Youth sports concession stands

[Dizneefamily+4]

Quick question. If you are required to man your youth sports concession stand as part of your child's attendance in said program, how many shifts do you have to take and how long is each shift? Thanks in advance...

 

[okeydokey]

Ours are all voluntary, but we have lots of people who want to help. A friend has a niece in a program that requires participation and they require two games each year.

 

[momof1princess]

Not sports, but this is DD16's 5th year in marching band, and, while it's not required, I work concessions at every home game. The band runs both concession stands, and, if the school sees that we can't get enough help, they'll take them away from us and give them to the athletic boosters (this happened at another school in our system two years ago, and, just as a side note, they require band parents to work concessions for at least one home game per season). It's rare for us not to have enough help, but it has happened. We manage. We have about 10 people who work each game (usually the same people each home game), and about 50 kids in our band (small, rural HS), so that tells you how many parents don't help.

 

[mtemm]

for baseball each team is required to have 2 parents staff 3 (of 6) innings per game. usually each team decides how to divide out the duties, typically works out to 3 games per regular season per kid plus extra for playoffs. usually people are good at stepping up and taking their turns, but a few duds will "forget" or not show up.

for soccer you can pay a nominal fee and opt out. I prefer that!

 

[njmom47]

Quick question. If you are required to man your youth sports concession stand as part of your child's attendance in said program, how many shifts do you have to take and how long is each shift? Thanks in advance...

When ds played rec baseball, one 4 hour shift was required in order for them to return your check. If you didn't work it, they cashed your check. Our concession stand is privately owned, so parents just worked the front. The owners actually did the cooking (burgers, pork roll, etc). They would close it so when games were done, a quick clean up and parents were out of there.

If you are/are married to a coach, you didn't have to work it. Dh coached quite a few years so I didn't have to work it.

 

[Dizneefamily+4]

for baseball each team is required to have 2 parents staff 3 (of 6) innings per game. usually each team decides how to divide out the duties, typically works out to 3 games per regular season per kid plus extra for playoffs. usually people are good at stepping up and taking their turns, but a few duds will "forget" or not show up. for soccer you can pay a nominal fee and opt out. I prefer that!

We can opt out of working the soccer concessions for a nominal fee as well, however coaching families don't have to work it. DH is a coach, so we're exempt. For baseball, the fee to opt out is $150. We have to sign up for 2 timeslots during the season - two 4 hour shifts. If you don't sign up, your player doesn't get his jersey and he doesn't play. Similar consequences if you don't show up for your allotted time. And it's your responsibility to get your own sub.

For one of our timeslots, we paid 2 high school kids (a cousin and her friend) $25 each to cover it for us.

 

[already]

The only sport where we are required to volunteer is our children's summer swim league. Swim meets are very, very labor intensive - we need 75-100 parents for each meet for one to run successfully.

You are required to do 6 shifts (each approximately 2.5 hours) per season. There are a ton of different jobs to choose from, with timing and concessions being the the most popular. You can also select being part of a committee, such as banquet planning in lieu of one of your shifts.

You don't show up for your shifts, you get put on the wait list for registration for the next year.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

We don't do the concessions stand at the swim meets, but we are required to work 2 events per family, but usually get sucked into another 1 or 2 somewhere along the way. We only have 5-6 head-to-head meets, plus the "conference" meet (tomorrow at 8:00 a.m.).

I usually try to time at away meets as the away staffers don't have to time AND write down times.


edit: We pay an activity fee of $60 per family at the beginning of the year. Those who put in their shifts get their check back. Those who don't, they cash the check. Needless to say, a lot of families would rather they just cash the check. I not only want my $60 back, but I'd feel guilty not working. When I was more involved in mud racing, I was usually the first one there & the last to go home. Buddy of mine is putting one on tomorrow night. If I go (it's a 4-hour drive & not sure how long the meet will last), I'm sure I'll work 6+ hours straight

 

[mjkacmom]

When ds played rec baseball, one 4 hour shift was required in order for them to return your check. If you didn't work it, they cashed your check. Our concession stand is privately owned, so parents just worked the front. The owners actually did the cooking (burgers, pork roll, etc). They would close it so when games were done, a quick clean up and parents were out of there.

If you are/are married to a coach, you didn't have to work it. Dh coached quite a few years so I didn't have to work it.

Obviously south jersey - our stand usually has Taylor Ham/egg/cheese sandwiches before noon, plus a daily special in addition to the regular hot dogs, burgers, fries, mozzarella sticks, onion rings (sausage and peppers, eggplant parm...)

We pay a fee, that goes to teens who get paid to run the stand, with one adult. People also tip well.

 

[tvguy]

In our Little League, every team is required to have 2 people staff the snack bar every other week. So with 12 kids on a team, you have a pool of 12 to 24 people. So normally a parent would only have to work 1 shift a season.
One of those shifts will be on a weekday, with the shift starting at 430 pm, and ending at the conclusion of the last game, which can be as late as 8:45 or so depending on susnet time, so up to about 4 1/2 hours.
The second of those shifts would be on a Saturday, one of three possible shifts, 9 am to Noon, Noon to 3 pm, or 3 pm until the last game is complete, which normally would be about 3 hours, but since they can play until sunset, it could run unti. 8:45. There is no time limit in our league on games, as long as no inning starts after official sunset, and the umpire thinks it is safe, the game can continue.
Your shift is never on the day your team plays during the week, and never at the same time as your team is playing on Saturday.

