With the heat of Relay For Life’s fundraising season matching the intensity of the summer sun, an idea is underway to showcase Carter County.
Amy Hopson, Relay For Life Community Manager for Sullivan, Carter, Unicoi and Hawkins counties, announced plans to create “Carter County-Opoly”.
The success of previous board games created, including a copy of Bristol-Opoly that Hopson brought to the Elizabethton Star, and the sellout of another in Erwin spearheaded the effort to move forward with the Carter County piece, Hopson said.
“It’s very exciting,” she added. “This is the way of showing all the different landmarks to help raise money for the American Cancer Society.”
Hopson said the premise for the board game is simple. Different pieces are available for purchase by local businesses to cover the cost for the game’s production. The games will be produced by Late For The Sky.
“Once the games are produced, we’ll be selling the games for $30 apiece at different local businesses,” Hopson said. “The funds raised from the games will be donated to the Relay For Life.”
Any businesses interested have various options to choose from. Hopson explained the chance and community chest cards are going for $150 to any business willing to sponsor pieces.
Different properties are also up for grabs. Snap-On Tools, First Baptist Church and Carter County Tourism are some of handful of businesses that have already reserved spots, Hopson added.
“The properties for purchase go by how the game of Monopoly,” Hopson said. “Properties like Boardwalk and Park Place will run higher than some others.”
Each of the properties available will offer a brief description of the business and include a background on the history of the business or location, she added, allowing individuals that purchase to learn more about a landmark or business.
As far as the game’s currency goes, Hopson added that Citizens Bank and Carter County Bank have split up the money rights with each bank appearing on a different dollar bill. The traditional pieces used by players to navigate the board will be comprised of different landmarks and items popular to Carter County, Hopson added, while the board itself will feature a flare of what the area has to offer.
Businesses interested in purchasing advertisement for the board game are encouraged to contact Hopson online at amy.hopson@cancer.org or call 423-282-7011.
Carter County’s community manager stated that she can provide a categorized list of what spots and pieces are available on the board.
The Relay For Life night event in Carter County also proved to be a success recently, with the local branch of the group reaching the amount of $50,000 – due to the efforts of the night cap at T.A. Dugger Middle School and previous fundraisers. The total is halfway towards the group’s goal of $100,000, according to Relay For Life co-chair Charity Odom.
Events will continue on through the year as the Carter County Relay For Life aims for their donation goal. For more information, or to donate, visit relay.acsevents.org online and search for Carter County.