When I first started my event planning business over ten years ago, I never envisioned myself planning and executing an event for an NFL player, but a few weeks ago I was contacted by Deebo Samuel Sr.’s manager to do exactly that.
Yes, that Deebo. Wide receiver for the San Francisco 49ers and one of the top players in the league. One of the stars of the net Netflix special Receiver. Second round pick of the 2019 draft. And a Spartanburg native who played for the University of South Carolina.
I might be a loud and proud Bucs fan, but there was no way I was passing up such an incredible opportunity. Deebo wanted to plan a community, kids-focused day in Spartanburg with the goal of thanking his hometown for their support and giving back to the youth.
The event date was set for July 20, which meant we had under three weeks to find vendors, determine logistics and get everything set for what was dubbed Deebo Day. It was a big ask, but I knew the incredible J. Leigh Events team could handle it. We immediately got to work and managed to pull it off!
A big part of our role for this event was finding and coordinating with vendors for the event, which was set up to be like a “field day” at a large park and multi use field in Spartanburg. We were able to secure face painters, a balloon artist and an airbrush artist through PB&J Entertainment. The kids loved being able to get 49ers designs, Gamecock designs and other fun designs painted on them, and the balloon artists created another “item” that kids got to take home with them to remember the fun by.
Another hit was the video game bus courtesy of Rolling Video Games of Columbia. All throughout the event there were kiddos inside and outside the bus playing different types of games together.
Crafts are always a fun part of any community event. East Main Crafts of Spartanburg set up with a painting station that youngsters of all ages enjoyed. And, of course, bounce houses and other inflatable games are a must when working with kids. We rented a few kinds for the kids to play in, including one with a slide, one with basketball hoops, and a more traditional bounce house. They were rarely empty until the star of the show, Deebo, hit the field.
Families who registered for the event were given a drawstring backpack with goodies inside, including an official photo of Deebo in action courtesy of Fanactics, a Gamecocks bracelet, a Raising Cane’s waterbottle and a small Raising Cane’s football. They also received a Deebo Day t-shirt and food and dessert tickets to be used at the food trucks involved: The Cheez Press, Procs Kitchen, Local Pie Pizza Co., Sweets On The Run, It's Poppin Gourmet Kettle Korn and Kona Ice of East Greer all did a phenomenal job!
We have to give a shoutout to QC Lights for the Deebo Day marquee letters and Perfectly Wrapped Balloons for the 49ers themed balloon arch and decor. So many folks took photos by the letters, helping us spread the word about the event!
Kids and their parents began arriving early for the event, which started at 2 p.m. sharp. It was so cool to see the excitement from the Spartanburg community, but we didn’t know that was just a warm up. When Deebo and his entourage arrived at about 3:30 p.m. the kids (and their grown ups) went wild!
Deebo did an incredible job talking with the attendees, posing for pictures and signing items while also trying to walk around and enjoy the event himself. He even went up on the Sweets On The Run truck and enjoyed a snack, passing out a few desserts to those with dessert tickets. Afterwards he spent time throwing passes to some of the kids before he helped us call out raffle winners. Attendees had the chance to enter to win Beats headphones and speakers as well as signed footballs and jerseys from Deebo and other gear from the 49ers.
Overall we had around 500 attendees, which was our goal for the event. It was a huge success, but we also learned so much to help make the day even better next year. For example, rather than give swag away to those who register ahead of time, next year we’ll give it away to those in line first to help ensure we don’t end up with leftover items. We’ll also adjust the event layout with a stage so that everyone can see Deebo better while he’s at the mic.
All-in-all, I am so grateful for the J. Leigh Events team who worked tirelessly to pull off an incredible event in a very short amount of time. Without their hard work at all events we wouldn’t have gotten this event in the first place. I’m also so thankful Deebo and his team trusted us with the event and worked on their end to make sure we had everything we needed to make it successful.
What a blast! Any other professional athletes want to hire us for a community event? 😉
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