Intro: [00:00:00] Welcome to Let’s Talk About Your Breasts, a podcast brought to you by The Rose Breast Imaging Center of Excellence and a Texas treasure. I’m Dorothy Gibbons, your host and co-founder of The Rose. During this season, you’ll also be hearing from co-host Roxann Hayford and others as we bring you stories from survivors, physicians, caregivers, researchers, employees, and supporters. These are real people sharing difficult times, celebrations, and personal stories of hope, despair, and faith. We welcome your suggestions, and we would also love to hear about your story. Thank you for joining us, and thank you for supporting The Rose and our mission. Together, we are saving lives.
Roxann: Hi, Shannon. Thank you so much for joining us on Let’s Talk About Your Breasts.
Shannon: Appreciate it. Thanks for having me, all the way from the upstairs.
Roxann: Yeah. Exactly. It was a hike. Um, so, uh, for our listeners, why don’t you tell [00:01:00] us a little bit about your role here at The Rose?
Shannon: Sure. So my name is Shannon, and I am the special events manager at The Rose. So what does that entail is really under our fundraising umbrella. So any fundraising that we do here at The Rose to support our mission, that is event related. So our signature events that we host where we’re actually running those events and, uh, all of that’s under our umbrella, or our third-party events that other people host in honor of The Rose or to support The Rose in some way, we m- help make those all as successful as possible. So we support all of those, and right now we’re about to start our event season, which is all of our internal events here in the spring.
Roxann: Yeah, so that’s why we’re here today-
Shannon: Yeah
Roxann: … to talk a little bit about one of the signature events that you were just-
Shannon: Yes
Roxann: … alluding to.
Shannon: Yes.
Roxann: And this is our Shrimp Boil.
Shannon: Yes, our biggest.
Roxann: So, yes. Yes. Tell us about Shrimp Boil.
Shannon: So Shrimp Boil, for those who don’t know, it is our 38th year, I believe, this year for our Shrimp Boil. Maybe 39. I don’t… It’s… We’ve been doing it a long time, almost as long as The Rose.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: We’re, uh, almo- It is our longest-running event. That, it really started out as a third-party event, where, uh, the [00:02:00] community came together and said, “Let’s try to raffle off this boat,” and I think Dorothy’s talked about this a little bit in past podcasts, and come together, and then it just became one of our events. So of course now, almost 40 years later, it is one of our signature events. It’s our largest event in attendees, in that, you know, we could have 600-plus people filling up the Pasadena Convention Center. It’s also, I’d say, one of our… It’s, what’s super casual, obviously-
Roxann: Right…
Shannon: it’s a shrimp boil, so… And it’s in the summertime. It is inside, but, you know, still, so comfy, casual, and a lot of fun, and much more like a, Dorothy always said, and she’s right, like a family reunion. So this is the one time a year where a lot of our patients, their families, our other supporters, they can be in the room. Dorothy and Dixie are there. They can say hi, and a lot of people enjoy that, ’cause I know they’re like, “I, I see Dixie one time a year, and that’s it.”
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: Which is always good news, ’cause you don’t wanna be a patient- … see Dixie a lot. So yeah, it’s good news when you just once a year can come in and, and say hi to, to a lot of the, the team here at The Rose, the volunteers, our longtime volunteers that come and support us, and have some great shrimp, and listen to music, and have a lot of fun.
Roxann: Yes, and [00:03:00] I wanted to bring, I wanted you to talk a little bit more about that because I think there might be people who think Shrimp Boil is just food.
Shannon: Yes.
Roxann: But it’s not.
Shannon: Yeah, no.
Roxann: It is so much more.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: So tell us what else happens at Shrimp Boil.
Shannon: Yeah, so the food’s there, and it’s great, and it’s, it’s a lot of shrimp and the sides that all come with it, but there’s so much else going on in the room. Again, we take up the whole convention center, uh, interior. So we’ve got the shrimp going on, which is great, and people can come in and just pick up a meal and leave. Like, if you can’t commit, you, you know, uh, you can come by and just grab a, a plate and, and buy a ticket and leave or come and hang out.
