Category Archives: Organizing

Matthew Code – A useful guide for addressing conflicts in our camp

October 3, 20142014 Burning Man, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

Everyone putting their feet in

Many Christian Science schools and colleges, branch churches, societies, organizations, prison ministries and informal groups have adopted the “Matthew Code” as a way to resolve misunderstandings and disputes. I propose Christian Science at Burning Man adopt the Matthew Code as well as a formal policy of our group.

— Loren M

The Matthew Code is based on words in the Bible by Christ Jesus:

Matthew 18: 15-17 (KJV) : (“The Matthew Code”)

“if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican”

The process is in four steps:

First, go to the person involved alone, not tell it to others. Try to work it out.

Second, If it cannot be worked out, bring another one or two others to talk to the person to try to work it out, still in private except for the people concerned. That is to show the person that the issue is larger than one person’s grievance, that it has agreement from others.

Third, If the issue still cannot be resolved, tell it to the group and try to work it out in the group.

Fourth, if the issue still cannot be resolved and the party or parties cannot “hear” the grievance/issue/problem/communication that party or parties is given a time out from participation in the group.

Final preparations for our trip [Photos] – Leaving this Friday / Saturday for Burning Man 2014!

August 19, 20142014 Burning Man, Building, Camp, Logistics, News, Organizing, PhotosGabriel Serafini

We had a great work party last weekend with participants coming by the Berkeley CSO on both Saturday and Sunday. Our packing and organization is much better this year. A big THANK YOU of gratitude to all who have helped us get to Burning Man this year.

Here are some pictures of our recent preparations as we get ready to leave:

Berkeley CSO “Before” picture

Testing one of the tents

Yep, we have all the pieces!

Materials for our camp – shade structure supports, tent poles

Yes, we have ze zip ties… and also ze books!

Sorting, organizing, packing

Staging our camp stuff

30′ dome tent poles

Buying bits for bike racks for camp

Delivering water barrels and bike

Amanda is happy to be joining this year!

Foot washing supplies

More gear arrives

Lots of foot washing tubs

And books to gift…

Bike rack parts

Cutting bike rack end pieces

Water drop shape

Truing wheels

Bike maintenance

3 new water barrels (recycled)

3 more Burner bikes for our out of town participants

Assembling the shower structure

Photos by Gabriel and Mist-er.

3 weeks until Burning Man! Notes from tonight’s call (* including TO-DO items for you)

August 3, 20142014 Burning Man, Foot Washing, Logistics, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

You bring love from my feet to my heart -- Alana — You bring love from my feet to my heart — Alana

Thanks everyone for being part of the call tonight. For those who were not able to join, here are notes from the call:

Books donated (estimated totals, we know there are more in Reno waiting for us and in transit):
Bibles: 50+
S&H: 90+

A HUGE THANK YOU to everyone who has helped raise awareness of our mission and helped with fundraising. This year we’re hoping to wash 1,000 people’s feet, and still have some additional expenses we would like to cover. The supply truly is there, and thank you to everyone who has been supporting this project metaphysically.

5 people have volunteered to participate in helping the group acquire 1 additional ticket in the upcoming OMG sale. Please make sure you have registered for it by tomorrow at 12pm (when OMG sale registration closes). Patricia will email if we need to change the plan of having everyone who can try for 1 ticket each. http://profiles.burningman.com

All local Bay Area participants (and friends) who do not have previous hard commitments will gather at the Berkeley CSO (2601 Durant Avenue, Berkeley CA 94704) on Sunday 8/10 (1 week from today) starting at 12pm to do the initial shake-out of our major camp pieces (tent, shade structure) and to also take inventory and begin organizing. Food will be provided. Please feel free to invite any friends who might be interested in helping us out.

Everyone else is encouraged to be part of the regular 5pm PST group call, which will be focused on metaphysical preparation, inspiration and sharing.

Please take care of your personal packing needs soon — Burning Man will be upon us sooner than you think! Start taking personal inventory of what you have and what you still need to get. Particularly if you are in the Bay Area, local stores will start selling out of Burning Man related gear soon, so get what you need now!

Read the official Burning Man Survival Guide yet? http://survival.burningman.com

Transportation assignments:

Berkeley Rental Truck
Gabriel (driver)
Amanda

Berkeley Car #1
Cristi (driver)
Drea
Julian
Genevieve

Berkeley Car #2
Anna Lisa (driver)
Rachel
Mark
Alexis
Loren
Patricia (return from Burning Man)

Tennessee RV
Mike
Nancy

LA
Michael
Ansley

Reno Burner Bus
John Tyler (round-trip)
Michelle (round-trip)
Patricia (one-way in)

Number for next week’s metaphysical call:

(619) 326-2772
Access code: 1246521

Agenda: Metaphysical preparation

THANKS EVERYBODY, and see you all in 3 weeks on the playa!!!