 

[indimom]

Soccer required 2 four-hour shifts per family. You could pay a fee and opt out, but it was an easy requirement, so we just worked the shifts.

Not sure about peewee football. They only asked for one type of service per family, and DH coached so I never worked the concessions. I suspect it was similar to soccer.

Wrestling was labor intensive. They need a lot of help on the floor organizing the matches and keeping the mats running smoothly in order to get so many kids through in as short a time as possible. You had the standard concession at the regular meets.
And you also had weekend tournaments (four or more schools) that would last all day. You needed to provide real food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We had a cafeteria line, plus the standard concession "junk". I can't say how much time was required, but it was more than the other sports, and I know we volunteered even more than the requirement.

High school football requires 2 shifts in the concession stands and one shift washing the laundry.

 

[JVL1018]

Well, if everyone did their part, in Little League, each parent would need to take 1 game. However, most parents just never do it. Last year, I probably did 10-12 games.
This year I refused to keep picking up the slack and did like 4 total.

Rec Football is so busy, we don't ask parents to volunteer because having someone in there who doesn't know what they're doing due to never having been in there slows everything down. But if they offer, they're certainly welcomed.

So we have the same 10 people who are in and out. Leave to watch their sons game, in for the other 2 games.

Last year, I worked the PeeWee(3rd and 4th grades) and Senior(7th and 8th grade)games every week. Watched the Junior game since that was my son. And I did come out at halftime of the senior game to watch my daughters half time routine with her cheering squad.

When it's freezing cold or raining, all of a sudden there's a big influx of moms who want to help.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Quick question. If you are required to man your youth sports concession stand as part of your child's attendance in said program, how many shifts do you have to take and how long is each shift? Thanks in advance...

For my son's tee-ball, the whole league (up to age 17) was responsible.

So in one season, my son's individual team only had to have 2 shifts covered the whole season. I think the shifts were 3 hours.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Quick question. If you are required to man your youth sports concession stand as part of your child's attendance in said program, how many shifts do you have to take and how long is each shift? Thanks in advance...

We don't require any. However, time worked is credited toward fees owed.

 

[penn19]

None here. The concession stands are run by either the city or privately run. Now in middle and high school they do ask for volunteers. And if they don't get enough volunteers they won't open during that game. I don't know that it has ever happened.

 

[LBIJim]

Older daughter played HS soccer and softball. I don't think they even had concession stands for those. Maybe a parent selling cold drinks from a cooler in the back of their SUV.

Younger daughter was in marching band. During football games, parents of the players staffed the concession stands. They had two or three band competitions at her HS each year. Band parents volunteered; there was no requirement or opt-out fee. There always seemed to be an overabundance of parents willing to help out.

When I played HS baseball, the female groupie students ran the concession stand. For Little League baseball, I don't think there was a requirement for parents per se; maybe just some arm twisting.

 

[bigbabyblues]

My DS plays varsity soccer for his school. Parents are asked to take one game in the concession stand. Some of us do more than one to help out during the season. We do not pay tp play, and uniforms are provided. I don't mind at all to tale a turn.

 

[pooh4evr]

For CYC (Catholic Youth something ) basically church league- it is usually 1 shift per kid for each season they are signed up. So we have 3 girls when they all play soccer in the fall we will be assigned 3 shift of 3-5 hours each. Unless you are a coach then you don't have a shift for that kid. Same for Basketball and softball seasons. You write a check for $100 per kid that is cashed if you don't show up for your assigned shift. Or you can opt out for $95.
For their club/select/travel (whatever you want to call it)Soccer and basketball teams - nothing. I think you can work the main league stand at their complex and it goes to your league dues or something but we never have. I wouldn't mind working the stand at the club fields during practices- i am there at least 3 nights a week anyway, may as well get some money off of the club fees.

 

[sasywtch]

This was one area that got my dander up in my younger parenting days.

In the day (my son is now 35), my now exH was president of Little League and I was head of the snackbars. We had 3 fields, 3 snackbars. I spent my Saturdays or Sundays at PriceClub (think Costco) buying huge bags of chips, boxes of candy, gum, sunflower seeds on and on....then going and unloading to each one. On game day, I had to hope the parents would be there, drop off the cash box and count with one parent, then go to the other 2. End of the day, I had to do in reverse.

The teams had 4 days during 3 months. One game day, one non game day as you had parents who would only do during their game, only no game. That is 8 parents from a team over 3 months.

I can't tell you how many excuses I heard, I had people tell me they had to leave immediately when their kid's game was over and not helping to clean because they had to get home to make their kids dinner. My kids lived on hot dogs and nachos probably 4 nights out of 5 because a parent could not stay and clean 1 night during the entire season.

If any of you are just starting little league, bobbysox or whatever, just remember that if you are asked to do one night, keep in mind there is someone spending every weekend, loading/unloading, cleaning, probably not getting home to make their own kids dinner for months. Snackbars,especially the soda if fountain brings in a lot of money for the league.

**and yes, I heard that I volunteered. Yes I did because no one else would.

 

[EMAW_KSU]

Quick question. If you are required to man your youth sports concession stand as part of your child's attendance in said program, how many shifts do you have to take and how long is each shift? Thanks in advance...

At the swim meet we are hosting this weekend my wife is signed up to work at the concession stand from 7 AM to 5 PM on Friday and Saturday.