The idea had never occurred to me until I saw the Kickstarter project for Potato Salad. This project had a modest goal of $10 and let's just say that it has done fairly well. I realize that project became viral and was mentioned on the national news, so it is a very special case. I would be amazed if Thanksgiving 2.7 got mentioned on Good Morning America, but that shouldn't stop me. Should it?
The basic idea is that by using Kickstarter I could improve the experience for everyone involved. Assuming I hit the goal I would be able to run TH2.7 just like the last years, but if I manage to exceed the goal I could add in some great ideas I haven't been able to implement yet.
I think I may have a decent shot at this working, because I have something of a built in audience already. We had 55 people join us last year. At the $20 entrance fee I collect around $1000. If I add in a few reward levels not related to tickets I should be able to hit whatever reasonable goal I set. Then if I surpass the goal I can start on the improvements with the stretch goals.
- Add a few of the favorite dishes from previous Thanksgiving 2's that are cost prohibitive to add this year (Goose, Pheasant, German sausages, a Heritage Turkey, etc.)
- Add some of the more expensive game animals or unique dishes that are native to Scandinavia. (grouse, lutefisk, etc.)
- Increase the variety of craft beer
- Actually pay someone to assist me with the cooking.
- Change the location to somewhere bigger, yet stay local.
- If a new location isn't needed I could improve the quality of the tenting situation at my home.
- If a new location is used I can pay someone to run the movies/music
- Pay someone to run the bar/vodka tasting area.
- Pay a band to play live Christmas music!
- Find a minor, holiday related or local celebrity to do an appearance?
I have brought this Kickstarter idea up to a few people prior to this blog entry. I received positive feedback, but also a whole other idea that I hadn't thought of doing. For the Kickstarter newbies out there it may come as a surprise that Kickstarter is not for charity events. They leave charity to some of the other group funding sites like Indiegogo. The idea presented to me was to use Thanksgiving 2 to help promote a charity. It would be a turkey themed charity dinner.
The example charity that was brought up to me was Philabundance. They are a 30 year old food bank that gives out food all year to the hungry people of the Delaware Valley. I would raise the entry price of my event to let's say $30 (the extra $10 going directly to the charity) or you can get in for $20 if you bring a qualifying bag of food. This way of the 50+ people who come, I would be able to hand in some combination of food and money donations. On their end they would help market the event, advertise the event on their website, and I would be allowed to use their name in conjunction with my event. If I am able to attach myself to a charity to help promote TH2, I would be hoping to move into a larger venue, increase the attendance, and promote the idea of Thanksgiving 2 to a much wider audience. I never wanted TH2 to become a for profit event anyway, so adding this charity element could be a very good idea on a few levels.
A friend of my family throws a Halloween party every year. He has it sponsored by several stores, and has beer and food donated to the event. There is a very reasonable $35 door fee for all you can eat food and drink. He manages to give out at least 4 different costume prizes as well. He has managed to make it a town wide event for the past 29 years. I think if I put the same level of energy into TH2 that he puts into his Halloweenfest then I will have a very fun event to plan for the next 30 years.
I definitely would like to hear from anyone with ideas. Back to recipes for next entry.
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