On Sunday, April 14th Manhattan Region had their spring kickoff at a venue called SPIN in Flatiron. This event was a success for 3 main reasons: the cool venue, LOTS of outreach, and our J-Serve initiative. 

First, let’s dive into the venue! SPIN is a ping pong venue that hosts many parties, including B’nai Mitzvahs! It is an ideal place to bring teens together because of its large size, fun activities, and aesthetic setup. The numerous games and ping pong tables foster an environment for teens to interact with each other and meet new people. The venue also had a DJ and a dance floor, and while it was not heavily utilized mid-day on a Sunday, it created a fun vibe. In addition to all the games and resources, SPIN had many lounging areas from bar tables to couches. And the last really cool part of the venue was the photo ops which included a retro-style photo booth as well as a bathtub filled to the brim with Ping Pong balls—both created a way for new prospective teens to interact with each other. Besides the actual furniture in the venue, it also had good food including appetizers such as grilled cheese, Mediterranean cuisine, chips and guac, and good dessert (which is always a plus). 

The second reason why the event had a good turnout was due to the hours of outreach that people poured into the planning of the event. We had 2 calling parties, and everyone on the Manhattan regional board was assigned at least 100 people to contact. This widened Manhattan's usual group and helped us reach out to the large Jewish population that is based in New York City. 

Lastly, Spring Kickoff was a success because we were able to incorporate J-Serve into the programming. As a part of the program, we packed toiletry kits for the migrants who are residing in NYC! It was an amazing way to give back to the community and to add community service into the event to give new members and prospects a taste of more of BBYO than just a game program!

Overall, our kickoff was a success and an amazing way to recruit new members to our region!