About That Tricky Tray.. I Just Want To Say_Chapter 13 (Closed)

Use This Post To "Speak Your Mind" About A Tricky Tray or Anything Related To A Tricky Tray. Tell us about the Grand Prize You Just Won or How You Haven't Won A Thing 10 Tricky Trays Straight. Just Click On The comment link below and start typing away. However..no personal attacks will be tolerated.

Comments

Anonymous said…
Finally...A new Chapter..Happy New Year everyone...just thought I let you know that I saw the link on trickytray.com and just voted for best Tricky Tray of 2009.
Anonymous said…
Got my vote in too!Where's everyone headed this month?
Anonymous said…
Happy New Year Everyone! Since my post was the last post on the old board, I did not want it to be overlooked. So here is my post again. (If you already read it, then please disregard....)

I just wanted to advertise the Thomas Jefferson Middle School Tricky Tray on February 5, 2010. Last year it was a complete SUCCESS. We have worked really hard to make it as successful, if not even more successful. We are only selling 300 tickets to allow for (hopefully) more winners for each basket. It is bring your own food and drinks (sorry no alchohol due to the event being held in our school). Last year we had two 50/50 one over $2,000 and the other almost $1,000. This year we are going to make it just ONE grand 50/50. The event is listed under the events on the TT page, but there are also other events this night going on as well. I've never been to any other TT listed on the date we are having ours, but I would invite anyone who is looking for a FUN, GREAT night to attend! More information is on our website www.edisonpublicschools.org/tjms
Anonymous said…
from Nov 28th someone said:

Anonymous said...
I have a question about the raffle tickets. I was at a tricky tray and saw someone take sheets of tickets out of her bag. IS it possible that someone can purchase their own tickets and bring them in a tricky tray. Is there a way we can stop this from happenning again?

November 28, 2009 1:10 PM



I sit at the table and tear up tickets BEFORE going to the prize table--i hate those people who tear one ticket at a time in front of teh prozes--creating a crowding problem....

maybe they purchased the tickets immediately upon arrival and placed tehm in a bag until ready to tear them

but yes, it is easy to but the tickets--both teh large 25 ticket sheets and the rolls with teh individual numbers used for larger prizes 50/50


I ran a TT in 2002...no questions were asked when i bought the tickets...the rolls are available at the party store.....sheets are available at various locations...

yes its possible--but don't jump to conclusions..

I have never noticed a completely unusual number being called---yes they are from a couple differnt sets---but you can usually tell a large group of a set was sold as teh winners are placed throughout the venue-

you may have a bunch starting with 123 or 499 or 367, etc...
Anonymous said…
I called today for Spotswood High School on 1/22/10 they told me sold out and have been for weeks now. One would think if they posted there event on here they could follow up and let everyone know. Lots of people just go to events and get ticket at door and if you know you are sold out do the right thing and inform people.
Anonymous said…
You are supposed to contact this site so they can update the events and add in the sold out notification. I guess they forgot.
Anonymous said…
Ok ladies, we saw alot of you last nite at the East Rutherford event...sound off! My biggest concern was the extraordinary size of the crowd...I was told they sold close to 400 tickets, and even though they may have been within their occupancy limit, with the size of the crowd and layout of the tables it was really croweded. First level gifts were ok, but not great, unless you wanted gifts for children. There were some really nice things on the second and third gift levels. And the most amazing basket of all was the Italian meats basket...I never saw anything like that, and it was fabulous.
Anonymous said…
In past years, events would get their tickets overprinted with the name and date of the event. The overprint was on the stub you used to claim prizes and there was no question about someone bringing in left over sheets from some other event trying to win prizes without donating to the events sponsor.
Anonymous said…
We went to East Rutherford, St. Joseph School Saturday also. Extremely crowded, Im sure it was a fire hazard. While I was on line for tickets inside the organizers were running to close the door and lock anyone else out. That is what I really dont like. If you have a place that has a certain capacity, then you should sell advance tickets. That is very selfish and unfair to all the people that drove over there and got locked out, especially with the price of gas. I know that seniors become very disapointed if they think they are going somewhere and then get locked out. Organizers should really take this to heart, please sell advance tickets if you have limited space. This really leaves a bad taste in peoples mouths for the next time you run an event. On another note, while I did win several nice grand prizes, I would not even consider going to this event again unless they had a bigger venue or limited participants. I met other people I know there and they said the same thing. I think everyone we ever knew or saw came to this event.
Anonymous said…
Talking about people bringing in their own tickets. At the East Rutherford event, the caller announced one winning number that was not like anything she'd called all nite. It had more digits than any of the tickets we all had. Wow...what a low life person that was to sneak in their own tickets, and how unfair it was for the caller to let that person win that basket.
Anonymous said…
I heard but I didn't call myself that East Brunswick was sold out on 22nd. So if your planning on going call first I would not like to find out hard way so I wanted to share. Happy 2010 season all!!!
Anonymous said…
East Brunswick IS NOT SOLD OUT!!

