Sixth Grade Concession Stand
Historically, the 6th Grade class has provided the concessions during the 7th Grade Play as a fundraiser for the class. The stand is set up during each of the 3 performances in March, Thursday afternoon, Friday and Saturday evenings. The Concession Stand Coordinator will organize the event.
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Each year the 6th Grade provides the concession stand at the 7th grade play. This is a fundraiser for the 6th grade. And a pretty easy one too! Like the funds from the Spaghetti Supper, the funds raised at the concession stand will go toward purchasing the rights to the play next year and ultimately to support the 8th grade events and class gift when our children graduate in two years.
February - Before February Break
- Contact the food services director to ask for space where families can drop off food and water donations. Also ask for some refrigerator space for the water. You won’t have to move water to the refrigerator until the morning that the play opens. (See email template below.)
- Talk to the play producers or director to determine the performance times and time of intermission. Schedule volunteers for an hour, arriving 15 minutes before intermission. Typically, there are 3 performances, Friday Friday 7:00 pm, Saturday at 7:00 pm and Sunday at 4:00 pm.
- Create a Sign Up Genius for volunteers and donations, signupgenius.com. Be sure to have Sign Up Genius send a reminder to those who sign up. Here is what you should include:
- 6 Cases (24 or 36 count) individually packaged potato chips
- 5 Cases (54 or 60 count) individually packaged Rice Krispy Treats (these are always a hit!)
- 6 Cases (24 or 36 count) individually packaged popcorn
- 6 Cases (24 or 36 count) individually packaged snacks (variety pack, Cheese Its, Sun Chips, etc)
- 8 Cases (24 count) 16 0z bottled water 200
- 3 Adult Volunteers for each show
- 4 students to make signs for the concession stand
- 6 6th Grade student volunteers for each show
- 6 Disposable Table Cloths (try to reuse them)
- 4 $25 donations
- 2 $50 donations
4. Plan publicity. There are many publicity opportunities. Since you will only be addressing the 6th grade families, it is easiest for you to manage all of your publicity. Of course you might check in with the play publicity person to be sure your efforts are complimentary to theirs.
Include the following in your correspondence:
- Explanation of the Concession Stand and the tradition of the 6th grade hosting it as a fundraiser. Funds support purchase of play rights for their 7th grader and ultimately 8th grade activities.
- Dates of show
- Intermission times on each date of show
- Link to sign-up-genius
- Coordinator contact information
February - Immediately After February Break
- Begin your publicity immediately after February break - at the latest. Families are usually focused on the break, prior to the break, so it is probably best to begin your publicity after the break. Your publicity is basically to ask for volunteers and donations. Here are some options - we suggest using them all (see sample below):
- Email to 6th grade parents / guardians (see sample below.) You can ask the school to send this out on your behalf.
- Notice in the Buzz - contact the school for deadlines and publication dates
- Notice in the Middle School email from the Middle School Principal
- Notice in the PTO News -contact the PTO Publicity Chair at [email protected] for deadlines and publication dates
- Posting on the PTO website - contact the PTO Publicity Chair at [email protected]
- Contact the physical plant office to (see email template below) ask that the doors to the building and cafeteria are unlocked for volunteers to set up the concession stand.
- Contact your Class Treasurer to ask them to request 3 cash boxes from the PTO. Ask your class treasurer to give you $40 in small bills for each of the three cash boxes for each of the performances. Cash boxes should be reset by class treasurer for each shift.
March - Before the Play
- Check Sign Up Genius daily to see responses. Add publicity as needed. At some point it may take telephone calls or personalized emails to motivate people. If you don’t check this often, you may find yourself without donations, volunteers or time to find them.
March - After the Play
- Send Thanks! Once you know how much money was raised through the Concession Stand, send an email to your volunteers to thank them for their time and help. Send a specific email to Nancy Donnelly in the physical plant office and Sue Robichaud in the cafeteria. It may not seem like much, but people never feel bad about being thanked! (See sample email / written notes below.)
- Last… but NOT least… Hopefully this document made the job easier for you. Please take a few moments to update the information and add any hints to help out the people who will do this fundraiser next year. Then send it to the PTO Vice President and ask them to update the Concession Stand page on the middle school portion of the PTO website. Hey, thanks!
Your Concession Stand
Set Up
Ask one of your creative volunteers to come up with a fun way to present the food items. Simply roll a few tables over to the lobby end of the cafeteria to set up your sale. Use the tablecloths that you asked for through your sign up, and decorate accordingly.
Four tables are usually set up as you enter the café from the auditorium side. You might also use tablecloths to cover the tables prior to the sale. You can ask the food services director for baskets, just be sure to return them when you are done.