And when you’re hanging out, you’re gonna have a good time. We always have a great DJ there, DJ Mike. Um, they’re spinning all the great music. We have a, a, a really great MC you may have heard of, Freddy Cruz, who is-
Roxann: Ah, yes, Freddy, Freddy…
Shannon: who’s been doing this actually as long as I’ve been doing the Shrimp Boil. He, he came on as MC the first year I did Shrimp Boil, um, and he’s been there ever since. Um, and of course, our great auction. So we have a wonderful silent auction that’s also online, so people can bid remotely as well on that, where we have 80 to 120-ish [00:04:00] items there.
Roxann: Wow.
Shannon: So something for everyone. Small items, big items, baskets, electric bikes. I mean, just anything you could imagine. Sports mater- sports items, uh, you know, things for babies, things for grandparents, trips, staycations, everything in between for those auction items. And then we also have a live auction item- uh, which our, our auctioneer, uh, Bear does for us, and we have a wonderful live auction, and that’s always a lot of fun. And then we have a great cash bar run by some longtime volunteers, um, uh, who are d- doing the beer and wine we get donated from area sponsors like St. Arnold’s and Total Wine & More. Um, and then we have, you know, photo booths and popcorn, and we have games, uh-
Roxann: Games for kids and-
Shannon: Like, games for kids, and then we have games for adults.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: We have, like, a liquor toss where you try to put a ring over a bottle, and you get-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: to go home with that bottle. Fun fact, one of my friends one year won the bottle she donated. Um, you know, hey, that’s just the way it goes when you s- when you throw those rings, right? So just a lot of fun going on.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: And again, like kid zone, so it’s very family-friendly. A lot of [00:05:00] families are there.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Um, and I’d say generations.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: You’ll see the table, the grandmother who may have been a survivor, and all of her family there with her. Um, and you know, just, and like my friends come. I know all of our staff, that’s when they all get together. A lot of staff are there in the building, and it’s a very, I’d say, accessible event for that reason. It’s, you know, it’s on a Saturday afternoon, so people can kinda come and go if they wanted to. Um, but they can come and not have to worry about, “Do I find a gala dress?” You know?
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: All right. Not having to do that kind of thing.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: And just come and relax and have some fun with friends, and support, of course, our mission-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: which is the end of the, the really important part of that is how much money we’re able to raise for our mission.
Roxann: Right. Right. Now, um, you talked about a lot of fun things.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: And I know in years past we’ve had different themes. We’ve done ’80s, which was really awesome.
Shannon: Yes, yes.
Roxann: We’ve had different themes. Um, what is the theme for this year, and how can people get involved with the theme?
Shannon: Yeah, wonderful. So this year, um, it’s kind of a ’60s theme.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: So we’re calling it Peace, Love, and The Rose, which of course that’s what we’re all about here at The Rose-
Roxann: Yes.
Shannon: With all the love and, and support in [00:06:00] that room for that event. So people can come dressed up. Like, we encourage it. You don’t have to. Like, don’t feel pressure to do something. But a head- you know, a simple flower headband or a flower crown, um, or you can go in full ’60s gear if you want to. And we have a lot of groups that come in, and they are like, “Nope, what’s the costume? I’m in.” And they’re gonna have a lot of fun getting fully dressed up. We even had the Dolly Parton contest last year.
Roxann: Oh, that’s right. Yes.
Shannon: If you remember. So we have people who come and go all out or, or not.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: So i- it’s up to everyone just to kinda… We want everybody to have fun and have a good time, but the ’60s theme, so flower power, and we’ll be having a good time with that, celebrating that. And, um, and s- you’ll see that throughout the room in our themes and, and the music, you know? That gives us a great music to have fun with too.
Roxann: Yeah. Yeah. Um, so a second ago you mentioned ways that people can, uh, donate things, like for the silent auction. With the silent auction, are there… Can anybody donate? Are there restrictions on things we can accept or can’t accept?
Shannon: No, we-
Roxann: Okay …
Shannon: we really have had everything, and I mean everything-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: under the sun donated, and someone will buy it. [00:07:00] There’ll be someone- Yeah … there for it. So yeah, the public can get involved and support us that way. If you have a business and you wanna do gift cards, um, if you wanna put a basket together, if just friends and family wanna get together and put together some things.
