"Buy Popcorn, Support Sea Scouts!"

by Caitlín

This morning a handful of Scouts and adults unloaded a lot of popcorn and set up in front of the Woodbridge Wal-Mart. We hoped to get all the stuff off our hands so we wouldn't have to re-load it and no one would have to have it take up space in their house.

At first we were all sort of shy about going up to people and asking them to buy popcorn, but after fifteen minutes or half an hour, we got bored and tired of people hardly looking at us and decided it was time to get down to work.

"Excuse me, ma'am, would you like to support Sea Scouting today?" we asked, handing them fliers that listed the different kinds of popcorn and information about ordering online.

Still, most people shied away or muttered "no thanks" as they passed, heads down and not meeting our eyes. It was discouraging when after an hour of advertising we had yet to sell anything.
Part of the problem might have been that the Salvation Army and the VFW (our sponsor) happened to be there, also taking donations, so people had already given by the time they got to us. Also, as David pointed out, people are probably "Scouted out" by now because popcorn sales have been going on all summer.

We got into a real popcorn-selling frenzy for a while, giving away fliers right and left (Daniel got the award for most fliers handed out) and calling out to people to "Buy popcorn, support Sea Scouts!" But it got to be lunch time and we were all hungry and getting tired of standing around and saying the same things over and over again.

David arrived as a reinforcement, and his little sisters really got into advertising. They fought over who got to hold which sign and wear the corn hat, and the two of them (in the first photo) attracted a lot more attention with the signs than our display did.

One gentleman who used to be a Boy Scout bought a tin and said his tour bus company would give us discounts, so if we ever need to go on long trip....
Another couple walked up and said, "How much popcorn can we get for $100?"
"You can get a lot of popcorn," David replied. They ended up buying $98 worth of popcorn and trail mix, our largest purchase by far, and probably the largest we'll ever have.

In total we made $280.00, which is really good, and much better than our first attempt to sell popcorn at the Occoquan Arts & Crafts Show, but at 2:59 p.m. we had a second-by-second countdown until it was time to start packing up.

There is still popcorn left, but not huge amounts like before. Maybe we can sell the rest of it in one more day of fundraising.

Popcorn Selling

by Caitlín

This morning we conducted our first BSA popcorn sales at the annual fall Occoquan Arts & Crafts Show. The VFW was kind enough to let us use the spaces next to their front steps and hot dog booth to set up displays of the tins and hold signs so that we didn't have to pay for a booth ourselves.

Part of our agreement was to also help the members of the VFW staff their hot dog and drink stand, but they really didn't need much help. Adam was the only one of us who was on food duty.

At right is what we first used to draw Craft Show visitors towards the table (marked by the balloons and "Support Scouting" banner in the background) filled with every different kind of popcorn and information about our Ship. Me, Sarah, and Peter show off our first dollar--which was a donation.

After a while with almost no interest in the popcorn--even with us saying "Good morning!" to every passerby--we brought the banner down to the side of the street, too.

When that didn't catch people's attention, we tried making more signs from the flaps of the cardboard boxes that the popcorn tins came in. Peter was occupied doing that, so Sarah and I were the only ones holding the banner and greeting people.

There were also several comments muttered about, "Why are girls selling Boy Scout popcorn?"
Sarah thought they didn't notice our shirts (here's a time when true uniforms would help a lot!), and that it we should turn around so people could see the larger, more eye-catching text on the backs of our T-shirts. The Skipper said, "Turn around? What if we turn the banner around and write on that?"

So Skipper Shay wrote on the nice blank reverse side of the banner that we were specifically Sea Scouts and that it's a co-ed branch of the BSA for youth ages 14-21. It wasn't as colorful as the printed side, but it explained our purpose much better than a photo of a very young boy in a "dirt Scout" uniform. Trail's End (warning, music begins abruptly on their site) really should make a popcorn banner that includes both Venturing Scouts and Sea Scouts, pictures both boys and girls, and features older Scouts.

Our new banner caught a little more attention, and we got a lot of amazed exclam-
ations of "Sea Scouts!" as if people didn't believe we existed or something. Or probably they'd never heard of us, as Sea Scouting is the "best kept secret in Boy Scouts." There was one girl seemed very interested in our program and took a flier with contact info and more information, so hopefully we'll at least gain a new member!

But despite people noticing us, business was still so slow that Sarah, Adam, and I were counting the minutes until we could go home. Or at least until our relief came, which was supposed to be David and Daniel. David was sick and didn't really feel up to being there, and Daniel had to attend a school function and that caused him to arrive an hour late for his shift, so it was still pretty much me and Sarah running the show.

A few people did buy popcorn, and several others, including Mayor Porta, said they would buy it later online so that they didn't have to carry it around town. A couple people came up and asked about prices, but after finding out how much it cost they said they were sorry they couldn't help out.

In four hours we made a total of $75.00 (most of which was in donations), while at the car wash we made over $300 in the same amount of time. Hopefully the popcorn-sellers will do better tomorrow--maybe a fresh crew will help.

To support Sea Scout Ship 7916, www.OrderPopcorn.com and enter this code: TEYQBZ7. You can also send $25.00 worth to the men and women fighting overseas--with 70% of the proceeds still supporting our unit--by clicking "Other Treats" and then "Military Donation."

Car Wash

by Rebecca

On Sat, Aug 2, Ship 7916 had its first fundraiser. We held a car wash in the parking lot by Mom's Apple Pie Bakery in Occoquan.

The first hour or so was slow, but it had rained earlier in the morning, and was still sprinkling. The traffic picked up as the day went on. Sometimes we had three cars being washed at the same time.

All the scouts that were there took turns washing the cars, and some of us held signs up on Rt 123 to direct people to the wash. Caitlín and I found that jumping up and down while waving the signs really got people's attention. We even had one motorcycle come to the wash.

We raised over $300 over the 4 1/2 hour wash. One couple gave us a good donation just for washing the tires.

Overall, I think it went really well, and all the scouts know how to wash cars. (Remember: 'Start from the top' as Mike kept telling us.) And we all had fun, even in the heat. Everyone got a little wet, but no one got soaked.