)'(

Gabriel

P.S. Please ask anyone you can think of to sign up for our Prayer Watch team: http://doodle.com/hpecc4kux5qf9tb2

Agenda for Sunday 7/27/14 – 5pm CS@Burning Man Conference Call

July 25, 20142014 Burning Man, Christian Science, Foot Washing, Logistics, News, Organizing, TicketsGabriel Serafini

I know it must feel like it was just yesterday that we had our last conference call, and we have another important one coming up on Sunday. If you’ve been missing these and can be on the next few calls that would be great… it really helps the team feel cohesive when we’re all participating!

(619) 326-2772
Access code: 1246521

** Agenda for 7/27/14 **

** Metaphysical inspiration **

** Fundraising update **
– Funds received to date
– Reimbursement request process & expectations (Name, Description, Amount, receipt)

** Tickets update **
– Has anyone not received their tickets yet (that aren’t at Will Call)?
– Who is still looking for tickets / steps we can take as a group to support

** Communications update **
– Everyone please submit recent picture + short bio for Participants page on site
– Banner artwork for camp entrance
– Playa cards artwork for handing out

** Foot washing **
– Be prepared to wash 1,000 people’s feet this year (~5x last year)
– More stations, be thinking through sustainable process, how we encourage visitors to participate as washers and in our camp. We may be playing much more of a “host” role this year, encouraging volunteers to stick around
– At ~1/2 cup per person, 1000 = 500 cups = ~32 gallons total of water for foot washing

** Official Burning Man Survival Guide **
– How many people have read this year’s version completely?
– This is REQUIRED READING for ALL camp participants. Please do this sooner rather than later. Online version: http://survival.burningman.com, you should have also gotten a copy with your tickets if they’re delivered.

** Metaphysical Support **
– Everyone please spend some time metaphysically supporting this camp, and each of our individual participants
– Some are still looking for tickets, some are financially tight, let’s focus on knowing our true and full supply
– Final camp arrangements are still happening, we have an assigned general location, let’s also pray to know that our specific location and neighbors will be harmonious, beneficial

** Next Meeting Reminder **
– Sunday 8/3/14, 5pm, normal conference call number
– Next two weekends after that will be work at the CSO weekends, PLEASE put this on your calendars

Official Burning Man 2014 Survival Guide is now available (and is mandatory reading for all Camp Participants)

July 10, 20142014 Burning Man, Logistics, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

The Burning Man 2014 Survival Guide is now available. All camp participants are required to read the entire guide before camping with us, so now’s a good time to get started on that!

Presenting the Burning Man 2014 Survival Guide, offering all the information you need to survive — and thrive — at Burning Man (not to mention on the way in and out).

The Survival Guide is mandatory reading for all Burning Man participants! Make sure you read it through, and that all your campmates do as well. And keep an eye on your mailbox for the printed version, which is mailed along with all purchased tickets.

Our “Healing Foot Wash Life Truth Love” camp received Placement for 2014 Burning Man!!!

July 7, 20142014 Burning Man, Logistics, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

2014 Burning Man Placement for our camp

We’ve just received word that we’ve been granted Placement for 2014 Burning Man. This means we’ll have an assigned location for our camp this year, and will be able to share this ahead of time with anyone who might like to visit or participate during the event. It also means we’ll be able to send a small group ahead of time to setup camp so we’re ready to serve once the general gates open to the public. We’ll be on Isfahan street, near 9:15. Full map

From the email :

Congratulations!!!

It is our pleasure to inform you that Healing Foot Wash Life Truth Love has been officially placed for Burning Man 2014: Caravansary!

Your camp has frontage on Isfahan and your nearest nearest cross street is 9:15. Your camp will measure approximately 150 by 50. If your dimensions contain a + or – sign, it means you are an odd shape.

It is impossible to give out exact addresses because there are still a number of variables that may occur right up until the day your camp arrives on the Playa. We try to accommodate camps as much as possible, and sometimes that means making changes up until the very end. Don’t worry, because we really do have everyone’s best interests at heart!

We have approved 8 Early Arrival Passes to be used on or after Thursday before the event.

A big thank you to everyone who has been supporting this effort, particularly in a metaphysical and prayerful manner!

Notes from tonight’s Christian Science at Burning Man group planning call

July 6, 20142014 Burning Man, Christian Science, Logistics, News, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

Nice call tonight! We’re getting into the fun planning details now. Please review the 3 items below, you may have a TO-DO item or two.