Just checked as of Friday 1/15 9:30am
Anonymous said…
Even in the best of weather, anyone traveling a distance should find out if there are still tickets available before getting on the road and also to assure they get in by getting there early before the max attendance is reached.
Fire code limits are fire code limits and you can't blame the event for selling out.
Unfortunately there are a handful of very vocal people who arrive at the last minute and throw a fit if they are not let in, if they aren't sold tickets and then the whole event waits while they drop their tickets. And since they threw a fit, everyone notices when they win. Odd how a couple of them find it very lucky to arrive late and put their tickets on top.
Anonymous said…
KIDS ONLY event

i noticed a kids only event..is that legal?

i have seen free kids only events, but this one charges
Anonymous said…
What the heck is the above poster even trying to say????
trickylady said…
Quick Question. My school wants to presell the raffle tickets. Are you allowed to do that? Someone said that you are not allowed to sell tickets until the event starts?! By the way our tickets have the school name on them!
trickylady said…
Alan B. Shepard's 4th annual Tricky Tray is March 5th at The Grand Marquis on Route 9.

Entrance is $30 and includes hor d'ovours, soda, juice, coffee, tea, dessert, a sheet of tier 1 tickets and a cash bar. This event is an adult only and cash only night. All tickets must be pre- purchased.
Anonymous said…
hey quick fyi for my tt pals out there on Monday I had to go pick up my ticket for Roselle Park
HIGH SCHOOL BAND tomorrow at Union Elks. I was told no tickets sold at door. So call and check if you plan on going and did not get a ticket yet! Hope to see you all out there with your sticks in the air winning.
Anonymous said…
For the Roselle event, I was just told yesterday I could buy my ticket at the door! What gives?
Anonymous said…
We went to the Roselle event at the Elks it went so nice. They let people in early as you got there. There were no long lines to buy or put tickets in buckets. It really had to be one of the best ones I have been to in a year or so. I at no point ever felt rushed, pushed, or stressed..... Hats off to the people who ran the event.
Anonymous said…
$30 and all you get is hor d'ovours and drinks?? That's a lot to pay. At least give them some tickets. Remember the economy isn't what it used to be. We're still happy to spend some money on tickets but not all of us can afford $30 just to get in.
Anonymous said…
Interesting find on the web..a site that teaches you how to cheat at a tricky tray...wonderful

http://www.ehow.com/how_5337055_win-prizes-tricky-tray.html
Anonymous said…
It seems that there is more and more cheating going on at tricky trays. I use to enjoy going but lately all I see is the organizers "friend tables" winning
most of the prizes it is very upsetting. I went to one last night that was not advertised on trickytray.com and most of the numbers called were in a certain range. The callers would visit these tables right before calling numbers. Are people going out and purchasing their own tickets? Has anyone else notice anything? At one time is was bent tickets now the cheating looks like it went in a whole other directions.
mcauley said…
There is a tricky tray for my school McAuley School, located at Mount St Marys in watchung on march 20th 2010 It is our second and its a lunch in we raised over 12,000 dollars last year for our new school. Very organized good prizes a lot of fun, and a bargain compared to most others going on. I would contact the school for more info and purchasing tickets.
1633 U.S. 22
Watchung, NJ 07069-6588
(908) 754-4114
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Anonymous said…
Does anyone know if any of the tricky trays on Friday are being cancelled because of the weather?
Anonymous said…
My friends & I were just talking about that - we have tickets for the Thomas Jefferson one in Edison. The weather's looking pretty iffy right now. :(
Anonymous said…
we have tickets for Thomas Jefferson and called them. They are still going on with the Tricky Tray.
Anonymous said…
We also have tickets with a full complete table. We were pretty surprised it wasn't canceled because of the weather. We are coming from far. But we're going.
Hopefully we will all get home at a decent hour.
Anonymous said…
Alan B. Shepard’s 4th Annual Fundraiser Event
Tricky Tray
March 5, 2010 at the Grand Marquis on Route 9. Doors open at 7pm.
Hurry tickets are going fast!!!!
Tickets are $30 per person and include:

*26 tier 1 tickets
* Cheese bar
*Salad bar
* Veggies & Dip
* Hot/cold beverages
*Olive bar
*Foccachia station
* Butler style hors d’ ovours
* Desserts by Luigi’s Dolceria

Tickets can be purchased as a group or individually. Tables are available up to 12 people.
Checks should be made payable to Alan B. Shepard PTA and mailed to
Alan B. Shepard School
33 Bushnell Road
Old Bridge, NJ 08857
Attn: Tricky Tray

Please include your phone number and return address.

Sample prizes include but are not limited to
Tier 1
Spa Certificates
Local Restaurant Certificates
Minor league baseball tickets
Tier 2
Crayola basket
Coach Wristlet
Lego Basket
Kitchen gadgets
Tier 3
Flip Camera
Digital Camera
All in one printer
Tier 4
4 Disney day hoppers
3 days 2 night in Orlando
Dooney & Burk Bag
Duel video players for car

A 50/50 and Birthday board will be available.

For further questions please contact www.trickytray2010.com
Anonymous said…
I feel when a gift auction requires that all tickets must be paid in advance, if we are going to have a major snow storm that will be deadly to either go and come home after the event because of dangerous snow storm, the event should be CANCELLED OR RESCHEDULED. We had quite a few people attending the event at Thomas Jefferson in Edison tonight but will not be attending due to the major storm tonight. I say shame on you Thomas Jefferson , It is not fair to the people that paid you in good faith.
Anonymous said…
As one of the coordinators of the Thomas Jefferson Middle School Tricky Tray, we watched the weather all day, both days to see what would be the best thing to do in the case of snow. We decided NOT to cancel our event because of the loyal TT attendees that DID CALL and say THEY WERE GLAD it was still running. I am sorry if you are offended that we did not cancel due to weather, but we made a decision to go on with our event. I don't think that we are at fault. We had a FULL house minus your table. I am sorry you have ill feelings about this, but to reschedule an event that we have been planning for over a year, and knowing that the weather forecasters were changing their stories ALL DAY, the prediction of snow wasn't until 10pm. We were long done and over at 9:15 giving people time to drive home safely.

As to the note that was left on a table regarding our 50/50, we had no idea that having a 50/50 spit between 2 people was to be called a 50/25. If we had known, we would've announced it as that. The committee thought it would be nice to offer 2 people a prize instead of making only 1 winner. This is our fault and should've announced it as that.

All our efforts thoughout the year to make this night a success I think were appreciated. I am sorry to those who were offended, or annoyed at how we ran our handled our event. We sell out every year, and if you choose to NOT come back next year, then so be it. I am constantly told that it is impossible to make everyone happy, so I guess I have to take that to heart.
Anonymous said…
Regarding the split 50/50, you not only have to announce it to the people selling tickets, but when you apply to the state gaming commission for a separate 50/50 license you must state then how you will divide the money. Also on the report you will file you must state how much money each winner received.

Also per your announcement above -
This year we are going to make it just ONE grand 50/50

I understand wanting to "spread the wealth" but if you applied to the state for a regular 50/50, it is illegal to dole the money out any other way.