Cash Boxes
As your class treasurer to acquire three cash boxes from the PTO, probably from the shed. Request that the treasurer set up each cash box with $40 in small bills at the start of each day, and to collect the cash boxes at the end of each day. (See sample email to class treasurer below.)
Pricing
Keep it really simple, price everything at $1.00. This makes paying easy as there are no coins!
Snack Choices
It is recommended to purchase prepackaged snacks as home made treats have not been well received (dietary concerns). Extra snacks can be donated to the cast party or the PTO. Extra water can be donated to Field Day for the 6th graders.
Other Stuff
Sign Up Genius
People are used to signing up for school related things online. You can access the Sign Up Genius from previous years, click here. The login XXX is and the password is XXX. Please don’t change these as it will only confuse things for the next coordinator. You will find the quantities of each type of snack and the volunteer shifts needed for the three intermissions on the sign up. You simply have to copy the old sign up (within the site), update the greeting, adjust quantities, dates and times, and share the link in your publicity. Then check it often to see if you need to reach out for more help or relax because folks are signing up.
Storage Before and During Show
Work with the food services manager to identify a space to store supplies and food prior to and during the run of the play. Clarify this storage location to volunteers so they will know where to put supplies for the next performance. (See sample email below.)
Volunteer Guidelines
Copy, paste and update the Play Concession Stand Volunteer Guidelines with the information for the current 7th Grade Play. Send this to your volunteers prior to their shift to make it easy for them to run the stand.
EMail and Flier Templates
Email for building access, [email protected]
Dear Nancy,
We are running the concession stand for the 7th grade play. I am writing to ask you to arrange for the doors to the auditorium entrance to the school, and the doors to the cafeteria are unlocked so we can get into the cafeteria to set up the concession stand at ______ on March ___ , at ____ on March ___ at, and March ____ at ____.
Thank you,
Name
Email to Food Services Director: [email protected]
Dear Sue,
We are running the concession stand for the 7th grade play. I am writing to ask you if we can invite families to drop off their food and water donations to the cafeteria on the day before the play opens, Thursday, March ____ between 7:30 and 7:00 pm. And is there a place we can store these provisions between performances? We would also like to put the water bottles in the refrigerator on the morning of the opening night, if possible. Please let me keno how you would like us to manage this.
Thanks for your help!
Name
Email to Class Treasurer:
Hi TREASURER NAME,
I hope this finds you well! The year is flying!
I am helping with the concession stand. Which is why I am contacting you. Rumor has it the class treasurer sets up the cash boxes for the concession stand. If you could, here is the drill:
Play dates: March XX, XX and XX.
- Get three cash boxes from the PTO. Contact [email protected].
- Fill each cash box with $40 in small bills (no coins).
- Bring cash boxes to concession stand prior to each play intermission with just the above $40
- Collect cash boxes after each intermission (perhaps we could make arrangements to drop them off at your house each evening)
- Deposit all money in class bank account when play is over.
Thanks in advance!
NAME Message to recruit volunteers and request donations, for BUZZ, PTO News and the Middle School Principal newsletter, and email to the 6th grade parents / guardians:
Dear 6th Grade Family,
It’s almost time for the 7th grade play! This is a sure sign that the year is going fast! Each year the 6th grade hosts the play intermission concession stand at the 7th grade play. The good news is that the kids usually like to help out with this, so it might be easy for you to encourage your child/ren to help out! This is a fundraiser for the 6th grade. The funds will go toward purchasing the rights to the 7th grade play next year, and ultimately to our 8th grade school activities.
The play will be on the afternoon of Friday, March XX, the evening of Saturday, March XX and the afternoon of Sunday, March XX. Intermission will be at XX on Friday, XX on Saturday and XX on Sunday.
We need your help with two things; to volunteer at the concession stand and to donate what you can to the sale. We have set up a Sign-Up-Genius to make it easy for you to help out. If you cannot help out with food or water or as a volunteer, we will gladly accept your contribution. We’ll purchase food additional snacks and/or put your donation toward the fundraiser. (Checks should be written to ‘Class of 2020’ and can be dropped off in the PTO mailbox in the main office at school.) Click here to sign up! (Make this a link.)
Thanks in advance!
NAMES of Coordinators
Blurb for PTO Website:
Calling all 6th Grade Families! CLICK HERE to help out with the 6th Grade Concession Stand at the 7th grade play! Donate bottled water, a case of snacks, some cash and / or your time. You’re going to the play anyway, why not help out too?
Flier for Concession Stand Workers:
Concession Stand Volunteer GuidelinesArrival Time
On Friday and Saturday the play begins at X:00, and the first act ends a bit before X:00, so you will want to have your stand set up by X:XX at the very latest. If you are attending the play, you will need to have the stand set up by X:00 so you can go into the show.