And we have everything from, you know, wine and spa and, like I said, baby items. Anything, uh, you can imagine, we’ve put together. Toys. Uh, people love, uh, people love a wine basket, don’t get me wrong. So that’s popular. But again, all ages and all a-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: and people are buying for their grandchildren. They’ll, they’ll buy things for themselves.
So, um, anything you can imagine, we can probably-
Roxann: Okay …
Shannon: put together in a basket, and we’re happy to accept all of those items, and we’ll take them here at The Rose. And even if you don’t have a basket to put it all together but you got a few things, like, we have baskets here. Yeah. Like, we could help put things together for you if you just have an idea of what you’d like to do. Or like you said, gift cards are great. Like, if you have a business and you wanna offer services, or if you run a restaurant and you wanna offer, um, a gift package that way for a dinner or something, those are always welcome and fun. Um, but anyone can donate.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: And I said big and large. We have hunting trips and fishing trips, [00:08:00] which were great for our live auction. Um, but then also lots of little baskets. And, and kinda every price range is welcome, too. Yeah.
Roxann: Now, for the auction, um, in years past we’ve had a, a vendor help us m- you know, manage that. Yeah. So tell, tell our listeners how they can bid.
Shannon: Yeah. So we, it, it… We do go online, and we use a system, Qtego. So you can register online, which is great for both in the building and out of the building.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: So obviously, if you have to leave, you can keep bidding on something, and we will make sure you get your item.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Uh, well, that’s all given to us, and that’s all tracked for us. So if you can’t stay to the very end, great. You could still bid. It’s all on your phone or web-based. So you can, um… And you can get text messages. You’ve been outbid. You wanna up your bid. You know, so you’ll get all those updates. But if you’re in the room, it’s great too, because you can go… You don’t have to worry about if you’re gonna miss a bid ’cause you need to go get a drink, or you need to go sit and eat. Um, or you gotta go check on the kids in the kid zone. Like, you can still keep up with your bids ’cause they’re all gonna be on your phone. And again, you’re gonna get those notifications.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: “Hey, here are things that have no bids. So you wanna look at these items?” Maybe, maybe you lost out on what you wanted. Here’s [00:09:00] some items that don’t have any bid you could go look at. Um, or again, hey, you’ve been outbid, you wanna increase your bid all from your phone. So you can kinda do that while you’re having fun. Again, you’re not trapped. If you wanna go have a dance, if you wanna s- you know, again, sit and visit with friends and family, um, or, or, you know, or go get a drink or whatever, you can do all those things-
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: And not worry about, oh, my God, am I missing out on something? And you can still do that. You can still keep up with it. You will know who you’re bigging- bidding against. So you can find out if it’s a friend that you’re… You know, if you wanna be competitive-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: you can still be competitive and try to outbid people that way. But, and the nice thing is it all wraps up. Um, you don’t have to wait in long lines for checkout, which is one of the reasons we implemented this system years ago, is trying to, you know, how many, what did I win? What… You know, gathering all those things together, paying for everything. You don’t have to do that. It’s all on your phone. So then once you’ve paid, you walk, show your phone, we get your items, and you can get out the door.
Roxann: Yeah, super convenient.
Shannon: And it, and it c- it’s super convenient ’cause it wraps in live auctions. So if you’re doing both auctions, um, all of those winnings are under your name, and a- actually, it’s under your phone [00:10:00] number. So under your cell phone number, the system does all of that.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Um, you can also buy your drinks and, and, and that kind of thing. So again, all of that just on your phone, and not having to worry about putting your credit card everywhere. Um, you can still do that. That’s not a problem. Um, you can still pay that way. Um, you can even tell the system, “I don’t wanna check out,” ’cause we have some people would prefer to write a business check.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Um, and they’ll also kinda round up and add a donation into that. So, you know, you can control it still. But it’s super easy if you’re like, “Nope, yep, paid, done,” and then when I’m ready to walk out, I can take my items with me and I’m not waiting in line for checkout, which anyone who’s been to a silent auction, especially large ones-
Roxann: Right
Shannon: like we have, you know, you could be sitting around for 45 minutes-
Roxann: Right
Shannon: … waiting for time to check out and have everything together and gathered up, and a lot of times you’re just ready. At that point, you’ve had a great time.
Roxann: Yeah. You’re ready.
