Union Depot Holiday Bake Sale

This past Saturday, December 12th, the St. Paul Union Depot held its 3rd Annual Holiday Bake Sale. It took place in the Waiting Room of the Depot from 10 am – 5 pm. The $5 admission charge helped to raise funds for the White Bear Food Shelf, an organization that is doing great things in the northern suburbs. Not only was this a great opportunity to see this great venue, it also gave a chance to finish up your holiday shopping while tasting items from some of the finest bakeries in the Twin Cities. The media coverage on the local morning shows definitely helped to bring people to the Union Depot.

This year, FILO was responsible for organizing the bakeries and other food vendors, along with organizing the Entertainment Stage schedule with baking demonstrations and musicians. There were 24 bakeries that had a variety of offerings, which included cookies, cinnamon rolls, pastries, candy, chocolates, coffee, macaroons, s’mores, dog treats, and bread. There were also vendors that offered salsa, jams and jellies, soaps, and maple syrup. During the event, there was a preview of the Lowertown Pop event that will take place in April, with 10 of the vendors having booths as a part of the Bake Sale. This allowed some additional gift-giving opportunities for all attendees. The initial estimates are that there were twice as many people that came to this years’ event than came in 2014. FILO is very happy to partner with a great organization, such as the Union Depot, to help put on such a successful event.

NBA Campus Pass presented by AIR MILES

For the second consecutive summer, FILO teamed up with NBA Canada for NBA Campus Pass presented by AIR MILES. This three-stop tour played host to some fun on-court games for prizes and allowed students and fans to take a picture with the one-and-only Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy!

Current NBA Players DeMarre Carroll of the Toronto Raptors and Matt Bonner of the San Antonio Spurs made appearances on the court, took pictures, signed autographs with students, and answered some questions from the fans. At the University of Alberta, seven-time NBA Champion Robert Horry joined the tour.

The Campus Pass Tour was a great opportunity for the NBA to connect with college students by setting up these one-day events on the campuses of Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, and the University of Alberta in Edmonton. The ever famous Yonge-Dundas Square was a third stop for nearby schools in Toronto. Students and fans were able to take part in the NBA atmosphere and walk away with their very own Air Miles rewards card, which they can use to build up points, save on travel costs, and utilize for many other reward options.

Pearson’s Candy Halloween Celebration

It’s already that time of the year again! With the leaves changing colors and Pumpkin Spice Latte’s being available at your nearby coffee shop, fall has definitely arrived. FILO will be teaming up with Pearson’s Candy for the second consecutive year to manage Pearson’s 4th Annual Halloween Celebration. The event will be held at the Pearson’s Candy Factory on West 7th Street in St. Paul on October 27th from 4-7 pm. This years’ celebration will include an event emcee from KS95, activities and games, balloon artists, pumpkin decorating, a photo booth, a performance from Norm the Magician, and of course, lots and lots of candy!

This fun event is for both kids and adults, and supports a great cause. By purchasing Pearson’s bulk candy for only $3 per pound, attendees not only get the chance to fill their Halloween bowls, but with all the proceeds benefitting the Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Upper Midwest, they can feel good about buying a little extra candy for themselves. Don’t forget to come dressed in your costumes!

Cavaliers and FILO kick off the 2015-2016 NBA season

After a trip to the NBA Finals last year, the Cleveland Cavaliers are looking to start the 2015-2016 season with a bang, and what better way to do that than to help the fans from all over Ohio become engaged with the team. FILO was asked to help the Cavs on a tour around The Buckeye State to kick off the preseason. While each stop was unique, every event featured the Cavaliers cheerleaders and the Cavs Scream Team, their street dancing group.

On October 5th, the team hosted a scrimmage at Quicken Loans Arena. Before it started, a kids clinic was hosted on a full-sized court outside the arena, set-up and managed by FILO.

Two days later, the Cavaliers hosted the Atlanta Hawks at the Cintas Center, the home of the Xavier University Musketeers, in Cincinnati, OH. A half-court was set up with 3 hoops, along with other activities, including 4 Pop-A-Shots and player cutouts. FILO managed the court and activities from 4-7 pm, before the game started. A DJ and Emcee were also present to give prizes to fans and to get the crowd energized.