On Sunday, the play begins at 2:00, so you will want to have your stand set up by 2:45 at the very latest. If you are attending the play, you will want to have your stand set up by 2:00 so you can go into the play.
The Stand
The concession stand is set up as you walk into the cafeteria from the auditorium, on the right. Friday night folks should line up two of the very long lunch tables - the ones without the attached benches - to form the stand. Put the rolling cart behind the tables, and the signs on the glass and one on the pillar as you enter the cafeteria.
The Kitchen
The food water and some plastic table cloths are in the cafeteria kitchen, at the back of the kitchen. If this door is locked you may have to call to have the door unlocked. As the front of house manager - Stephanie Blunt - who to call. There probably isn’t a custodian in the building, so it may be the non-emergency police number, (978) 369-1155.
Setting Up
The drinks, bottles of water, on a rolling cart in the refrigerator just past the ovens. When the ovens are on your left, the refrigerator is on your right. The cart is immediately in front of you when you open the door. Just roll this cart out to the corner with the two long tables positioned end to end. Put the cart between the windows and the tables. Unwrap and put half of the water bottles on the table. We placed them in 3-4 groupings spaced out throughout the table.
We borrowed some baskets from the kitchen. Please don’t borrow anything without remembering where to put it back. And don’t borrow bowls or dishes unless you plan to clean and return them by Monday before school starts, we did not seek permission to use them. The baskets are on a tall rack just inside the loading doors to the kitchen.
Take half of the snacks from the kitchen open the packages. Place the snacks in groups or in the baskets, and place them throughout the table. Keep extra snacks on the top of the rolling cart, you are probably going to need them. (Keep packaging for left overs.) Once the snacks and water are in place on the tables, cover it all with the plastic table cloths.
Cash Boxes
TREASURER NAME will bring you a cash box, with small bills to make change, 45 minutes into the show. Everything is $1.00, so it is really simple. You should ask FRONT OF HOUSE MANAGER, at the ticket and swag table for a second cash box. You can get it from her just before the show starts. She/he will leave their money in the cash box, you just need to return it to her with the same amount of money that was in it when she/he gave it to you. If you are not the last shift, give her/him your large bills as the small bills will be helpful for the next shift. Space the cash boxes out along the table so you can reach as many customers as possible.
Once the sale is done give the front desk cash box, with the amount of money that was originally in this box, back to Stephanie Blunt. Put the money from the first cash box into the one TREASURER NAME gave you and give it to TREASURER NAME, don’t leave the cash boxes unattended.
Running the Sale
You should be at the table before the last song of the first act is complete. People will be at the concession stand immediately. You will want all of your crew in place because the sale is fast and furious! It is a busy burst and then it’s over. But the kids like it and it’s not hard if you are ready for the customers! I recommend an adult at each cash box, who can quickly make change for larger bills.
Closing Down
For Friday and Saturday: Once the sale is over, pack up the left overs and return them to where you got them in the kitchen. Water cart goes back into the refrigerator, snacks and folded table cloths go the kitchen, and baskets go back on the rack if you used them. Throw away trash and make sure concession area is tidy. Leave the signs up for the next shift.
For Sunday: As the last shift, please put any remaining snacks and water on one table with as sign saying it is for the Cast Party (print page below). There is a bag of paper towels and cleaning products, you can leave this with the left over snacks and water. Take the signs down, throw away trash and return the rolling cart and baskets to the kitchen. Leave the concession stand area clean.
Staff and Volunteer Thank You
Email or note to Physical Plant:
Dear Nancy,
Thank you for helping us with the logistics for the concession stand for the 7th grade play. We had a great time selling our snacks and we raised $XXX. for the 6th grade! We appreciate your assistance!
Sincerely,
NAME
Email or note to Food Services Director:
Dear Sue,
Thank you for helping us with the logistics for the concession stand for the 7th grade play. And for letting us set up shop in the cafeteria! We had a great time selling our snacks and we raised $XXX. for the 6th grade! We appreciate your assistance!
Sincerely,
NAME
Email to families who donated time, food, water and money (you can send this from Sign Up Genius):
Well that was fun! We just wanted to say thank you for helping out with the 6th Grade Concession Stand for the 7th Grade Play! We had so much fun that each shift felt like just a few minutes. And we had more food than customers, so everyone was happy! Hopefully you had a great time too. The stand raised $XXX for the 6th grade. These funds will go towards purchasing the rights and producing the play next year and ultimately to support the many educational activities for our children when they are in 8th grade. Thanks so much for helping out!
NAMES