Shannon: And now we’re ready to go s- and relax a little bit. So, um, so the online system is great, and again, people who aren’t in the building, maybe you can’t make it this year to Shrimp Bowl, but you’re interested, you can still follow along. Look at the items, and if there’s [00:11:00] anything you want… I have a friend who buys every year who lives in South Texas.
Roxann: Hmm.
Shannon: And she’s a survivor and a supporter of ours. Um, I happen to know her, so she’s lucky that, you know, I’ll take those things to me and we’ll make sure next time she’s in town she gets everything she needs. So we have folks that bid from all over for that reason, which is nice, too. Um, that it gives them a chance to, like, “Oh, I can’t make it this year, but I can still participate-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: and support it.”
Roxann: Yeah. Now, we also have raffles, and those-
Shannon: Yes …
Roxann: Are our roller derby girls coming back?
Shannon: Absolutely. So the roller derby girls from, um- From here in the area, come on out, and they are amazing, and they will do- they handle our 50/50 raffles.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: So that specific raffle they’re handling. So they’ll be running around the table. Again, you’re not gonna miss them, ’cause you can’t miss them. They’re there on their roller skates.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: But they are there skating around. They will get to you, and they visit every table, and get everybody involved in that 50/50 raffle, which if people don’t know, the 50/50 is where if I put $10 in the pot, what we do that we do two drawings during the event, and half the pot will go to the winner, and half will come to The Rose.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: So, um, you have a chance to win. I think last [00:12:00] year we had people who, you know, over $1,000 was their half of the pot. Um, so that’s always great, too, and it’s a lot of fun-
Shannon: ’cause they have a great time with that.
Roxann: Yeah. Yeah. So I know behind the scenes there’s a lot of work that’s involved, um, and I know it’s not a one-woman job, Shannon.
Shannon: No. No, it’s definitely not.
Roxann: So could you talk a little bit about some of the volunteers? I know there’s quite a few volunteers that make-
Shannon: Absolutely …
Roxann: this a success. Um, we have a committee. So tell us about that.
Shannon: Yeah, so it’s definitely not. The, and anyone says, “This was a lot of fun,” I say, “Don’t look at me.” Look at everyone else. There’s a whole group of us that make this happen, um, both internally and staff-wise, um- Making it, uh, successful. But we do have a committee-
Shannon: and if anyone wanted to, was interested in committee, they could reach out to us and see how they can volunteer to help either at the event as a volunteer, but also on this committee. And we have committee members that have been on it longer than I’ve been here, and I’ve been doing this-
Roxann: Wow …
Shannon: for 10 years now. So they are longtime supporters, and they love this event, and they’re great at it. And so they all have their jobs, right? They, you know, we have, like we talked about, the things that we have. We have a bar we’ve gotta run, we’ve got [00:13:00] auctions we’ve gotta run. We got the cooker, cooking team. Um, we have a photo booth. We have the kids’ zone. All-
Roxann: Popcorn sales …
Shannon: popcorn sales. All those individual activities, check-in, all have people kinda that have to help run those events, and we’re very, or those sections. And we’re very lucky that, like, uh, Sharon, who runs our dessert, who’s been on the podcast before, I know, um, longtime supporter, she runs that dessert table. So she’s- got her volunteers. She’s ready to go. And the same thing with Jennifer in our bar area, for instance. So those people are there, and they know what they’re doing, and they’re a great support. We meet regularly, um, as a team, um, to help make sure we’re all on track, and who, if someone needs something, then we can all pitch in and say, “Oh, let me ask so and so.” And make sure all those sections are up and ready to go. But every year, it’s such a re- It, it, really, it, not only does it make it easier, it just makes it fun-
Roxann: Right
Shannon: because it’s a great group of people. Again, it’s a great event. It’s, you know, s- uh, when you’re having that much fun, it doesn’t seem like work, and that’s exactly what it is-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: with this group that we work with, that are just such great longtime supporters. And like I said, doing it longer than I… They taught me how to run [00:14:00] Yeah They taught me a- about shrimp boil, um, because of their involvement f- over the years, in the different years. So we have a lot of fun with it, and that’s why we’re having some of these themes that we started picking up, you know, a few years ago, having fun with that- and, and changing it up. But they’re such a great team. And we did talk about desserts, but-
Roxann: I was about to ask you that. Tell us about the dessert table.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: Because it’s not just a few little desserts there.
