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Mimi handed out copies of the proposal. She went through each item, step-by-step, explaining anything that might need clarifying. When she finished, she looked each member in the eye and smiled. It was easy to be pleasant with Viola and Doreen, both of whom seemed genuinely interested. Even Wendy seemed to be following along as Mimi spoke. But every time Mimi caught Bettina’s eye all she could think about was that all this time Zeke had his own personal version of the welcome wagon at his cabin every evening. And Mimi had never even stepped foot in the place. Of course, that was no one’s fault but her own.
“Anything else?” Bettina asked.
“No, that’s it. I’ll be happy to answer any questions you might have,” Mimi said.
Wendy was the first to respond, which surprised Mimi. “So, you think we should use social media to advertise? Like what? Facebook?”
“Exactly. The festival already has a Facebook page, but it’s mostly pictures of past years’ events, and it hasn’t been updated in months. I propose that one of us take the page over and begin posting daily and start encouraging other businesses in the community to do so, as well. We can list the entertainment schedule and of course, if you all approve Fatback Bubba we can link back to their fan page, which has like twenty thousand followers.”
“Twenty-thousand?” Wendy said. “That’s really impressive.”
“I know. Right?” Mimi smiled at Wendy, who tentatively smiled back at her.
“This all sounds really good, but how about that ten thousand dollars?” Bettina said. “How creative were you able to get? Because without that money you can kiss this whole proposal good-bye.”
“Actually, this is the really exciting part. Now, I would appreciate it if we kept this among the committee,” Mimi began.
The rest of the group murmured their consent, except Bettina, who just stared at her with her arms crossed over her chest. Mimi glanced down at Tofu, whose head was once again poking outside Bettina’s designer bag. For once, though, Tofu didn’t bare her teeth at Mimi. Maybe that toxic proletarian biscuit actually did the trick and Tofu was beginning to see her in a friendlier light.
“I’ve talked to Doug Wentworth, the city manager, and he agreed to lend the committee the seven-thousand five hundred dollars we’ll need to pay the band two days before the festival. If the rest of my outline goes as planned, we’ll have more than plenty of money to pay the city back. Plus…now, I can’t promise this, but I think we’ll also be able to slash most of the security budget.”
“How?” Sherry demanded.
“I showed this proposal to Zeke and he knows the festival coffers are in pretty bad shape. He thinks maybe he can get the off-duty cops we normally hire for the event to do it this year pro-bono as a give back to the community.”
Viola looked impressed. “Now that would really help.”
“What about the tickets you plan to sell for the concert?” Bettina asked. “I just don’t see anyone paying an extra twenty dollars to see this Fatback Bubba band.”
“Well, I do,” Doreen said. “After last week’s meeting, I looked them up. They’re really popular, just like Mimi said.”
“I know there are a lot of things in this proposal that are different from the way we normally operate, but the way we’ve been doing things isn’t working anymore. It’s time for a change. A big one. I think we can really turn this festival around and make it something that all of north Florida is going to want to be part of in the years to come.”
Viola nodded enthusiastically. “Well said.”
Bettina made a big show of looking at her watch. “If we’re done talking, then I say it’s time to vote. I’ll start.” She smoothed out her features and made a pleasant, but sad looking face. “First, I think all the work you’ve put into this proposal is just…well, it’s just darling, Mimi. I can’t tell you how much we all appreciate it. We really do. But this is your first year on the committee and I’m afraid beginner’s enthusiasm has gotten the best of you. We simply have to stick to the formula. It’s true, the formula hasn’t worked so well in the past few years, but I for one am ready to go out and give it the old Whispering Bay try.”
Doreen looked up from her pad of paper. “So…does that mean no?”
“Yes, hon, that’s a no,” Bettina said.
“I’m afraid it’s a no for me as well,” Sherry said.
What a surprise! Mimi bit her tongue.
“I think this proposal is just fantastic,” Viola began. “I do have a few reservations about how all the ticket sales will go, but I say yes!”
“I say yes as well,” Doreen said.
“Well, you all know my vote,” Mimi said. “It’s my proposal, so of course my vote is yes.”
Bettina placed her hand in the air. “Before we go any further, let me just remind you that committee rules specify that any new proposals or ideas must meet majority approval.”
In other words, no ties. Which meant once Wendy voted no, the vote would be three to three and the proposal would die a quick and clean death, and all of Mimi’s work would have been for nothing.
“Your turn to vote, Wendy,” Doreen reminded her.
Everyone turned to look at Wendy. Poor girl. Her brow was covered in sweat and her right eyelid twitched nervously. Mimi sighed. She supposed she couldn’t blame her. Bettina was a bully and Wendy was simply too weak to stand up to her. Mimi tried to think of any local bands besides Harry Tuba who might want to play for free, but right now her mind—