Just FYI for future raffles.
Anonymous said…
Thomas Jefferson Middle School tricky tray ~

negatives -
* no water/coffee/tea/cookies available (even for sale) - i know you're supposed to bring your own food to these things but i have never seen a TT that didn't have coffee and cookies

* no traffic control - people were walking up and down the ailes in both directions making for some serious gridlock - you always have some people going against the flow but there was no flow at all on this one

* one table was 3/4 of one color tickets and 1/4 of another color - very confusing we missed a 1/4 of a table 'cause we didn't know it was a continuation of the white color - maybe balloons or some other deliniation would have helped

* the endless gift card table - everyone hates this...always better to try to pair up a gift certificate with something or place it in a basket - or at least just intersperse them with the "regular" baskets - it's painful to sit through 10 stress factory gift certificates

* the 50/50 was broken up into 2 winners...very strange...might have been better to hold 2 50/50's - one at the midpoint and one at the end

* for $20 admission baskets were only so/so...even the higher level prizes were nothing to write home to mother about

* door prizes...the concept they used to award door prizes was cute but there were many people there who not only did not have children that went to that school system, they didn't have children period - free children's meal at the restaurant was useless for many of us

positives

* the caller blew through the baskets in order to get us out of there before the snow hit - except for the lady that felt the need not only to describe the baskets but who donated them - hello....we all have a program that we can read along with...there was no need for that

* seating was ample and event was not overcrowded
Anonymous said…
Thomas Jefferson Middle School tricky tray ~

negatives -
* no water/coffee/tea/cookies available (even for sale) - i know you're supposed to bring your own food to these things but i have never seen a TT that didn't have coffee and cookies

* no traffic control - people were walking up and down the ailes in both directions making for some serious gridlock - you always have some people going against the flow but there was no flow at all on this one

* one table was 3/4 of one color tickets and 1/4 of another color - very confusing we missed a 1/4 of a table 'cause we didn't know it was a continuation of the white color - maybe balloons or some other deliniation would have helped

* the endless gift card table - everyone hates this...always better to try to pair up a gift certificate with something or place it in a basket - or at least just intersperse them with the "regular" baskets - it's painful to sit through 10 stress factory gift certificates

* the 50/50 was broken up into 2 winners...very strange...might have been better to hold 2 50/50's - one at the midpoint and one at the end

* for $20 admission baskets were only so/so...even the higher level prizes were nothing to write home to mother about

* door prizes...the concept they used to award door prizes was cute but there were many people there who not only did not have children that went to that school system, they didn't have children period - free children's meal at the restaurant was useless for many of us

positives

* the caller blew through the baskets in order to get us out of there before the snow hit - except for the lady that felt the need not only to describe the baskets but who donated them - hello....we all have a program that we can read along with...there was no need for that

