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Team Captain Checklist
A team captain leads a team of 8 to 15 people to participate in the Relay for Life,
raise money, and increase awareness of the fight against cancer. To get started,
please
contact us
to request a team captain packet be mailed to you, or attend the next
team captain meeting
and pick one up. Whether you are a new team captain or a "seasoned veteran"
of Relay, the checklists below should help you and your team be successful!
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We recommend finding at least eight people - friends, family, or coworkers - for your team. Use
blast emails and flyers to help get the word out. Ask people you know and people you don't
know. Get your workplace involved. Invite management to form or sponsor a team.
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Recruit members who can share the responsibilities of running the team. To avoid overload,
divide up responsibilities, including recruitment (recruits new members for the team),
logistics (organizes team activities and sets up the day of Relay), registration (ensures
that all team members register online or turn in a paper registration form and fees), and
fundraising (organizes team fundraisers). Be creative!
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Find a co-captain to help you manage team responsibilities. Look for someone who is
passionate and willing to learn, and who could eventually captain the team.
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Register your team online,
or appoint someone to do it for you. Even if you, as captain, may not wish to use this system,
others on your team will, and they can't until the team page is set up.
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Learn about Relay For Life and the mission of the American Cancer Society. Talk to your
Society staff partner and members of your planning committee for more information.
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Visit www.relayforlife.org
for great resources, fundraising ideas, and online fundraising options.
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Attend all team captain meetings. This
is where you get important information about Relay and learn more about the American
Cancer Society. This is also how you "earn your
campsite" for Relay, so it's important to be at each one, or send a team
representative if you're unable to attend.
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Attend Bank Night to turn in money
your team has collected, get your team's t-shirts, select your campsite(s), etc. Each team
member's envelope should contain at least $100 in contributions, and should include the
member's name and team name.
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Set income goals for individuals and for your team. Each member should try to raise a
minimum of $100.
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Try to raise at least $250 to qualify for an incentive prize!
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Use the online giving
system to send emails to family and friends asking for donations. Messages
include links to your home page and will allow supporters to make donations securely online.
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Plan team fundraisers, such as car washes, bake sales, and garage sales. Be sure to
tell us about them so we can help
you promote them!
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Encourage your team members to collect contributions for luminaria
. Include luminaria order forms with each
contribution so candle lanterns can be properly dedicated.
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Plan fundraising activities for your campsite
at Relay. Make it fun!
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Decorate your campsite to fit this year's Relay theme. Remember, prizes are awarded
to the most creative teams!
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Dedicate your team to someone - a cancer survivor or someone who has passed away from
cancer. Tell that person's story and yours.
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Make a team banner that displays your team's theme.
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Promote a cancer message. Talk to your mission education subcommittee for ideas.
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Hold regular team meetings to build spirit and keep everyone informed.
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Coordinate the agendas of your team meetings with the information you receive at Relay
team captain meetings. For example, during your first team meeting, you can introduce the
event, set fundraising goals, distribute materials, and invite a cancer survivor to
speak. During your second meeting, make sure everyone has registered online and plan team
and on-site fundraisers. Use the time at your third meeting to plan day-of logistics and
collect money.
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Share Relay news and updates with every team member.
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Stay in touch with members; find out what they are doing, if they have questions, or if
they need help.
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Tell team members about this website! There is a wealth of information here, and we update
this site frequently, especially as we draw closer to Relay.
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Invite cancer survivors on your team to join the Survivors And Caregivers Lap that kicks off
each Relay. Survivors don't have to be a member of a team to participate in Relay For Life.
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Encourage survivors to bring their caregivers to help celebrate.
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Schedule your team members to walk at different
times during the event, so at least one person from your team is on the
track during the entire Relay.
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Ask team members to volunteer during the Relay: setting up your team campsite, taking
pictures, and cleaning up at the end of the day.
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Ask team members to track down planning committee members during Relay to see how they can help.
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Thank your team members for their commitment to participate. Pass along the information you
learned at the team captains' meeting. Make sure they know where to meet at the event,
what to bring,
what guidelines we all must
follow, and what time to be there. Give each team member a warm welcome when he or she arrives!
Youth teams are made up of participants under the age of 18. Our youth team captains have
some special responsibilities above and beyond those of other team captains:
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Secure chaperones! The American Cancer Society requires that all youth teams have a
minimum of one chaperone over the age of 25 for every five youth participants. Each chaperone
must also sign and return a chaperone agreement
form as soon as possible. Don't wait until the last minute to find chaperones!
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Have each youth participant and a parent or legal guardian sign and date their
youth participation form and return
them to you promptly. They will be accepted at all team captain meetings prior to Relay, or
at the Relay itself. Please remember that every youth participant must turn in one of these
forms before being admitted to the event.
- Have each youth participant and a parent or legal guardian sign and date their money
collection envelope when they are done with it and would like to turn it in to you.
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