Shannon: No. No, no. It’s not a few little things. So, you know, you get this great shrimp meal that comes with your ticket, nice tea and those sorts of things, but then we have this dessert table. And, uh, tables.
Roxann: Tables!
Shannon: I should say it.
Roxann: Long tables.
Shannon: Long tables- … of things that come from the community. Both some small businesses, so some great bakeries that’ll donate that are local to the area, but also mostly homemade desserts. And they are, some are wildly famous. Like, people walk in, they get there right on time because they’re putting their name on that pineapple upside-down cake, and I’m gonna name it, and I’m not gonna gatekeep it.
But there are only X amount of those made-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: obviously, ’cause these are people making these things, um, at home with their own time. Uh, but those go [00:15:00] fast.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: And so there’s great layer, you know, amazing layered cakes, these pineapple upside-down cakes, and then cupcakes, cookies-. rice Krispie, Rice Krispie treats.
We’ll also have some people who make some gluten-free things usually- too, to add those to the mix for people who wanna have a treat. So there’s literally something for everyone- whether it’s $2 or, you know, $75 for one of these-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: beautiful… We have s- I have a couple of friends who make some really amazing- You know, that would cost you a couple hundred dollars-
Roxann: Yeah
Shannon: in the, in the store or with the baker to get those, and they will put those out there for auction. Um, sometimes they’ll put those in the auction, they’re so nice.
Roxann: But- There’s also, like, sliced pieces of cake
Shannon: Sliced pieces- It doesn’t have to be- Sell it to people … the whole cake, yeah
Roxann: Yeah,
Shannon: so if someone… And this, and again, this is where volunteers come in too, to help.
If you wanna support and you love to bake cupcakes or cookies, we love it. Get in touch with us. We’ll, we’ll, uh, get you to the right people, and you can just deliver them h- either here to our office or at the event itself. But yeah, a lot of times those are sheet cakes, and we’ll cut those up into slices-
Roxann: Yeah
Shannon: so people can have a slice, or people can… A lot of people will buy a whole cake and take it to their table.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: And that’s what they’ll have for dessert, and they’ll share that with everybody. Um, there’s some famous brownies that come in that I [00:16:00] always grab- … um, and I take to my table and tell them I better have at least half- when I walk out- When I get back. When I walk out this building, when we’ve closed down the event, I better be taking half of that tray home, um, for, for my enjoyment later. But, um, but yeah, so, you know, everything you can imagine. But and it, we have a lot of people who, like the grandparents and their grandkids-
Roxann: Yeah
Shannon: will make things together. Um, and it doesn’t have to be pink, it doesn’t have to be themed, but that’s always fun too.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: We get a lot of pink ribbon cookies and that kind of stuff. But it’s just fun. And again, just some, it, all 100% of that goes back to the mission. Whether you buy a $2 cookie or a $20 cake. Um, but also just delicious and enjoy it. Um, you know, banana nut breads, that’s also a famous thing that one- Yeah … of our longtime, um, volunteers, Helen’s, been making, again, since the very first Shrimp Boil probably.
Roxann: Wow. Yeah.
Shannon: That are pretty famous that I always get as well. But, you know, so it could be those breads. It could be something like that, or it could be a, you know, cookie or- cupcake or Rice Krispie tre- cake pops. Whatever you can imagine. If it’s a treat, people will enjoy eating it, um, and have fun. And again, just raising [00:17:00] money for the mission.
Roxann: Well, a- and another thing I remember, we mentioned popcorn here a second ago.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: Aren’t there also hotdogs for kids or anybody-
Shannon: That’s right …
Roxann: who might not-
Shannon: Yes, so anyone, so whether you don’t like shrimp-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: um, I, I feel sorry for you. I really first say, we have allergic, if you’re allergic to shrimp-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: which I have a, a few friends like that too, again, uh, sorry, you can’t have the delicious shrimp. But we do have- Yeah … what I, and what I’ve often eaten when I’m there An amazing hot dog.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: Yeah, so, so Louis, uh, d- uh, Ditto Meat Company donates usually those hot dogs for us. So, so again, a kids meal, so it’s a little bit cheaper too. So if you don’t wanna, um, spend $30 if the k- you know, if you have a kid and they’re not gonna eat the full thing-
Roxann: Yeah
Shannon: of shrimp.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: You know, for $10 you can get a couple hot dogs and chips and a drink. Um, and again, so either if you don’t like shrimp, um, or, uh, can’t eat shrimp, then we have something there for you-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: or for the kids who maybe aren’t gonna appreciate the shrimp as much.