* seating was ample and event was not overcrowded
Anonymous said…
I'd like to say in response to the other posters of the TJMS TT, that I did have a nice time. Good prizes, fair prices, but in response to the above:I've been to PLENTY of TT's where there is NO food or drinks for sale. Take the BIGGEST TT EVER, (St. Francis at the NJEXPO Center, NEVER ANYTHING FOR SALE BUT EXPENSIVE TICKETS!) I thought the traffice moved fine. There were aisles, and they were set up to go up and down. Can't stop the morons who cut others. Should there be TT Police? Although there was a cute Policeman there! As far as distinguishing between colors, if SIGNS and COLORED LIDS weren't enough to give notice, than I have to say, there are issues! (I was able to tell the differnce)I like gift cards, Can't believe this was a complaint. Most were FREE FOOD at restaurants, not like 50 certificates for Karate Classes that others offer, I can see where the problem came where the 50/50 was split, but I wish that it were me that was one of the winners. THey did anounce it in the start that it would be split, eventhough the booklet said one. I know last year they did have 2 split 50/50's one was significantly larger than the second, maybe they were trying not to have that happen? Overall, I would go back. Until next year
Anonymous said…
mcauley..how come it is not posted on www.trickytray.com
Anonymous said…
The Thomas Jefferson School in Edison for $20 should have at least gave you coffee or tea for that money. And most do give cake and or cookies. You can get this donated if no one wants to bake. I do LOVE the gift certificate only table. If you hide it in the gifts (unless noted somewhere) only the workers know about it. Balloons would have been good for the different colors. Only because you thought the color ended and you used up all the tickets. You can get that donated too!
Thanks to the caller for getting us out of there quickly!
Anonymous said…
The Thomas Jefferson School in Edison for $20 should have at least gave you coffee or tea for that money. And most do give cake and or cookies. You can get this donated if no one wants to bake. I do LOVE the gift certificate only table. If you hide it in the gifts (unless noted somewhere) only the workers know about it. Balloons would have been good for the different colors. Only because you thought the color ended and you used up all the tickets. You can get that donated too!
Thanks to the caller for getting us out of there quickly!
Anonymous said…
I went to what was probably the most civilized TT I have ever attended on Friday nite...at the Hanover Manor. There were over 400guests,and well over 300 gifts. Before beginning to call numbers, staff picked 3 tickets for each gift, taped them on a postcard, and wrote the gift number on the back of the card. The caller explained that the gifts were staying in the display room. This avoided lots of runner traffic...which surprisingly was very nice. She then advised that she'd call the first number 3 times, and if no one claimed it, she would move onto the 2nd number. When you won, someone would give you the postcard, and then anytime you wanted to, you or a friend took the card to the display room, and presented it at a table outside the room. You had no direct access back into the display room. The helpers took your card, and bought the gift to you at the room's entrance. This avoided the end of nite mad dash into the room to pick up prizes, and also protected against those folks who actually take gifts that are not theirs, when the mad rush starts. Very organized, and although I personally like to see the tickets drawn in front of us...it was a very nice evening.
Anonymous said…
We were a little concerned about the weather too on friday, but like always the forcastors are never right. We did attend Thomas Jefferson and had a great time. We aplaud all the workers there for putting it together. As far as people going in different directions, there is not one TT that we have been to that it has not happened, so lighten up. I thought is was orderly with no problems. Our table did not win the 50/50 but when they announced what they were going to do, everyone clapped. Giving someone else a chance. There were no negetive reactions. It was roomy and we thought the callers did an EXCELLANT job. As far as cookies and cake, do you really need it. We always bring in treats from home even if they offer it. I would have liked a cup of coffee or tea though I wasn't mad because they didn't have it. It's a shame, these people work so hard and yet there are people out there that do nothing but complain. Maybe you should step up and help these people to see whats involved before casting stones. I was involved in a TT for another school and it was ALOT OF WORK.
So lets give these people the credit they deserve. If you didn't like it then find another one. I bet you will find problems with that one too.
By the way, we drove to come to this one and by no means are we affliated or do we know anyone who goes to this school. Just giving our honest opinion.
Thank you Thomas Jefferson for a great night.
Anonymous said…
I never went to a Tricky Tray that didn't sell or give coffee and cake. For $20.00 admission we should of gotten alot of coffee and cake. Shame on you . Very pricy tickets also. The 50/50 was a disgrace because I can guarantee you din't get the iscense to read 50/25. My frineds and I will not be going back for many reasons the above mentioned.
Anonymous said…
I just wanted to add, that reading all the comments on this board, the TJMS committee is taking into account all the negatives and positives! WE REALLY did try to get Free donations of desserts (like suggested) from several bakeries in our local area. We came up short with this, and I guess with the failing economy, could we blame them? Next year, this is something that will have to be budgeted into the TT costs to accomodate the price of a $20 entrance fee. I know we were wrong in not purchasing them ourselves, but if we did, I could just imagine them going stale due to the weather that probably would have then snowed. Either way, I see both sides of the issue. Again, everything is being taken into account. We just wanted to thank all that attended and hopefully will see you again next year!
Anonymous said…
I'd like to know what is pricy? I am planning on going to the St. Francis TT at the Expo Hall, which I go to every year to support their school and find that tickets BEGIN at 10 a sheet and go up from there. They have about 6 levels and they too do NOT sell anything (food or drink) due to the expo hall rules. So I'd like to know what is a good price? I also attend St. Joes every year and their tickets are $10 a sheet, I think anything lower than that is not pricy? To the poster above, are you expecting 2.00 sheets? If so the prizes must be crap.
Anonymous said…
Not casting stones. I'm glad the school listens to the positives and negatives. There is nothing wrong with expecting coffee and tea on a cold night for $20. And I did list positives. I didn't make a big thing about the cake. And I have helped with several tricky trays and know how much work is involved. I have even run one myself and got food donated! So don't be so judgemental. Besides I just went to the East Brunswick Youth Group one about 2 weeks ago and for $8 we not only did we get coffee, tea and a sheet of tickets--we had bottled water, soda, packaged snacks and even pizza!!! Indeed I know it is hard work and even harder this year. I did a lot of homework in getting the food donations for my tricky tray last year. BUT THE BOTTOM LINE IS THE EDISON ONE WAS A NICE TRICKY TRAY. See a positive note with a sugestion that's all. And this is a feedback site after all.
Anonymous said…
Anyone know if TT for Friday for Sayreville is cancelled? The number is a school number and they will be closed until yuesday. Any help would be great. Thanks!
Anonymous said…
I went to Sayreville, and while it was lovely, I wonder why TT organizers keep offerring so much Christmas stuff. There were so many baskets, even among the higher level gifts, that were full of holiday decorations. Not sure about anyone else, but I have too many Christmas decorations as it is...I know it's lots of fun to build your family's collection when you are just starting out, but lots of us have passed that stage, and there's nothing that screams re-gifting more than those kind of baskets.
Just my opinion, but I love high quality food baskets...not left over Christmas candy cane things we all know are well over 120 days old. In this economy, everytime I have seen food baskets, there are a ton of tickets in them...so, please offer more of them...people really appreciate them! Gift certificates to delis or butcher shops are like gold these days. Love to see more of these as well.
Anonymous said…
[... ] is one another interesting source of tips on this issue[...]
Anonymous said…
It is really sad the way people keep finding ways tocheat at tricky trays. Everyone caught on to bending tickets. Now it seems when the ticket packages are given out before the tricky tray people go and buy tickets with the same numbers.
Anonymous said…
Sparta Alpine Tricky Tray being held Friday, February 26 with snow date of Saturday, the 27th...

