Hey Jets Fans,

I know I’ve been late on the draw getting this info out but better late than never.  Here’s a list of some upcoming things to stay on top of.

2013 Fan Club Kickoff News

• Jets Home Opener at Peabody’s
• Game 2 – Thursday Night against the Pats
• Enter our 2013 Survivor Pool
• Seeking Volunteers – Join the Fan Clubs Board of Directors
• Grab a Members Discount Card to Save at P’s and other Sponsors around town.
• Do you have a Business? Become a Sponsor and Promote to our Fan Base.
• Purchasing Fan Club Apparel
• The Marty Lyons Foundation 8th Annual Golf Outing

Jets Home Opener at Peabody’s

For everyone that has already asked and for those that haven’t, YES… we WILL be at Peabody’s for opening day against our home city team the Tampa Bay Bucs.  We should have quite a crowd for the opener with both teams having a strong fan base at Peabody’s.  Of course if you don’t arrive early, I can’t promise you a seat.  Doors to the room open at 11am.

For the Rookies who’ll be joining us for their first time this year, if you’ve never been out to a Club meeting before then boy are you in for a treat!  Being at the Fan Club is as close as you’ll get to a game-like experience without actually being at a game.  It’s hard to describe… you just have to experience it for yourself.

Just like previous years we will be running our famous 50/50 raffle this season.  In fact, I just ordered a whole bunch of new items that should make for a great opening day split.

We are also expecting Super Bowl III team member Earl Christy to be joining us.  If you’ve never had a chance to meet Earl, you are in for quite

Peabody’s has made some updates to the look of our room and put in some brand new flat-screen TV’s to replace the old clunkers that had been around the last few years. So everyone should have a good seat to watch the game no matter where you wind up sitting.  A few things to be aware of:

• The All-You-Can-Drink Draft Beer Special is back. Cost is $14.99 for a wristband.
• $5 Jets Fuel Drinks
• $2 Jets Fuel
• Peabody’s is now a completely Smoke Free environment
• Kids Menu now available
• Updated new menu that brings back some favorites including Crinkle Cut Fries, the BLT, and Potato Skins. (On a personal note I think the updated Cuban Sandwich is the best in Tampa!).

As a reminder Peabody’s is a smoke free environment and the Fan Club always tries to remain “family friendly” so feel free to bring the wife and kids if you like. Of course, if your team manages to do something stupid (butt-fumble anyone? Aw come on… you know you were thinking that as you read it), expect a bit of foul language to be heard in the crowd just like a real game experience.

Game 2 – Thursday Night Game against the Pats

Game 2 against the Patriots comes up fast for the fan club with a Thursday night game on the 12th starting at 8:45.  For the record we will be at Peabody’s Thursday night to watch the game.  Thursday night games tend have smaller attendance but as this game is against the Patriots and is the second game of the season we expect a decent turnout.

Enter our 2013 Survivor Pool

If you enjoy participating in a football pool then maybe our 3rd Annual NFL Survivor Pool would interest you.  You don’t need to be in Tampa to participate as it’s all done online.  Feel free to invite friends & family members as well.

Click Here for details or to Join.

Seeking Volunteers to join our Board of Directors

For the past 8 years or so, the majority of the heavy lifting running the club, creating the content, doing the social media and all promoting has been a one-man-show… “The Festa Show”.

I’ve had some great help along the way including Tony “Maverick” Medina (Fantasy Football, Raffle, Pictures, Road Trips), Jim “Mangold” Stubblefield (Raffle) and a few people who’ve written for our Blog including Jess Duemig and Chris Ruck.

However, I REALLY NEED SOME HELP.  I just do not have the time to do everything anymore and I want to put together a Board of Directors for the Fan Club consisting of people that are ready and willing to give it their all during both the upcoming season and then into the off-season.