New time for our calls:
Starting next week (7/13/14) we will be moving to 5pm Pacific for our group planning conference calls. We will also be moving to a weekly call schedule, so please please mark this on your calendar and set a reminder for yourself. It is very helpful to have everyone on each call going forward so we don’t have to follow up with individuals as we’re planning final logistics.

Kitchen Contributions due by 7/15/2014
In the next week (i.e. as soon as possible), for all confirmed ticket-holders, please send a check payment for $100, made out to Amanda. This will go directly towards our food purchases for the week we’ll be camping together. We will track these contributions, and if we happen to get sufficient external donations to fully fund everything including our food costs, we should be able to refund this back (although please do not count on this happening, it’s a big MAYBE). John & Michelle’s food costs will be covered by the group.

TO-DO for Everyone: Please: 1) Send the Kitchen Contribution payment in by 7/15 and 2) Send an email to Amanda confirming you’ve sent the payment. Her direct email address is craftegirl@hotmail.com.

Travel planning:
We started to get a count of how people are expecting to travel to Burning Man. We still need information for the following people who were not on the call tonight:

Julian
Andrea
Patricia
John & Michelle Tyler
Cristi

Your TO-DO: If you were not on the call tonight (i.e. your name is on the list above), please reply to this email with your expected transportation option from the options below:

Berkeley Group 1: (Assuming we receive Placement) – Will leave late Thursday evening or early Friday morning (8/21 or 8/22) and will transport all major camp supplies, material and setup tools, to arrive at Burning Man sometime Friday. This group will build out the camp and claim our assigned location.

Berkeley Group 2: Will leave Berkeley Saturday 8/23 and stay with Reno church families Saturday night, go to church Sunday morning and then head for Burning Man afterwards. If we do NOT receive Placement for our camp, Group 1 will be combined with Group 2.

Other / Self Transportation: Options include: Burner Bus, taking your own vehicle (we have plenty of Vehicle Passes so that will not be a problem), getting a ride with someone else. Specify which of these you’ll be going with so we make sure everyone is covered.

Thanks again everyone, and looking forward to our next call:

5pm Pacific time, 7/13/14
(619) 326-2772
Access code: 1246521

Teams, Tickets and Next Meeting Date (Recap of 3/2/14 call)

March 2, 20142014 Burning Man, Camp, Logistics, News, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

Hi all,

We had a really productive call tonight. Thanks to all who were able to participate!!! Please review the notes below and if you are a Team Coordinator (marked with a * in the list below) please work with your fellow team-mates in the next 3 weeks to be able to present the Deliverables (listed below) we all agreed on tonight.

3/2/14 Call Notes

Topic for our call tonight: Discuss who was able to purchase tickets and next steps for the group. Bring your ideas for what specific team(s) you’d like to participate on:

Present: (Tickets, Vehicle Passes purchased?)
– Gabriel (0, 0)
– Amanda (0, 0)
– Anna Lisa (2, 2) – 1 extra
– Drea (2, 2) – 1 extra
(Julian (2, 1)) – Genevieve gets 1
– Mike & Nancy (4, 1) – no extras
– Alexis (0, 0)
– AJ (0, 0)
– Michael (2, 1) – 1 extra
– Patricia (0, 0)
– Ansley (2, 2) – 1 extra
– Genevieve (0, 0)
– Tonte (0, 0)
– Emanual (0, 0)
– Carrie (0, 0)

Total Tickets purchased: 14 – We will almost certainly need additional tickets, will get them through the STEP program when it opens (or Craigslist)
Total Vehicle Passes purchased: 9 – We have sufficient quantity

There is a LOW INCOME ticket opportunity starting March 4. Look for info about this here: http://tickets.burningman.com

Teams: (Coordinators marked in bold and *)

– Lecturer Selection / Logistics Team
*Drea, Michael, Alexis, Ansley, Genevieve

– Metaphysical Preparation Team (Prayer Team)
*Nancy, Drea, Alexis, Patricia, Ansley, Michael

– Kitchen Team
*Anna Lisa, Drea, Nancy, Alexis, Patricia, Gabriel

– Finance / Bookkeeping Team
*Amanda

– Transportation / Homestay Team
*Gabriel, AJ

– General Logistics / Physical Planning Team
*Gabriel, Amanda, Anna Lisa, Mike, AJ

– Art / Design Team
*Gabriel, Anna Lisa, Michael, Alexis, Ansley, Genevieve

– Communications / Outreach Team
*Gabriel, Anna Lisa, Michael, Patricia

Deliverables for next call:

1) Meet as a team at least 1 time (Coordinators will organize this with their team, off-list.)
2) Team develops (very) rough draft of an estimated budget. Amanda will communicate with the Team Coordinators about the specific info needed. This is due via email to Amanda by Wed 3/19 so she can present an initial draft of the overall budget needs (useful for our future fund-raising).
3) Each team roughs out major timelines / deadlines and top-level items.
4) Team Coordinator prepares brief report (~5 min) to share with the group at our next call on 3/23 at 6pm PST.

