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UW Faculty Auxiliary

UWFA Spring Luncheon Chair

We are looking for a volunteer to fulfil the role of our Spring Luncheon Chair.

Responsibilities

The role of the Spring Luncheon Chair is to provide our members with an enjoyable luncheon as a finale to our academic year. The event usually happens on the last or next to the last Wednesday in May at The Seattle Yacht Club (SYC).

The Spring Luncheon Chair will work with the following people:

  • UWFA Board: to confirm the date, publicize, determine level of subsidization, mailings
  • Seattle Yacht Club event coordinator, Meridith V. Gonzalez, 206-844-9723
  • UWFA Program Chair: Together decide who will get the speaker; provide information for publicity; also, Spring Luncheon Chair gives Program Chair the completed program questionnaires after the event
  • Newsletter Editor: send article for publicity in the UWFA newsletter
  • President: Creates agenda and how event will progress
  • Membership Chair: to get pdf of current volunteer /program questionnaire
  • Hospitality: Gives them completed volunteer forms after the event

Schedule for Planning the Event

The Chair of the Spring Luncheon (SL) is a Standing Committee position. The SL Chair will attend Board meetings as the Spring Luncheon moves closer and for the meeting after the SL.

MAY, ONE YEAR IN ADVANCE The SL Chair confirms with the Board the date of the next Spring Luncheon (choosing two dates, as the Yacht Club may not be available on our chosen date, but booking it so early, a year in advance, we usually get the date we want). The SL Chair then books the approved date with the Seattle Yacht Club (SYC) and confirms the booked date back to the Board. We used to have to have a SYC member co-sign for the event, and lately that has been Carmen Robbin, but last year we were able to book without her as we are well known and the SYC can get another member to endorse us.

MARCH of the year of the luncheon. As we get closer to the SL date, the SL Chair then attends the Board meetings starting about March. Meanwhile the SL Chair and Treasurer meet with the SYC contact, Meridith Gonzalez, to select the seating arrangements and the table décor, color of tablecloths and napkins, menus and drinks. Since we have had the event there for so many years, things are pretty well set and even the menu is driven by demand, for example, the Seafood Crepes. The Yacht Club recommends two main courses (plus a vegetarian option) and two desserts.. The SL chair asks for a quote for the meal, the drinks, and the AV equipment use (if necessary), the screen and the projector, and the podium and the microphone.

Communication

The SL Chair communicates this to the Board and then the Board decides to what extent it will subsidize the event. The SL Chair negotiates with the Program Chair(s) as to who will get the speaker for this event. If the SL Chair has a speaker in mind and that is acceptable to the Board, then the SL Chair arranges for the speaker. If not, she can ask for help from the Program Chair(s) and they will arrange for the speaker.

Then the SL Chair discusses the invitations and notices for the Spring Luncheon event with the Board. These include:

  • Invitation with date, cost, time and place and meal choice coupons
  • Time by when the meal choice coupons have to be returned
  • Sign-up sheet for volunteer groups (bring cookies or help at events) and Board positions if not all were filled at the Annual meeting
  • Page for selecting what types of programs people would like to hear in the future
  • Scholarship donation solicitation letter.
  • Record of attendance, payment and meal choices. 
  • Agenda for the event, created along with the President: happy hour time, lunch service, president’s message, speaker presentation, and lottery drawings for the table arrangements.

Before the event the SL Chair informs the Seattle Yacht Club on how many people we expect and how many for each meal choice.

The SL Chair gets the updated volunteer and program questionnaire from the Membership Chair, and recruits assistance to:

  • Staff the name tags table (2 people)
  • Help with AV equipment, if not the one from the SYC, as they provide us with staff support
  • Help with decorations, as we provide our own centerpieces
  • Help distribute and collect the volunteer and program questionnaire
  • The SL Chair also works closely with the Hospitality and House people to award center pieces

After the luncheon, the SL Chair gives the completed questionnaires to Hospitality Chair and the Program Chair. She then writes a report for the newsletter and thanks to those who helped. They will also write a report to the Board of what went well and didn’t. The Treasurer will, upon receipt of the bill, check it and pay the SYC. The SL Chair then proposes to the Board the dates for next Spring Luncheon and discusses the location. We have had many discussions, as the SYC is expensive, but we have always come back to it, as it seems to be such a special place and it is tradition.

Revisions to the Spring Luncheon Chair Job Description should be submitted to the UWFA Secretary and Webmaster. Updated September 2026