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Oct 7, 2007 - Arena Event

This weekend we held our bi-annual arena event. All 9 of our churches got together in one location for one huge service. It was an incredible event and for me a dream come true as I have wanted to organize an arena event ever since I attended my first Women of Faith conference. Lots of things went as planned but there were many unplanned incidents which were good reminders of the advantage of advance preparation - and lessons for what to do next time.

All in all, the event went very smoothly considering the scope, but remembering to keep a flexible mindset will help your event be successful!

The Mack Truck Rule

A conference organizer gave me advice to follow the Mack Truck Rule - if you are hit by a Mack Truck, the event can still go on without you.

This means not making yourself indispensable. It means having documentation and plans of everything so that if something happens to you, the event will not be compromised.

I learned this a few events back when one of my team members became very ill and had to go home. We were wandering around lost a few times.

It happened again during setup day on Saturday - a cart flew over the edge of the stage, falling on Trent, our technical director. He injured his back and was in severe pain. We had a ton of tech setup to do. Here is the beginning stage:

We wanted to take him to the doctor but Trent tried to hold out to make sure the job was finished, sitting in a wheelchair and overseeing the setup. Eventually he was taken away. Fortunately he had done his work in communicating the information to the technical guy hired to oversee the union crew. Our executive pastor jumped in and did a great job filling in. The setup continued. (You can kind of see everyone gathered around Trent in the wheelchair in the middle of the picture.)

Too many volunteers never hurt

We realized we had 120 volunteers to help set up when we only needed 50. One person said to contact the rest and tell them they weren't needed but I had a hunch something last minute would come up. Sure enough, we discovered that the 10,000 booklets we had printed had stapled an insert incorrectly. The extra volunteers were put to work tearing out the inserts and putting the correct ones in. Even with the 50-70 people working, it took hours to get the job done!

Assume things will go wrong and that you never have too many people. In the end, you can always release volunteers or tell them not to come. They will have an extra day freed up!

I wish I had a photo to show you how big the job was. These two tables were only a small fraction of the activity going on!

Over-communicate changes

One team forgot to communicate some things to key people. As a result, there was a discussion with different team leaders and the arena staff to figure out the best solution. Meanwhile, the clock ticked on as the hourly workers sat waiting for the decision.

If any changes are made, remember to think, "Who is every key person who needs to be notified of this change?" Church staff and volunteers tend to be more flexible than union workers who are paid by the hour! Even so, everyone appreciates being kept in the loop.

Fortunately, with great teamwork and discussion and one of the pastors excerising great leadership skills, the situation was resolved!

Keep the event fun

When everything is going crazy around you (I had one person calling me on one radio, another person calling me another radio, my cell phone going off and someone trying to talk to me in person at the same time!) remember to smile and have fun. When you have a good time, the others around you will relax and enjoy the craziness too! After the event, the next week one of the leaders told me church services sure seemed boring in comparison!

Here are some photos of the fun atmosphere generated at the event:

We had a live radio show going on outside as people drove in. There were signs asking people to tune in and we had interviews with church plants pastors and key leaders. It set a festive atmosphere from the beginning.

Each church plant decorated their tables and some event wore costumes and outlandish balloon hats!

Children's ministry did a fantastic job considering there were not enough facilities to hold the 2,000 kids! They converted the outdoor area into a kid's wonderland, with petting zoo, inflatables, music, crafts, and pizza!

The Road Warriors helped direct traffic in, even though the wrong entrances were opened. They adjusted their plans to help the lost, wandering people find their way. To make things fun, they dressed up in costumes. There was a live ketchup bottle (below) and a person dressed as Moses - and wearing stilts.

Wind was kind of a problem as our balloons, which nicely spelled "Come Together," turned into a scrambled word puzzle. One of our team members was almost strangled as the balloons twisted around his neck as he walked past. Note to self: next time hang balloons higher!

In doors, the exciting energy of a live worship band and choir led by Lincoln Brewster and the worship leaders of Bayside Church brought everyone before the throne of God in worship.