Note: If you decide / realize you cannot make your commitments, please just communicate this to either your Team Coordinator or to me directly, and we’ll make adjustments as necessary. Life happens, and this is O.K., but it will be very helpful to have the heads-up so we can cover all the necessary bases.

Teams / Contact Info:

Here is the list of confirmed (and potential) camp participants along with which team(s) they’ve currently signed up for. If this information needs correcting / updating, please feel free to make changes. We’ll keep this up to date, and if you’re on the core team you should be able to make edits. If you’re on the info list you should be able to view it but not make edits.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1J1nf5Ca_ydxJzV8VDq2Z1BORKeDhe0I4qJAYvb6S8ns/edit?usp=sharing

Schedule for our next call:

Sunday 3/23 at 6pm — Please add this to your calendar!

(619) 326-2772
Access code: 1246521

Agenda for next group call:

10-15 minutes – Inspiration Sharing (Metaphysical Team to present)
45 minutes – ~5 minute sharing from each Team Coordinator with high-level overview of where they’re at, if they need assistance with any specific things etc.
10 minutes – Closing, discuss next steps

THANKS AGAIN everyone for participating, this is truly what makes this camp a reality! If you have any questions, feel free to reply or call.

Next Burning Man Call: Sunday 2/16 at 6PM Pacific Timezone (9PM Eastern, 8PM Central)

February 13, 20142014 Burning Man, Christian Science, Ideas & Concepts, Logistics, OrganizingGabriel Serafini

Burning Man 2013 hands sculpture

Hi folks,

Let’s all try to be on this call (we’ve had 2 calls so far for the 2014 Camp and about 1/2 of us have been on each call, some haven’t been able to make either yet.) We have some new people who are coming this year, and people who went last year who are for sure wanting to do it again.

If you’re on the fence about joining us this year, feel free to dial in and be part of the call. We’re targeting ~1 hour for the call. Remember, your participation is key to us having a successful camp this year!

Conference Call number:
(619) 326-2772
Access code: 1246521

Here is the suggested topic, assignment and agenda for this call:

Topic: Mission Statement & Official Camp Name

Pre-Call Assignments — Please do each of these!

Read the story of foot washing in the Bible and think about its significance for our group: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foot_washing#Biblical_reference
Read / re-read the 10 Principles of Burning Man – http://www.burningman.com/whatisburningman/about_burningman/principles.html
Email Gabriel (gserafini@gmail.com) your draft idea(s) for a Mission Statement, or add directly to this document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PWiQ-G_vqkpH3KjKeRFl6NNNvQbZDAjb4wLORWF_VQ4/edit?usp=sharing
Make sure you are registered at http://tickets.burningman.com with a user account so you’ll be prepared to purchase tickets.

Proposed Agenda:

10 minutes – Inspiration sharing time, open
5 minutes – Introductions for people who are new / haven’t been on last 2 calls
5 minutes – Optional, time for any quick questions people may have
40 minutes – Discuss / work towards a shared Mission Statement the group can agree on. This will be a guiding statement we can all turn to as we begin work in earnest over the next few months on the Camp.
5 minutes – Next steps – in our next call we’ll start organizing into specific teams / groups for logistical / task purposes. Set time for next call.

Feel free to forward / share this with anyone you think may be interested in joining us at Burning Man in 2014.

Thanks!
Gabriel

Final Preparations in Full Swing!!!

August 23, 20132013 Burning Man, Building, Camp, Logistics, Organizing, Photos, ShelterGabriel Serafini

We’ve been scrambling to finish last-minute planning, building, preparation and logistics for our trip out the Nevada desert. We leave tomorrow for Reno, where some families from First Church of Christ, Scientist Reno will be hosting us Saturday night. We’re planning on attending church on Sunday, answering questions and doing final shopping & prep, then leaving for the playa early Sunday morning, probably around 4am so we can arrive at sunrise. THANK YOU to everyone who has been supporting our efforts, and we are welcoming online donations to help cover costs if you’re so inclined. Our Prayer Watch calendar is filling up for the week, feel free to add your name and sign up for a slot.