Roxann: Okay. Now, uh, let’s talk about the date, ’cause I know normally Shrimp Boil is held a little bit earlier in the summer-
Shannon: Yeah
Roxann: but there’s been a change for this year, so.
Shannon: For this year only, yes. So we, uh, usually are kinda mid-June- [00:18:00] as when we, we get started with our, with this event. Um, and this year mid-June, as we know, in the year of 2026 in Houston, FIFA will be in town-
Roxann: Yes …
Shannon: with World Cup activities, and that’s w- it’d be happening when we would normally have our Shrimp Boil.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: So we have moved our Shrimp Boil. So this year’s Shrimp Boil will be August 8th, so it’s the first time we’re doing it in August. Um, I understand the shrimp will be bigger, like it’s better for shrimping season.
Roxann: Oh. Didn’t know that.
Shannon: You know that, yeah. ‘Cause we do buy, we don’t buy frozen shrimp, just everybody knows. This, you know, this is a, the shrimp that comes into this event, um, is, is fresh Gulf shrimp. So we, um, we’re better for that a little bit, but yeah, so we’ll be in August this year.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Again, still inside, so we’re still-
Roxann: Right, right …
Shannon: all, all protected from the weather, but we’ll be August 8th this year.
Roxann: Okay. Now, um, how much are tickets, tables? Are they already on sale?
Shannon: We can already… Yes, things are already ready to go for us. The tickets this year are $30-
Roxann: Okay …
Shannon: to get in, and again, that comes with your shrimp meal. And then tables start at 400, which is a great [00:19:00] starting point for, you know, like families.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: That’s when a lot of families and friends get together and buy a $400 table. Again, we’re not looking for $10,000 tables-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: that you might have at a gala. So, uh, 400, that’s great for small businesses too, which is what a lot of our, uh, local supporters who are small businesses get that table. And then that goes up from there for people who wanna sponsor and have a sponsorship level of 2,000, 2,500, $5,000 tables, um, where you can bring in more people but also get better, you’ll get your logo on the-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: on the screens and, and shout-outs from our great MC- … from the stage for those there who are there to sponsor. We also have underwriting opportunities, so if you wanted to underwrite the photo booth and things like that, um, or again, like we have donations for the, to help our, support our bar, uh, or sup- and of course the auction items. Any of those things, there are opportunities to underwrite things as well.
Roxann: Okay. No, that’s good for everybody to know that there’s a way that you can help, uh, you know-
Shannon: Yes …
Roxann: at any, at any level.
Shannon: Yes.
Roxann: Do you have to buy your tickets in advance? Can people just show up and purchase a ticket?
Shannon: You can show up at the door. We prefer you to come get it in advance-
Roxann: Okay …
Shannon: so we can plan and make sure there’s a [00:20:00] seat for you.
Yeah. Um, and like I said, a lot of people will, will come in and- Or do curbside. We do still do curbside.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: We started that during COVID when- Yeah … a lot of people just didn’t feel comfortable being in, in large groups when we were able to gather again. Um, and that’s still a popular option for a lot of people, just kinda come in, do that, and they can look at their auction online-
um, if they’re still not comfortable in, in large crowds or just not as mobile, you know- and, and prefer that option. But you can just come in and buy your tickets at the door. There is usually a, a … The day of charge is usually $5 higher if you’d come and do that, but you can come and, and do that as well.
Um, it’s also really technically free to get in, so you could come in and not eat.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: You know, you just can’t, you just wouldn’t be eating if you did that.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: But you could check everything out. So you could come in and you wanna check everything out. You’re not real sure. You’ve never been.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: You wanna see what it’s like. But I will say the table is the best option. Okay. ‘Cause again, for $400, I mean, it’s eight people at your table, but that guarantees your seat. Like, this is your table. Your name will be on it.
Roxann: Your name will be on it.
