Need some input for a #MillionsMissing event in Beaverton, OR

My husband and I are planning a small #MillionsMissing event at our local library in Beaverton, Oregon. We plan to set up a small table in front of the library for a couple of hours on the afternoon of May 12. We'll hand out pamphlets and answer questions.

I thought having some bookmarks made up with the ME Action logo, MillionsMissing hashtag, website URL ( am I missing anything important?) would be a good tie-in. After all, we'll be in front of the library, right?

I have ZERO experience or talent when it comes to graphics design so I'd appreciate any input or help from others. FYI, I looked at a few places that make custom bookmarks and decided that I'd go with single sided (design on one side, blank on the other) to save some money.

I looked through the resources at https://www.meaction.net/tools/ and made this:


(Ignore the dashed & dotted lines, etc -- I took a screenshot of online design tool for making custom bookmarks, I think by UPS?)

Anyway, that's all I got so far. If anyone out there would like to create something better - or if you see some problems/errors/typos in what I made! - I would be happy for any and all help.

Thanks!

 

Great idea @ahimsa! Hope I'm not butting in....your idea sounds so good, maybe others could do it too. It gets some message out, and further reference to go to. And, to hand them out by the library perfectly completes this circle. Good one!

 

Hi @DokaGirl - you're not butting in at all! Anyone is free to use this idea and hand out bookmarks at their events!

One good thing about bookmarks is that they are small and easy to carry. I just started checking online this morning so I'm still pretty early in the process. But it looks like most of the places have a pretty high minimum order (100 or more).

I doubt I will give away that many on May 12th so I will have a stash left over. But then I can carry a few with me. So when folks ask me about my folding cane/seat then I can hand them a bookmark.

With brain fog I can never answer the question, "why do you have that?" in real time. I usually carry a couple of fact sheets in my purse and hand those out. Bookmarks seem like a good option, too.

My main thought is that if I'm going to do this I would love suggestions for how to get the most of this idea. I don't want to overload the bookmark with too much info (busy and hard to read) but I also don't want to kick myself because I left off something important.

Also, if anyone has recommendations for which company to use (I've never ordered any custom printed items) that would also be helpful.

EDIT: Just did another search and found several companies who offer smaller quantities, not 100. Still looking for recommendations, of course, since I can't tell what the quality will be like.

 

Hi @NelliePledge

Good point about leaving off the year. I didn't include the year in my proposed design.

And I will also have 2 or 3 different pamphlets / fact sheets from ME Action (haven't picked which ones yet). The bookmark was meant to be in addition to that.

I wanted to hand out something that felt a little bit like a "freebie" -- something folks might actually keep, unlike leaflets which often don't get read and get thrown away. (keeping it real)

I think I might do a poster or sign, too. Don't want to spend any money on that, though, so I'll probably hand write something on a large piece of poster board. I have one sheet left over from a project I did with a friend 15 (?) years ago. It's been in the closet all this time. I was hoping that eventually I'd find a use for it!

 

One last comment - I may not be online much the rest of the week so please don't think I'm ignoring you. I have some stuff to do that's coming up, and then I'll probably rest/recover over the weekend.

So if you post and I don't answer until next week please don't think I'm ignoring you! Thanks in advance

 

Thank you @ahimsa for doing your advocacy!

 

Well, I put in an order for bookmarks today. I sure hope they turn out okay.

I know the design is not all that great but I do hope I don't have any typos or errors like that.

I feel like I proofread it 1000 times so I hope it's okay. I had my husband look at it, too. Crossing my fingers!

There's a bunch of other stuff that I need to do, too, but the bookmarks had the longest lead time.

I have a location picked out (our local library), and we have a table and two chairs, and my husband is going to help me. And I have a red ME Action t-shirt from last year. In addition to bookmarks I will have a selection of information sheets / pamphlets. I need to choose the ones I want tomorrow and get them printed.

I guess the other thing I need to do is start posting about this on twitter, invite some local friends who might be interested, and just generally get out the word.

And I'm sure there's more stuff I'm forgetting. Like maybe I should edit the announcement posted on meaction website? Maybe replace the default images? I don't know whether that really matters.

Anyway, wish me luck! I'm mostly posting here for some moral support.

I don't think anyone reading this is in the Portland, Oregon area. But if you are, and you feel up to coming to the Beaverton Library on May 12th between 1:00 PM to 4:00-ish PM (times are approximate, I figure I can last between 3-4 hours), then I'd love to meet you!

 

I just checked the announcement on the ME Action website and 2 attendees have already RSVPed! Hooray!

https://my.meaction.net/events/millionsmissing-visibility-action-portland-oregon/

 

Thanks so much @ahimsa for organising this small Millions Missing event at your local library in Oregon! It sounds like you are doing a great job with the organising and I’m sure it will all come together on the day. Unfortunately I’m not well enough to attend any Millions Missing events but I will thinking of you and everyone else involved while these events are taking place. Good luck!

 

Bookmarks have arrived! (a bit early, I thought they'd be here on Monday)

I think they turned out pretty good. Here's what they look like:



I guess there wasn't quite enough light so the photos are a bit blurry. But I didn't want to use the flash since they have a glossy finish (flash caused a reflection). Anyway, good enough to give you the idea of how they look.