Lots of great prizes, free admission, snacks (desserts, appetizers)
water and soda for sale

Accomodations and spending money for Paris, France; Disney Hopper Passes for 4; Bitty Twins; electronics and much more!
Anonymous said…
To the last blogger, What is "Bitty Twins"?
Anonymous said…
"Bitty Twins" are American Girl Toddler dolls. This is a set of two toddlers....there are also tickets for 4 to Live with Regis and Kelly; personal chef for one night at your house for 6 people; bicycles; Ipod nano; Vera Bradley; Lia Sophia; soooo much more!
Anonymous said…
Mega cool! Thank you for your reply. Best luck with your event. We will try to attend.
Anonymous said…
We will welcome you and wish you luck! Thanks for the good wishes!
Anonymous said…
Mt. Olive has so many TT events each year. Each one seems to be run slightly differently. Please, if you sell in advance, make the advance tickets a bargain over the door price -- figure out some rule for letting people in at 7:25 when you're planning on pulling tickets at 7:30 -- shake the danged tickets! - don't stick them in a shoe box and swirl.
Anonymous said…
Thanks for the feedback on MO TT events...yes there are a ton and feedback will only help make them better. I worked with the chairperson on the recent one and they decided to honor the pre-sale price at the door as they lost a pre-sale date due to weather (school closings). It was an attempt to be fair to all...but not all were happy about it. As far as allowing people in at 7:25...how should this be handled? Ticket sellers made it clear that level one would stop at 7:30 and tickets would be called. No one was allowed to put in level one tickets after 7:30.....what else can you do if someone wants to walk in late? Should they be refused entry? Let us know how to handle this for future....and thanks for the feedback.
Anonymous said…
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Anonymous said…
Just wanted to thank everyone for coming to Madison School PTA TT on 2/20/10... The event was a huge success!! We worked very hard to bring the evening together and the night went off without a hitch!! We appreciate all of you support
Anonymous said…
MO re late arrivals. There's nothing you can do I guess about late people. It's just frustrating to see someone come in at 7:27. What are they thinking? At least you went ahead and started calling at 7:30 and didn't wait for them. I've been at other events where they wait for the late people to finish.
Anonymous said…
MO TT...I think all involved did a wonderful job. I overheard someone saying that one of their buckets became MIA and had to use the rectangle tupperware for the tickets. They didn't like it any more than the rest of us but the caller did try to mix them up as much as she could. Over all I think one of the best TT's I've attended at MO and they had a large showing and good prizes.
Anonymous said…
MO TT - Please could you go back to having tickets available for purchase during the day? The HS staff were very pleasant about selling tickets around their regular duties. We avoided bus hours and it gave a convenient daylight method of getting presale tickets. Some chose not to go because they couldn't conveniently get to the presale events in the evening. Shame, because they would of come if they had known you were reducing the prices
Anonymous said…
mo tt
I spent alot alot on presale and there was no discount connected to it. shame on you. Also you said only 250 people allowed entry and they were letting people in at 7:25 way over 250 people. don't say one thing and do the opposite.
Anonymous said…
Thank you Mount Olive HS for letting us in out of the cold. We came a long way for your tricky tray and it was warmer durning the day. A lot of people weren't dressed for the cold. We really appreciate you letting us in! We went home happy winners as well. The only complaint was the presale of tickets weren't discounted in the end.
Anonymous said…
Bishop George Ahr High School's tricky tray for Feb 26, 2010 is sold out. Thank you to all who purchased tickets.
Anonymous said…
MO TT - you did so many good things. Letting people in out of the cold was kind and gracious. You didn't charge for coffee. I've been to events where they shrugged and said - we ran out; you ordered more pizza.
Please take this as constructive criticism - you charge too much for sheets. You had trays containing only a $15 GC which should of been bundled with something else. Its not just how many trays, its the value of those trays. You presented more or less $25 value regular trays. You are located near schools that maintain $50 or even $75 value regular trays and they charge less. When people come in the door, they only have so much money to spend. It would of cost you virtually nothing to graciously give presale people an extra sheet of tickets for having committed their money in advance. MO used to charge 3sheets/$10 presale and 3/$12 at the door. You haven't raised the value of your trays and people do not have more extra money in their pockets. Last year one MO event tried out charging $10/sheet and they did not do well. Your parents will always attend and will pay whatever price you set.
Anonymous said…
The best TT's of 2009 is now listed, as well as the top 10 vote-getters. I was surprised that I didn't recognize the names for several of the past postings. We're they all listed on TT.com? Mr. TT, can you provide the dates that the top ten TT's took place? I would like to plan to attend some of those in the coming year. Thank you
Anonymous said…
Can anyone explain to me what a "birthday board" is? I have seen it advertised at more than one tricky tray. Is this something you would need to get a separate license for?
Casey1231 said…
Hi all,