Shannon: So you can get up and walk around, whereas if you buy a ticket and you’re sitting in general admission, you know, you, you kinda can’t res- [00:21:00] it’s hard to reserve those seats, right? So, uh, if you get up and leave as a group, someone’s gotta stay behind-
Roxann: Yeah …
Shannon: if you wanna watch your stuff or, or just save the seats, if you will. So the table option really is the best option if you know you’re gonna come and stay because that is your table. So you can kinda come and go, and your name’s on it, again, for everybody to see who’s there and, and who you’re with, but also you’re not trying to worry about, “Was someone gonna sit here while I go get a drink?”
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: Or, you know, or if, “I’m gonna go look at the auction items, um, is someone gonna save my seat?”
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: You know, that’s your seat, and you’ve got it set.
Roxann: Right. And so everything, every dollar raised, every penny raised-
Shannon: Yeah …
Roxann: where- what- wherever it’s coming from-
Shannon: Yeah …
Roxann: it all supports The Rose’s mission. Is it one single program that this gets funneled to, or it’s all of the programs?
Shannon: It’s, it’s kinda all the programs.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Which is what we appreciate, is that it’s not restricted to anything. So this just supports the mission at the end of the day. So this can come in handy when we, uh, maybe a program doesn’t have the funds it needed or we’ve used them all- um, because of, uh, the need was so great. Well, then this is what this, this money is there to help ’cause it’s not restricted to one [00:22:00] specific thing. It can go in to help and make sure we don’t say no to someone just because-
Roxann: Right …
Shannon: it’s towards the end of the year and, you know, we used more funds than, than maybe we, uh, uh, thought we might- Anticipated,
Roxann: yeah.
Shannon: Or what, what happens. So it’s great that it’s unrestricted. It just supports the miss- the mission we have, which is to make sure- all women have access to breast healthcare and won’t die simply because they couldn’t afford the mammogram.
Roxann: Right.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: Right. So, uh, so just to recap then, it’s August 8th.
Shannon: August 8th.
Roxann: Pasadena Convention Center.
Shannon: Convention Center. 4:00 PM to 8:00 PM.
Roxann: Okay.
Shannon: Um, so come on and have a great time. Peace, love, and The Rose.
Roxann: That’s right. Well, thank you so much, Shannon, for joining us-
Shannon: Oh, thanks always …
Roxann: and telling us all about the Shrimp Boil.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: It’s a good time every year.
Shannon: It is so much fun.
Yeah. I tell, uh, I tell you it doesn’t feel like work. I mean it. It, it doesn’t feel like work.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: We, uh … And this is the one, I can tell you why it doesn’t feel like work. You’ll see employees there.
Roxann: Yes.
Shannon: This is where they, they’re, they buy tickets, their families get tables.
Roxann: They dress up.
Shannon: Or they dress up. Or they, they come volunteer and they help.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: And they’re involved because- it’s just that much fun.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: You know, it’s that much fun.
Roxann: Yeah, well, I know I’ve even had my [00:23:00] own kids-
Shannon: Yes …
Roxann: volunteer to help out. Yes. You know, popcorn-
Shannon: Yeah …
Roxann: little things like that.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: That way they can also get involved and feel like they’re giving back.
Shannon: Right.
Roxann: So I know it’s just a good time for everybody.
Shannon: Yeah.
Roxann: And like you said, staff is there. We’re all just enjoying ourselves, and it all goes towards-
Shannon: It all goes towards- … our mission … the mission, but you’re also having a good time doing it.
Roxann: Yeah.
Shannon: And whether you volunteer or you donate, whatever you can do, it’s a great event to get involved with.
Roxann: Okay. Well, Peace, Love, and The Rose. We’ll see everybody- Peace, Love, and The Rose … on August 8th.
Shannon: Yep.
Roxann: Thank you.
Post-Credits: Thank you for joining us today on Let’s Talk About Your Breasts. This podcast is produced by Speke Podcasting and brought to you by The Rose. Visit therose.org to learn more about our organization. Subscribe to our podcast, share episodes with friends, and join the conversation on social media using #Let’sTalkAboutYourBreasts. We welcome your feedback and suggestions. Consider supporting The Rose. Your gift can make the difference to a person in need. And remember, self-care is not selfish, it’s [00:24:00] essential.
