Event Steward Class Notes

Handout is the Event Worksheet 

Handout Page 1
•	Becoming an Event Steward
o	Left the room 
o	Volunteering / Submitting a bid
o	Must be a Member (The SCA’s O&R insurance covers lawsuits brought against you as an officer, IF you’re a registered member, and performing your duties)

•	Before you start
o	Date
•	Is the event already on the Calendar?
•	What’s it up against (SCA & Mundane)
•	What’s it near (SCA & Mundane)
o	Event requirements
•	Kingdom / or other event requirements
•	Group requirements
•	What’s traditional
•	What’s the group expecting
•	What changes can you make
o	Theme
•	Yes / no ?
•	What ?
•	Could it be offensive or off-putting? (Yule is a more neutral than Christmas)
•	How will it be applied ? Contests, Event Format, Costume, etc
o	Don’t ASSUME anything, check and verify!
o	Advance planning !!!!

•	Activities
o	Courts
o	Contests
o	Fighting forms
o	Kids
o	Revel
o	Feast
o	Dancing
o	Bardic
o	Traditional Activities for this event
o	Fund Raisers (check with Seneschal and Exchequer for rules and regs)
o	Royal Lunch
o	Animal activities: Equestrian,  Dog coursing 
•	Get a notebook
o	Take lots of notes
o	Keep lots of paperwork
o	Carry the notebook everywhere: to answer questions, add new info, etc
•	Reporting as you go
o	Watch verbiage (Service Auction is more neutral than Slave or Servant Auction)
o	Reporting:
•	Group heads (Seneschal, B&B, etc)
•	No surprises – let them know up front what you’ll be doing
•	Group’s Council meetings
•	Group / Kingdom publications
•	Court announcements
•	E-mail
•	Flyers
•	Delegation / committee
o	Officers – use them! Keep them informed!
o	Ask people to be involved, suggest specific tasks. Many folks would like to help but believe you don’t need them or that they have nothing to contribute.
o	Event staff
•	You can’t be in 2 places at once
•	Trying to do-it-all leads to problems
•	Make good use of Phone and E-mail
•	Make sure you have a support system:
•	Autocrat care taker (not responsible for anything other than the autocrat)
•	Autocrat gofer (Makes it easier to find you if you’re not running all over)
o	E-mail group
•	Discussions
•	Reminders
•	Meetings (committee and Council)
•	CP ads due
•	Other deadlines
•	Post info: Maps, documents, pictures, etc

•	Budgeting – work with your Seneschal and Exchequer
o	NMS
o	Event Costs
o	Event Income
•	Attendance (Check the calendar, past event turn outs, etc)
•	Fund raisers
•	Raffles – Must be Suggested Donation only
•	Auctions – Sales tax must be paid, plus they take us event time
•	Food sales, merchanting (souvenirs, etc)
•	Contests
Handout Page 2

•	Sites
o	What do you need?
•	Rooms
•	Indoor / outdoor
•	Day / night / weekend
o	Site Owners guide (http://www.sca.org/ -> SCA Documents and Publications )
o	Tell the site owner everything / Ask about everything / NO SURPRISES
o	Contracts
•	The Group Seneschal is the legal signature for the group. 
o	Insurance
•	Work closely with your Seneschal on event insurance.
•	The Seneschal has a proof of insurance letter that covers most site requirements
•	There are other insurance options, BUT do not offer them unless the site owner asks for them. Talk with your Seneschal if you think other options should be offered or are required.
•	Equestrian events have special insurance needs, your Seneschal will work with you on that.
•	Do it early -- if you need Equestrian insurance or other special options, make sure the Seneschal is aware of it and that it’s taken care of as early as possible. Most need at least 30 days lead-time.

Handout Page 3

•	Site Fee
o	Site fee is based on:
•	Projected cost of the event
•	Estimated turnout based on:
•	Previous event turnout
•	Conflicting events (SCA and mundane)
•	Current “standard” site fees
•	Fund raising activities planned 
o	The NMS (Non-Member Surcharge) is not a profit item, it goes to the SCA not your group.
o	The NMS fee does not apply to:
•	Events that have no site fee
•	The second half of an event where the NMS was paid for the first half:
•	If the non-member paid for the tourney and that evening’s feast, they pay only one NMS, not two.
•	If they pay only for the tourney or only for the feast, they owe one NMS
•	Children if there is a discount for their age group.
•	Example:
o	Infants to 3 years are Free – no NMS
o	Children 4 to 12 are ½ price – no NMS
o	Ages 12 and up are full price – NMS required

•	Schedule of the day
o	Sun rise / set
o	Site open / close for set up
o	Site open / close for populace
o	Courts
o	Lists and combat activities
o	Other Activities

•	Crash space (useful for outlying areas, and overnight events)
o	Arrange to co-ordinate offers of bed/couch/floor/RV space at members homes
o	Info for Motels / Hotels in the area

Handout Page 5

•	Newsletter Ads
o	Submissions date
o	How many ads? What size? When? – Events early in the month need complete info in the previous month’s publication
o	Required Information (See CP) – This info is required by the insurance company
o	Size restrictions
o	Submit via Seneschal
o	E-mail subject line
o	Rewrites

•	Other ads
o	www/sca-caid.org/Calendar
o	Local Group website
o	Caid List
o	Flyers / Court announcements at events

•	E-mail / webpages 
o	Event Info changes
o	Expanded info (such as … for a feast: post the menu, recipes, documentation, etc.)

•	Site change (if you lose the site …)
o	E-mail – Send the info to EVERY list you can think of
o	Newsletter ads – Is there time to change it in the Newsletter ??
o	Seneschal – If there’s no time to publish the new info, your Seneschal will need to talk with the Kingdom Seneschal, to OK the event for insurance purposes.
o	Day of event – post a person and/or sign at the Old site directing folks to the new site
Handout Page 7

•	Royals
o	Invite
o	Entice
o	Make it easy

Handout Page 9

•	Gate
o	Sign in sheets are required
o	Waivers
•	Non-members
•	White cards
•	Minors
•	Equestrian
o	Cash box rules

Handout Page 16

•	Night before the event
o	Host no overnight guests, no one in the house that isn’t going to be a help!
o	SLEEP

•	Day(s) of event
•	You are First on site, Last off site
•	Set up
o	Eric (at least stakes)
o	Group Pavilion
o	Your Pavilion
o	Royal Pavilion
•	Watch the clock, YOU are in charge of keeping the event on time
•	Cell phone, have it handy
•	If you forward your published contact number to your cell phone, or if you published the cell phone number, have someone else kept your phone, you don’t have time to answer any “is the event on?” calls
•	TP – Keep an eye on the restrooms and make sure there’s Toilet Paper
•	Keep tabs on what’s happening
•	Visit the merchants, welcome them, collect merchant fees, hand out / collect any paperwork
•	Leave the site cleaner than we found it

Handout Page 17

•	After the event
o	Waivers / Sign in sheets
o	Money
o	Reporting
o	Committee meeting
•	What worked, what didn’t

•	Thank yous