If you have an idea for an event, or something that should be done by or for the club, the first step in proceeding is forming a committee. The Lethbridge Medieval Club does everything by committee, including events, workshops, and any other gathering that is considered a club activity. After you have your idea, and have brought it to the board of directors, there are a few things that
need to be done:

Call for a committee:
Even if the idea came from a great chat between a group of friends, calling for assistance and ideas from the club at large is always worth it.

Plan your first meeting:
The first meeting is where the team is going to lay the foundation of your project; it is critical that you set a date, time and location, which can be virtual, that works for all members. During the first meeting, you'll collectively need to:

Elect a chair.
Usually, the person that started the ball rolling ends up the chair, but there is no harm in making sure that all committee members are on board.

Create the Terms of Reference (TOR), consisting of:

    ● Preamble:
What background does the club/committee need to know before starting this activity. What existing policies apply to the plan? Was there an incident that warranted a change in policy? Is there a change in laws that impacts club activities? How does the planned activity fit in with the mission, vision, and values of the Lethbridge Medieval Club?
   
   ● Organizers:
List who is on the committee, and if they have an assigned role. Example: if you are hosting a feast, list the person(s) in charge of the venues, kitchen, activities, etc.

   ● Objectives:
What is your end goal? Is it to create/update a club policy, or hold a tournament, or plan a workshop Be specific, it makes it easier to see if your planning is on target.

   ● Financials:
What are the costs associated with this activity? Is there a known budget? Will you need to request a float from the treasurer? If this is a new activity, is it covered under the club insurance?
Note: whether or not additional insurance is needed may not be an item that you will be able to complete at a first meeting, and will require research.

   ● Timeline/End Date:
Knowing when items must be done so that committee work can be completed. When are the next board of directors meetings? In general, the board reviews items at one meeting, and then approves them the following. This allows all club members to be aware of the committees' intentions/actions prior to approval.

Follow Up:

   Do you need another meeting to bring back items that have been researched? What internal and external events impact the date selection, or ability to have a meeting?

   Example: You want to have a workshop in December that would use club funds.

   To allow for review of my TOR, and approval of any actions, you would want to make sure that there were no less than 2 board of director meetings before the event. Since meetings usually happen once a month, I would want to make sure this gets started no later than September. The committee would meet, elect a chair, decide on Terms of Reference, and then get to work.

After the event, you'll need to perform a post-mortem analysis: 

Event Report: What went well, what didn’t and how could the team improve it for the future?

Financial Report: This is a financial event worksheet completed with:
   ● All income provided to the treasurer and
   ● All cheque requisition forms submitted with receipts for all expenses.