Here are some things I’m looking for some help with:

• Social Media Managers (1 or 2 people)
  • Promoting our events and meetings on Facebook, Twitter, Meetup and on our other Social Media sites.
  • Adding Events to our Social Media Calendar
  • Tweeting/Facebooking during the games.
• Blog Content Writers (2 or more people)
  • Writing articles, reviews, opinions for the Club’s blog (preferably once a week – more would be great!).
• Graphics Designer (1 person)
  • Designing a Fan-Club/Peabody’s Members Shirt,
  • Developing new graphics for website and Social Media
  • Possibly update our Logo
• Special Events Coordinator (1 person)
  • Coming up with some fresh ideas to make this season extra fun
  • Help with planning events, road-trips, fundraisers, and non-Sunday nights-out-on-the-town,
  • Working with sister fan clubs to plan outings and road-trips.
  • Coming up with off-season ideas to get the club together for nights out.
• Business Development (1 person)
  • Responsible for attracting new Club Sponsors willing to offer discounts to any fan club member that shows a Membership Discount Card or to advertise on the clubs website,
  • Developing online relationships that benefit the club and its members.

In general, I’d like to build a team of people in the Tampa area willing to help the club continue to grow. People who are willing to “Own an idea” and implement it (like Maverick does with Fantasy Football or Secret Santa).

While these are totally volunteer positions, each Board member will receive a free Members Discount card for use at Peabody’s (10% off your bill) and other sponsors business as a thank you for your help.

If you think you’d like to be a part of the B.O.D. please email me at [email protected].

Grab a Members Discount Card

Speaking of our Member Discount Cards, if you’d like to purchase your own Member Discount Card and receive 10% off your bill anytime you are at Peabody’s, plus great savings all around town at any of our other business sponsors, you can get your card for just $25 here.

Have a Business? Become a Sponsor.

If you own your own business or work for a company that you think would be interested in reaching our fan base of over 600 members, then perhaps you should consider becoming a fan club sponsor.  There is no cost to you to become a sponsor.

All you need to do is offer some kind of discount to any club member that shows their member discount.  It could be a straight up discount or a buy one get one deal or perhaps an free upgrade on something.  It’s your choice and your call.  We’ll put your discount on the site and we’ll be sure to give your business a shout out at every live game.

All we ask is that you honor the discount only after a physical card is presented.

Purchasing Fan Club Apparel

Show your support for the New York Jets Fan Club of Tampa Bay by picking up an official Fan Club Shirt, Hoodie, or Hat at our online store.  We’ve got great Fan Club gear for Men, Women and the kiddies including stuff with the JETS CHANT on it.

If you’re looking for a huge selection of Jets merchandise (over 2800 items) or maybe you just really wanted something that was on display at the 50/50 raffle, I encourage you to visit our Jets Fanatics headquarters on the web. 90% of the items given out for the raffle come from this store and they have everything you could ever imagine with a Jets logo (or any other team for that matter) you could want.

A portion of every sale from both online shops goes to help support the club.

The Marty Lyons Foundation 8th Annual Golf Outing

On Monday October 14th, 2013 Mr. Marty Lyons will be appearing at (and playing in) the 8th Annual John Brogle Golf Outing at the at the Westchase Golf Club.  This is a fundraising event for the Florida Chapter of the Marty Lyons Foundation.

If you’ve been a Jets fan for any length of time then you’ve likely heard of a guy named Marty Lyons.  Marty was one of the members of the feared and famed Sack Exchange in the early 80′s that also included Joe Klecko, Mark Gastineau and Abdul Salaam.  He’s also the radio color commentator for the Jets so you certainly know his voice.

In 1982 Lyons created The Marty Lyons Foundation to fulfill the special wishes of children diagnosed with terminal or life threatening ailments. At this years event they are seeking Golf Teams, Sponsorships, and donations for our Silent Auction, Raffle, and Golfer Gift Bags.  Individuals can golf for $150 or Teams of 4 for $500.  If you prefer to just attend the evening dinner event, the cost is just $35.  Check out all the details or register for this awesome charity event by checking out this PDF –> 2013 Golf Outing Brochure PDF Format

Well, that’s it for me… I’m out.

See you at P’s on Sunday.