Tickets are now available for the comedy night/tricky tray being held by the Flocktown-Kossmann PTA on April 9th in Long Valley at St Marks Church. If you're in the mood for a great night with a little something extra go to tricky tray.com and you can download our order form. Last year we sold out pretty quickly.
Anonymous said…
Birthday board is played several ways. One way is they have one prize for each month. you pick a day for lets say $3 and write your name on the day. Then they pick and who ever has the day wins the prize. another way to play is everyone buys a day of the year and then one day is drawn and that person wins. It could be a really nice prize or it could be a 50/50 type thing. Its a side game. Im not sure if they need a separate permit for that.
Anonymous said…
Columbus School last night. Where can I start. I guess they tried. The concept was ok. Bingo first, then small tricky tray. The prices were outrageous. Admission for $20 = 1 small sheet of tickets, 1 soda or coffee and 1 booklet of bingo sheet which normally costs $2.00. Then additional small sheet of tt tickets were $10 !!!!. The bingo had 2 special games for which they charged $4 per 1 sheet. These are normally $1 at bingo. The regular workers from bingo told them the prices were out of line and they didnt want to listen to that. When I said $10 for the small sheet the woman said, "alot of people are saying that. How much should they be?" Then they were selling the homemade cookies and cakes on top. No one was really buying any tickets because of the price and then they kept announcing "please help out, buy the baked goods" They had to be out of their minds. The prices on the baked goods were insane. A tiny mini cupcake (about an inch round if that) was 30cents. There was many many more things going on, the bingo caller "disappeared",, he changed the games top other games after they were announced and bought, and all kinds of other things going on too numerous to mention. Alot of TT regulars were there who I dounbt will go next year. The place was full. They could have made alot of money if not for their greed.
Anonymous said…
Thanks for listing top 10 events rather than just the one. It's nice to see multiple events getting credit. Some events savor the title of being able to say they were TT of the year and are very focused on organizing their group members to vote.
Anonymous said…
FOR EVERYONE GOING TO BISHOP AHR TT IN EDISON. WE CALLED AND FOUND OUT IT IS RE-SCHEDULED FOR SATURDAY FEBRUARY 27 AT 5:00 DOORS WILL OPEN.
DRAWING AT 8:00 SHARP.
Anonymous said…
For any who were planning on attending the Sparta Alpine Tricky Tray - it has been postponed until the snow date - February 27.Saturday 6 pm, drawings start at 8pm.
Kathy said…
The St. Mary's Tricky Tray in Hackettstown has been postponed by one day. It will be held on Saturday at the school. The doors open for food at 5PM, play begins at 6, and calling begins at 7.
Kathy said…
Late breaking news! The St Mary's Tricky Tray has just been postponed - a new date will be announced next week. The school is concerned about the safety of all and wants to ensure adequate snow removal. Again, a date will be announced next week. All pre-purchased tickets WILL be honored. The new date will be announced here, at www.stmarys1.org, and on www.trickytray.com. We apologize for any inconvenience, but the safety of all players is our first concern.
Mr. Tricky Tray said…
Hi Everyone ! This weather sure messed up some events. Be sure and check site for any tricky trays that were scheduled for Friday 2/26..all have made changes (New date/postponed etc.)

