Fundraiser fulfillment has begun!

This is it! For the next few weeks, we’ll be packing and shipping everything (and more) in the photo above. Except the tables. We kind of need those.

Rachel and Jenny started assembling lottery prizes a few days ago, and with the help of Maria, Mike, and Brett, they managed to ship out all the international winners’ prizes. We’re using a bulk shipping service, so it generally takes about 3-8 weeks for delivery, but hopefully we’ll start seeing some happy winners posting their stuff on social media. It looks like there will be some epic Tak games taking place–Devi’s Box, a Wyrmwood leather Tak set, and that massive, beautiful 8×8 set all went out with the international packages.

It’s a slow process that starts with Rachel printing a batch of shipping labels. When the labels are printed, recipients should automatically receive an email with tracking information. This tracking information won’t be valid until the package is scanned by the shipping service, so it may be a little while before that happens (don’t despair–no label will be left un-sent).

Rachel and Jenny then match shipping label batches with pick sheets, and we (usually Rachel) pull all the stuff off the shelves or out of boxes to assemble the prizes. Brett, Maria, Mike, and Jenny pack everything up, and we fill massive 4′ x 3′ x 6′ boxes with packages, all of which are picked up at our loading dock by the shipping service. Did we mention we’re so happy we have a loading dock now?

We know you have questions….

How do I know I won something?

You’ll get an email with a tracking number when we print a label with your name on it, which will take place throughout the next few weeks. If we have an outdated email address, a package will just randomly show up at your place. Either way, you’ll know!

When will it arrive?

Probably within the next couple months, depending on where you live.

Why are there cards labeled “SLUSH” on the shelf?

We have extra books/games that we’ve accumulated over the years by switching out duplicates in someone’s prize with different items. Our lottery is truly random, so it’s not uncommon for people to win three of the same book. If this happens, we will swap out the duplicates for different titles, because you probably don’t need three identical items. These items go back on the shelf with other alternates, and we like the word “slush” as a descriptor for them. It’s just fun to say.

Is Jenny really that tiny, or is Mike just super tall?

Yes.

What are all those boxes along the wall?

Those are mostly games, along with some books we have a few hundred of. And we thought all these bookshelves would be more than enough space to hold the lottery items…

Who won the Wyrmwood gaming table?

We respect winners’ privacy, but the winner has been contacted. If they want to tweet at us to make it all public, that would be cool, but not required. We would like to mention that when Maria emailed the winner, they actually called her back to make sure it wasn’t a prank.

Who won the JoCo Cruise cabin?

That winner has been contacted too, and happily accepted!

We’ll have updates on fulfillment on Twitter and Facebook from time to time, and we’ll announce here when everything has been sent out. Until then, we should probably get back to work. Thank you to everyone who donated to Heifer International during our 2017 fundraiser. Lottery fulfillment is always a brain-bending amount of logistical gymnastics, but it’s also the most fun we have around here because delighting people with cool stuff is the BEST!