Notes:   South Jordan Family History Fair 2006 (post fair evaluation )

        Early assignments were made 6 months ahead, but there needed to be more followup in 2 month intervals to make sure progress was being made.  We need to double check times printed on posters.  Email requests for registration forms worked OK, but having a phone contact number for me worked well, especially when we asked people to register for classes.  It was hard to keep putting out new class schedules, but when people drop out of teaching, what else can you do?  We mailed out to about 5 West Jordan stakes, all (10) South Jordan stakes and about 5 Riverton stakes.  We asked the registrants to register for each class.  Only one class (Beginning PAF) had a ticket required – only 35 computers – ended up being 39.  Kept track of all registrants in alphabetical order, all tickets in order of reciept of registration, each lunch order, alphabetical by type of sandwich, all checks received in slphabetical order and cash received in alphabetical order.  Registration-only guests were also kept track of in alphabetical order (they didn’t want a syllabus or lunch, just to come).  If one check paid for more than one person, that was noted by each check.  This list was updated daily - as the mail came.  If someone forgot to mark their lunch sandwich preference, I called them and asked.  Toward the end – 1 week ahead – I tally marked each class registration on a class schedule form.  We checked assigned room capacities to see if they were adequate.

At Fair time, I tried to have each person sign as they purchased an extra syllabus, but it was not as accurate.  Make sure you have cash change at Fair time for all those who bring $10’s and $20’s to pay with. 

        Last year we remembered, but this year we forgot to assign an elder’s quorum to set up tables and chairs and another one to take them down.  Don’t forget. 

I didn’t like the way we did the handout of syllabi, name tags and lunch tickets to the presenters.  It would have been better to inform them that they should stop at a hostess table in the cultural hall for these items as soon as they arrived.  One person should man this table and welcome them, hand them a bottle of water, the class schedule, a name tag, a syllabus, and a lunch ticket. 

The display tables should have been tagged as to who was going to set up on what table.  There was a bit of confusion about that, and there were two displays that had tall backdrops that covered part of our Primary Picture Pedigree Wall.  Better planning should have been done on that. 

        The Friday nite set up should have been very specific as to who was expected to be there to help, how many tables were to be set up where and adequate keys planned for.

        When ordering lunches, several extra of each kind should be ordered.  One of our orders was lost and we were asked several times if we had extra lunches.  Non-attenders, who paid for lunches, meant we had extras, but we didn’t know in time to offer them to those who wanted lunches.  The extras were divided up and sent home with organizers.

        Both years we have done this, we ordered box lunches from a sandwich shop that included ½ sandwich, chips and a large cookie.  Bananas and oranges were purchased and participants could pick only one.  A bottle of water was offered as the drink.  Not fuss – no muss!!!

        A free syllabus and a free lunch was provided for each presenter. 

        Small size advertising posters, a cover letter, a registration form with a small class schedule on the back was sent out in a large envelope about 2 months ahead of fair time.  The letter invited the stake consultant to distribute a copy of the registration to each ward consultant and urge them to make handouts for their individual ward members.  We had reports that several stakes didn’t do this until a week before the fair.  We had a deadline for lunch and syllabus orders a week before the fair date.  The lunch orders actually didn’t go in until about 4 days before.  We ordered about 100 extra syllabus.  The cost to registrants was about $ .50 over the actual costs to cover the free lunches and syllabi that we provided to the presenters.  The syllabus order was done a week before the fair.

        (Norinne Nelson, Stake Family History Consultant)