply to this email or call (478) 227-3201.

We hope to see many of you, as this will be a fun celebration of our club, our friends and supporters. And this wonderful evening will end with Budd Bay RFC being sooo much closer to making our dream a reality.

We are always grateful for your support. If you cannot make it, but wish to send holiday cheer and make a donation to the Vision Fund, you can do so here: http://www.buddbayrugby.com/vision.

Holiday cheers and rugby love, from our family to yours,
The McKowns, LaVallas and the rest of the Budd Bay RFC family.

(No alcohol will be served to anyone under 21, period. If you think there will be a question, please bring your valid photo ID)