Don’t forget to mark your calendar: JUNE 16 - 19, 2011. We will need help setting up on June 15 and breaking down on June 19. No matter what your physical condition, there will be areas where you can help.

REGISTRATION:

Registrations are coming in from people outside the Louisville area. If you plan on taking classes, submit your registration soon. Workshops have limits set on them by the instructors, since they will be supplying the trees. Generally, this limit is 8 to 10. So if you are interested in a particular workshop, get those forms in to ensure your spot.

While on registrations, I have been asked if a volunteer had to register for the symposium to visit the exhibit and vendors. The answer is NO; if you volunteer, once your ‘shift’ is done, you can visit both areas. If you are going to attend the seminar sessions, there are still many things that you can do. Don’t wait for the committee chairmen to call you!

RAFFLE, SILENT AUCTION:

I guess many of you are wondering why I keep pushing the raffles. Believe it or not, the expense budget for this symposium is approximately $70,000.00. That includes the hotel costs, food, instructors, demo trees, wire, etc. Many have asked why the registration fee is $295. Well, if we have 150 registrants @ $295 each, that is $44,250. That doesn’t quite cover the $70,000 expenses. We are making some on the workshop trees, but not enough to make up the difference. One way to make up this difference is the raffles. We will raffle the demo trees and anything our club and the vendors donate. We need about $15,000 in raffle income. So, go through your extra bonsai stuff that you no longer need and donate it to the raffle and silent auction. You will be given a tax form and will be able to deduct the value from your taxes and, of course, it will help offset the symposium costs. Contact Lee Squires.

SPONSORS:

Even with the raffle, we are still going to be short of money. Midge Goeth is chairperson of our publicity committee. In that capacity, she is also trying to get companies and individuals to donate money for the symposium. I know times are rather hard now, but why not ask your company if they would be willing to donate some cash (or raffle items)? Of course, we are in high need of cash donations. I saw my dentist a while back and we were talking about the symposium, and I simply asked him if he would like to make a donation. I was surprised when he said he would give us $100. So please ask, and don’t forget that it is tax deductible.

Midge is also trying to get local companies to donate items for the registration bags. At the last symposium, the local committee obtained all sorts of things, like tape measures, garden shears, pencils, etc. If you work for a company that sells items to the public, why not ask them to donate something? We will need about 175 to 200 of each item (to ensure we have enough if we have more than 150 registrants. We can always return the extras).

EXHIBIT:

Earl Ekman is looking for trees for his exhibit. This is a juried exhibit. That means that photographs of your trees will be judged by Earl and his judges. Once a tree is approved for the exhibit, there is a $25 entry fee. The first prize winner will receive $500, second place $300 and third place $100. So it’s worth your effort. Get those pictures in soon.

We will inform you of additional details next month.

George