Hello all,
Well before we head off to Rites, I figured I'd write in and say hello! I hope your spring is beautiful and getting warmer.
Registrations are going great for SpiritFire, and there are many unexpected surprises with folks deciding to come this year - wow. It makes me so grateful!
I am writing to share an experience or two from last year, when I had a couple of unfortunately sad but necessary issues at the beginning of the event, and I'd like to ask your help in making sure we don't have to repeat the scenario. Basically, folks become more and more open and ready for fire circles and family as the summer progresses, and often don't find out about an event until very close to it's start. Last year I had some very wonderful people contact me either directly or on behalf of friends who decided they wanted to go - but registration was closed, and I'd already sent head and meal counts to our gracious hosts. It was unfortunately not possible to "squeeze them in" at that point.
On Wednesday after closing circle, I was also approached by a beautiful soul who had been invited to come along to the event by another registered person, who assumed their friend would be able to register on site. It broke my heart, because despite the person's long journey and transportation issues that arose, I wasn't able to accommodate them. Telling them this was a very hard thing to do, but no other ethical option was available. I hope this person finds their way to us this year in time!
My request to all of you is this - if you know of folks who might want to come, let them know about SpiritFire earlier on, and encourage them to register earlier too! Once registration closes, we cannot add more participants. Please do not invite them to just show up on site, or encourage them to write after registration has closed. It causes us much heartache to turn folks away, when some pre-planning could have created a different outcome.
Our final, last minute, absolutely solid deadline is July 25th. From July 16 - 25 we can accept ONLINE registrations only, and will not receive mailed applications in time to add them. If folk aren't sure about their plans, please do direct them to our website -- http://spiritfirefestival.org -- and again, encourage them to register early so they can be a part of the bliss!
Thanks for your support and help spreading the word and helping folks find us in time - see you very soon!
Love, Josselyne
Showing posts with label registration. Show all posts
Showing posts with label registration. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Update series #3: Early Registration and the start of spring
Happy Spring all -
Just an update on where things are right now with SpiritFire - we have one of the highest registration counts for the early reg period since our "peak" attendance year in 2005, which is amazing to see! While we've adjusted our maximum attendance limit down since then (makes for a much more gentle and solid container), I'm hoping there will be a spot for everyone that would like to come to SFF 09.
There hasn't been a lot of direct activity during winter's long, drawn-out finale as far as events within the gathering. The major things that needed to get done included solidifying the 2009 crew roster, making scholarship decisions and notifying those folks about the results, and continually updating the presenter/workshop pages to reflect the current flow.
Crew: We have a rockin' group on for this year's heavy-lifting and toting and setting up! A few crew folks have agreed to take on some additional time working the welcome tent and arrival traffic to help ensure a smooth, friendly entry for all of us - I'm grateful. If you aren't on crew but are looking to help, one thing we could use is for folks to arrive at the start of the day, when the gates open, and then sign up for an early community shift either at registration or the welcome tent/sherpa areas.
Scholarships in particular were an amazing situation this year. Everyone knows the economy isn't all that healthy, but somehow not only did we get more registrations in the first period, we were able to offer a scholarship to every single application that came in to us as the result of some very generous donations from our community, both individual and group members. Some folks gave $10, some $100, and some more than that - it truly was awe-inspiring. I'd like to say that if any more scholarship donations come in, that funding will still be used to directly help those in need of assistance with registration this year, or if no further assistance is needed, it will be banked for next year.
Workshops: most workshops are finalized as far as descriptions and such, but as always the schedule will be tweaked and adjusted at least 1-2 more times as I try to make sure that 1) similar workshops don't conflict, 2) folks playing for or or assisting presenters don't get scheduled for conflicting workshops, and 2) a good balance and variety of workshops reflecting the pathways are available in all of the sessions. Once the schedule is finalized I'll post a note on the workshop page letting everyone know that's the case.
The circles are still being shaped; we're really trying this year to make the fire lighting times inclusive, engaging, and meaningful. Hint: have you been to SpiritFire before? Do you think you know what the agreements, promises, and requests between the pathways are for the circle we dance together? Might want to check that out! ;-)
Stay in touch! More soon.
Just an update on where things are right now with SpiritFire - we have one of the highest registration counts for the early reg period since our "peak" attendance year in 2005, which is amazing to see! While we've adjusted our maximum attendance limit down since then (makes for a much more gentle and solid container), I'm hoping there will be a spot for everyone that would like to come to SFF 09.
There hasn't been a lot of direct activity during winter's long, drawn-out finale as far as events within the gathering. The major things that needed to get done included solidifying the 2009 crew roster, making scholarship decisions and notifying those folks about the results, and continually updating the presenter/workshop pages to reflect the current flow.
Crew: We have a rockin' group on for this year's heavy-lifting and toting and setting up! A few crew folks have agreed to take on some additional time working the welcome tent and arrival traffic to help ensure a smooth, friendly entry for all of us - I'm grateful. If you aren't on crew but are looking to help, one thing we could use is for folks to arrive at the start of the day, when the gates open, and then sign up for an early community shift either at registration or the welcome tent/sherpa areas.
Scholarships in particular were an amazing situation this year. Everyone knows the economy isn't all that healthy, but somehow not only did we get more registrations in the first period, we were able to offer a scholarship to every single application that came in to us as the result of some very generous donations from our community, both individual and group members. Some folks gave $10, some $100, and some more than that - it truly was awe-inspiring. I'd like to say that if any more scholarship donations come in, that funding will still be used to directly help those in need of assistance with registration this year, or if no further assistance is needed, it will be banked for next year.
Workshops: most workshops are finalized as far as descriptions and such, but as always the schedule will be tweaked and adjusted at least 1-2 more times as I try to make sure that 1) similar workshops don't conflict, 2) folks playing for or or assisting presenters don't get scheduled for conflicting workshops, and 2) a good balance and variety of workshops reflecting the pathways are available in all of the sessions. Once the schedule is finalized I'll post a note on the workshop page letting everyone know that's the case.
The circles are still being shaped; we're really trying this year to make the fire lighting times inclusive, engaging, and meaningful. Hint: have you been to SpiritFire before? Do you think you know what the agreements, promises, and requests between the pathways are for the circle we dance together? Might want to check that out! ;-)
Stay in touch! More soon.
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