Sundance Vacations recently launched an interesting SPIFF entitled “When Will the Snow Ever Go Away?” for all employees at its corporate headquarters in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
The gist of the contest, which benefits the St. Vincent DePaul Kitchen in Wilkes-Barre, is to guess what date the very last drop of snow will disappear from the corporate office property. Participants were asked to donate $20 to be eligible to take part in the SPIFF. Employees had to submit the date (one date per person) they thought the last particle of snow would be gone from the Sundance property. The last date for submissions was Feb. 25, 2014. The selected dates had to fall on Monday through Friday only.
The rules specify there could be no snow on the property, which is the entire perimeter, including the parking lot, sidewalks and the grassy areas. It also take into account the huge piles of snow on the property. So, forget anything to do with snowmen, snow angels, snow flakes, snow balls, snow fall and even snow globes. It’s all about NO SNOW!
More than one person can choose the same date for the big snow melt and ties will be entered into a drawing. The ultimate winner will receive a day off with pay, as well a $100 gift card for Ruth Chris at the Mohegan Sun Casino.
The chief no-snow judge is George Tirpak, the superintendent of facilities at Sundance Vacations corporate headquarters. As the official judge and jury, George will have the final say in determining the winning date. This will be the first date that he confirms there is absolutely not one flake of snow is on the entire property. His decision, and his decision alone, will be final. If no one picks the exact date, the winner will be the one who picks the date closest to the winning date without going past the date.
And be forewarned! Do not attempt to use any means, including Quik Joe, blow torches, lighters, hair dryers, etc. to melt the snow. Anyone caught trying to cause the snow to disappear unnaturally will be disqualified from the contest. This also will eliminate all participants as no winner will be named due to the unforeseen technical difficulty caused by the would-be snow melter(s).
On a more positive note, 43 employees at corporate headquarters entered the contest, totaling $860. But, in line with Sundance’s charitable endeavors, John Dowd, co-founder of Sundance Vacations, matched that amount. The end result was that a check for $1,720 presented to the St. Vincent Depaul Kitchen.
“We at Sundance Vacations are pleased that our employees enabled us to make a donation of $1,720 to such a worthy cause as the St. Vincent DePaul Kitchen. And thanks to John Dowd the donation became even bigger and better than we anticipated,” said Kelly Valovich, Human Resources Generalist at Sundance Vacation’s corporate headquarters.
For those taking part in the “When Will the Snow Ever Go Away?” contest, you probably won’t hear any of them say, “Let it snow.” But as all of us in Northeastern Pennsylvania know, snow is always just a day away. Snowfall is as unpredictable as whether the groundhog will see its shadow or not. And here in the Great Northeast it’s not out of the ordinary to have snow in April and, at times, even in May. But, the key is that once every last drop of snow is gone from the Sundance Vacations‘ property, it doesn’t matter if it snows again. Once the snow is gone, the winner will be determined.
In addition to Sundance Vacations’ charitable donations, employees are encouraged to pay if forward when it comes to lending a helping hand insofar as charities are concerned, according to Valovich. “Any employee wishing to volunteer at the St. Vincent DePaul Kitchen should call 570-829-7796, she added.
With this recent contest, everyone is a winner. And most of us are probably in agreement that the snow melt-off can’t come quick enough. Good luck to all participants and thanks for helping out!
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