Finally, on October 12th, a similar layout was set up for the Cavs FanFest on the Ohio State University campus in Columbus, OH at the Schottenstein Center before the exhibition game versus the Memphis Grizzlies.

It is always fun to interact with NBA fans that do not live in the home city but follow the team. The exhibition games that are played in other Ohio cities gave the team a chance to show fans that they are truly representing the whole state, and not only one city. FILO enjoys working with such a great organization and hopes to be spending more time in Cleveland this spring, watching the Cavaliers march toward giving Cleveland its first professional sports title in over 50 years.

FILO and FOX Sports North Team Up Again

The Minnesota State Fair was a continuation of the great partnership between FOX Sports North and FILO. For the 12 days of the “Great Minnesota Get-Together,” representatives from FILO helped by executing a photo opportunity inside the FOX Sports building and printing a copy of the picture for the customers to take home as a souvenir. The use of a mobile camera allowed the fair-goers the opportunity to choose to sit at an anchors’ desk, stand in front of a white FSN backdrop, or even pose with a special guest like Cleatus, the FOX Sports robot.

The weather was pretty cooperative this year, and that resulted in a large attendance for the State Fair. The activation went from 12:00 pm - 5:00 pm each day, to take advantage of the times with the largest crowds. The total amount of pictures printed was over 4,600, which means the average included more than a photo taken per minute. Other activities in the building included a large screen that showed FSN programming, a FILO-provided prize wheel people could spin to win a prize, a bean bag toss game, giveaways of posters and team schedules, and registering for a drawing. Everyone had a lot of fun and it was great working with the FOX Sports North crew.

FILO’s 2nd Annual MLB Roadshow

Major League Baseball International and FILO wrapped up the second year of the MLB Roadshow, which included stops in Calgary, Vancouver, and Montréal. The MLB Roadshow initiative has visited 13 countries on four continents, including Australia, China, Japan, and European countries such as Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.

This tour showcased a multitude of different games and activities for all ages. These games included a pitching cage, batting cage, sliding interactive, a MLB 2k15 “The Show” tent, a New Era Photo Booth, and a Majestic DJ Booth, to name a few. The Roadshow was fortunate to have former Toronto Blue Jay, Denis Boucher in Montreal at the Fairview Pointe Claire Mall. He was energetic and engaging with the young fans, and even gave them a couple pointers on how to become an MLB pitcher like him.

“The Roadshow gives people of all ages and abilities the opportunity to take part in various baseball activities and try out their skills,” said Chris Park, MLB Senior Vice President of Growth, Strategy & International. A writer from MLB.com, Mark Newman, also commented, “We are excited to bring the Roadshow back to Canada this summer and hope that everyone from lifelong fans to those new to the game will come out to experience this unique celebration of the sport.”

FILO’s responsibilities included venue logistics and negotiations, pre-planning for the Tour, signage production, event set-up and management and handling all trucking and transportation throughout Canada. FILO looks forward to working with Major League Baseball for a 3rd straight year of the MLB Roadshow in 2016.

FILO’s Inaugural St. Paul Oktoberfest

Guests of the 15th Annual St. Paul Oktoberfest will surely see some changes in this years’ edition. It is taking place in Rice Park on September 18th from 4:00 pm - 10:00 pm and September 19th from 10:00 am - 10:00 pm. The move from The Klub Haus on Rice Street to Rice Park was made in order to allow it to expand and grow. FILO is happy to partner with Bruce Larson, who has helped to organize the past events at The Klub Haus. With the success of GermanFest, it is a natural fit to organize another event that will celebrate German culture. However, the two events will offer many differences and it is important to embrace many of the traditions, such as bed races, that have made the St. Paul Oktoberfest as successful as it has been in the past.

It is a natural fit to have the event in a downtown St. Paul park. The more centralized location allows for more transportation options, such as taking a bus or Light Rail, besides driving to the area. The neighbors of Rice Park have all been great to work with and are happy to bring more people to the heart of the city.

One of the other major changes is to offer local brews at the event. This year, beer from Tin Whiskers Brewing Company, Insight Brewing, Indeed Brewing Company, and Bent Brewstillery will be selling their craft beer. There will be a variety of German foods, as well, and no Oktoberfest would be complete without polka. Various entertainers on the stage and TV’s near the beer garden will also be around to encourage people to make a day of it and enjoy the great fall weather.