Joshua A. Andrade - "Houston's about to get a little Hotter"

Joshua A Andrade

Life is no brief candle to me. It is a sort of
splendid torch which I have got a hold of for
the moment, and I want to make it burn as brightly
as possible before handing it on to further generations.
George Bernard Shaw

Atsui Con

Joshua Andrade
Guest Relations, Volunteer

Atsui [aht `su EE] -
1. The Japanese word for 'hot'.
2. The perfect way to describe Houston, Texas.

First, to all attendees, vendors and artists, volunteers, staff, guests, and the Crowne Plaza Hotel; we would like to apologize for the situation Saturday.

We would also like to extend a sincere Thank You. DJ Laen's vision for Atsui has always been that this con was about you, the attendees. We listened to both the attendees and guests, and provided programming that you said you wanted: 24 hours a day.

Volunteers: most of you worked well past the 12 hrs we asked for, and did so with a smile - often a very tired smile, but a smile none the less.

The Crown Plaza... for going above and beyond to help this con be everything it could. The Hotel's representative spent so much time with us, she didn't get to see her child the entire weekend (the baby is not even a year old).

And everybody who donated... including Oni-Con's very generous donation. You are the real saviors of the con.

There were 1,394 total paid attendees at Atsuicon (including Pre-registrants)
Staff, Guests, vendors, and attendees, there were 1,644 at Atsuicon
With your support, the Charity Auction benefitting the Susan Komen Foundation rasied over $4,000
For those who were not at Atsui1, you may have heard of the amazing events. For those that were in attendance, an explanation is in order. How did we end up in this situation? To start with... some bad decisions were made. These decisions led to a $67,000 bill to the hotel. This bill did include tables, chairs, A/V equipment, and a few other expenses in addition to the actual meeting spaces. This bill was JUST to the hotel... it did not include other expenses that we had to cover (Registration badges, printing schedules and maps, etc.)

Additionally, some erroneous assumptions were made:
First - for most large events, the bills typically came due after the
event. However, this rule applies to more established names, events
who have a larger percentage of deposit, or both.

Second, we were expecting more attendees. Just over 1,300 attendees
registered - this includes pre-registered attendees.

Katharine (Guest Relations Co-Head), Isaac (Guest Relations Volunteer), and I (Guest Relations Lt) got with DJ Laen Friday and put up what we could to keep the con alive. Unfortunately, none of us are rich, and all we were able to buy was one more day. Saturday, we exhausted every source we could find to try to raise the remaining balance. When this failed, we talked to you... the attendees, and the reason we had a con in the first place.

You raised $11,914 in less than an hour. Your generosity shocked many people, staff and hotel included. We still owe approx $9,000 for some equipment for the concert. However, because of your support, the hotel has agreed to bill us for the remainder, and allowed us to finish. We still have to raise the remaining balance, but there are many more options available now that we have time. Thank You for that time.

Finally... there will be an Atsui 2. Some changes were being made during yr 1. Other changes are being made now, and more will be implemented before A2. Some of these changes are to improve your con experience. Some changes will be made so we don't repeat our mistakes.

As has been the Atsui policy from the beginning, we will continue to be open and honest with you. This is your convention, and you still have a say in what we do.

We look forward to seeing you at Atsuicon 2.

Joshua Andrade
"meauho"
8/10/2007

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