In 2005, while working for Quasar Strategies and serving on the Board of Directors for the Village of Savoy’s Economic Development Corporation, I led the planning for the Village of Savoy’s 50 anniversary celebration. This took a year of event planning, developing marketing materials, managing food and carnival vendors, and more. (Secretly, I think my favorite part of it all was being a costume character for a couple of hours on-site and celebrating with the kids at the festival).
The News Gazette
Firm to plan Savoy celebration
Mon, 02/14/2005 – 3:00pm | Tim Mitchell
SAVOY – The Savoy Village Board plans to hire a consulting firm to help make plans for the community’s 50th anniversary celebration.
The village board recommended at a study session last week to hire Quasar, a Champaign-based company formerly known as Leo Media, to plan and coordinate a festival commemorating the community’s first half-century. Quasar has an office in Savoy.
The board is scheduled to vote on the $14,000 contract at its next regular meeting at 7 p.m. March 2 at the Savoy Municipal Building, 611 N. Dunlap Ave.
Savoy Village Manager Dick Helton said a specific date hasn’t yet been set for the celebration, which will take place in 2006.
“Quasar will set the date, coordinate the activities, engage vendors to work at the event and work with local groups,” Helton said.
While other communities, such as Rantoul, have organized anniversary celebrations without the aid of consultants, Helton said Savoy needed professional assistance because the village’s staff doesn’t have the expertise.
“We’re not event organizers or planners,” Helton said. “We don’t have the staff that is able to give to that kind of activity,” Helton said.
Helton noted that the village’s first attempt at a community celebration, the Enjoy Savoy festival held in the early 1990s, fizzled and died after two years, after being organized entirely by volunteers.
“One of the things we hope to do is to make this an annual event, and we obviously want the first one to be a very good festival,” Helton said. “We need professional help and guidance to make sure this is a success.”
Mayor Bob McCleary appointed James Sinclair and Garry Herzog of the Savoy Economic Development Committee and village staff member Kim Leese to assist Quasar with the development of the festival.
Helton said the village board chose Quasar after receiving proposals from three different consultants.
You can reach News-Gazette staff writer Tim Mitchell at (217) 351-5366 or via e-mail at tmitchel@news-gazette.com.