Review: 2009 Bark Around the Park
Review: Bark Around the Park
The 20th Annual Bark Around the Park event was held at Millbrook Exchange Park on Saturday, April 18th, from 11:00am to 3:00pm. For Friends of Millbrook Dog Park, this has traditionally been our primary fund-raising event of the year and this year was no exception.
Like any other vendor attending, Friends of Millbrook Dog Park had purchased a booth which provided us with a reserved space, a table, and two chairs. Our volunteers arrived around 9:00am, carried the tent and all materials onto the field, and began setting up for what we hoped would be a very pleasant and not-too-hot day.
In addition to things we have offered in previous years such as the dog kissing booth and dog bandannas, this year we had items on display from our brand new Friends of Millbrook Dog Park On-Line Store. Rather than selling t-shirts from our booth, which requires a significant up-front investment, we provided anyone interested in one of our shirts with the address where t-shirts and other items can be ordered on-line and shipped directly to someone's home.
Operationally, this year's Bark Around the Park was different than in past years. Vendors who drove vehicles onto the field for setup were required to park in a special area behind one of the softball fields and their vehicles had to remain there for the duration of the event. Additionally, vendors were not permitted to dismantle their tents and leave before 3:00pm. For those people arriving later in the afternoon, this was a big advantage. There were several events happening in the city, so there was a mini-surge of people arriving to Bark Around the Park between 2:00pm and 3:00pm. Those arriving later in the afternoon saw the same vendors as those who arrived at 11:00am, which was great.
At 3:00pm, the front gates were closed to the public and once the majority of attendees had left, the back gates were opened to allow vendors to bring their vehicles back onto the field. All traffic was one-way, so there were no traffic jams as everyone loaded up and departed. All in all, Raleigh Parks and Recreation provided a very organized event.
Parking is always a problem during Bark Around the Park and many people had to park at Millbrook High School and walk over to the event. We did have a steady stream of people coming by our booth and there seemed to be a lot of people on the field for most of the day. From our perspective, it appeared to be a very well-attended event.
Thanks to everyone who stopped by our tent and especially to those who donated money to Friends of Millbrook Dog Park.
If you would like to check out the items we're offering at our Friends of Millbrook Dog Park On-Line Store, there's a link to the store from our website's menu or, for a direct link, go to http://www.cafepress.com/millbrookdogs
[www.millbrook-dog-park.com]
