Surprise! What I'm talking about today is an emergency kit for your event, not the people that attend it.

An amazing amount of things can and will go wrong during your nonprofit event. You know - Murphy's Law. So it only makes good sense to anticipate those potential glitches and be prepared for them.

Do yourself a giant favor and prepare a "Day of the Event" emergency kit before your nonprofit event. You will be amazed at the effect it will have on you. You will sleep better the night before your event. You will also approach your event with more confidence knowing you can handle any emergency Mr. Murphy can throw at you.

While your event may require some specialized items, consider these basic items for your event emergency kit:

1. Pens, pencils, sharpies, felt tipped markers - large, small, different colors
2. Paper, Post-it-Notes, notebooks, scratchpads
3. Scotch tape, masking tape, duct tape, two sided tape
4. Stapler, staples, staple gun
5. Tacks, push pins, paper clips, rubber bands
6. Glue, glue gun, Krazy glue
7. "S" hooks, bungee cords
8. Hammer, nails, pliers, screwdrivers, adjustable wrench
9. Small sewing kit, safety pins
10. Flashlight
11. Batteries
12. Scissors, utility knife
13. Extension cords
14. Posterboard
15. Paper towels, Kleenex
16. Trash bags
17. Feminine hygiene products
18. Small first aid kit
19. Aspirin/Tylenol, antacids, Benadryl
20. Cleansing wipes, sanitary hand cleaner
21. Extra business cards
22. Extra promotional materials
23. Your organization's phone book
24. Exhibitor, vendor, and volunteer lists with phone numbers
25. Copies of important documents, work orders, rental agreements
26. Name tags
27. Change of clothes, warm clothes, raingear, hat
28. Camera
29. Bottled water
30. A no mess snack

If your nonprofit regularly holds events this kit should be permanent. Keep it boxed up and ready to go.

If you don't hold events very often, or can't afford to create a permanent kit, just keep your "Day of the Event" emergency kit checklist handy and compile your kit for each event.

OK, don't thank me now. But think of me when your event emergency kit saves you from an embarrassing or event stopping moment. And then pat yourself on the back for thinking ahead. Because Mr. Murphy gets an invitation to every nonprofit event!



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