To the blogger that asked for dates for the Top 10 Tricky Trays, that was a good suggestion and I have updated.. so check out.

All the tricky trays were listed on TrickyTray.com except for MADGRL, I believed they sold out before I had info..but they have posted in past also.

Keep on blogging!!!

Drive safe everyone!

Mr Tricky Tray
Anonymous said…
Belvidere HS TT was postponed until 2-27 same time as listed.
Anonymous said…
*Alert*
Tricky Tray Sponsored By
Sparta Alpine School
Location:
Sparta Alpine School
151 Andover Road
Sparta, NJ 07871

Snow date February 27, 2010 is cancelled
and will be rescheduled to a later date
to be announced.


Tricky Tray Sponsored By
Sparta Alpine School
Location:
Sparta Alpine School
151 Andover Road
Sparta, NJ 07871
Nanette said…
The Sparta Alpine Tricky Tray will not be held on February 27 after all. A new date will be decided on Monday and posted to Tricky Tray.com, as well as here. Too many questions about the weather and driving conditions for tomorrow. Thanks for your understanding.
Nanette said…
Sorry, I did not realize there was someone else posting information for Sparta before my post. Didn't mean to be redundant.
Anonymous said…
So many TTs tonite...do you think Bishop Ahr's might have a few tickets left because of weather cancellations? Which of the others is worth going to?
Anonymous said…
Went to Bishop Ahr TT. It was decorated beautifully with an animal theme. Very nice and well organized. We didn't win anything but we really had a wonderful time.
Thank you Bishop Ahr.
By the way, we loved the idea that you had several baskets to win "a ticket and value pack for next year."
Anonymous said…
Ok where to start, went to Belvidere Project Graduation this past Sat. As the saying goes fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. Well a big shame on me!! Will never go back again, the number puller and caller was so annoying, I forgot they used him last year. He was as usual not shaking the tickets up, even though they had containers that do have lids. The simple up and down motion is not enough to mix them up. He also was making fun of the donated items, such as the Calvin Klein bags and the Nets tix. Also wanting to take a 15 minute break between prizes is unbelieveable. Maybe next time stop taking and just pull the number. It's not rocket science. There was no direction for the tables and people were going in every direction. Oh the best thing yet, no chairs were allowed to be set up. They wanted the handicapped people to sit on bleachers and I overheard one of the workers saying next year they will not have any chairs in the gym, since we found some chairs and used them. PATHETIC!!!!! Will not go again for the third time.
Nanette said…
Sparta Alpine Tricky Tray has been rescheduled for THIS friday, March 5, 2010. 6pm doors open, drawing starts at 8 for regulars baskets. 50/50

Sparta Alpine School
151 Andover Road
Sparta, NJ 07871
973-729-3107

As a reminder: free admission, includes snacks (desserts and appetizers)
soda and water for sale

Prizes including accomodations for Paris, France with spending cash, Disney Hopper passes, Ipods, TV's, Portable DVD players, bicycles, guitar with lessons, signed sports memorabilia, Barbie, Nickelodeon and so much more!
Anonymous said…
Couldn't agree more on Belvidere. It's just not that tough to shake a container properly. The sheets of tickets were so inexpensive that bags were really filled with a lot of tickets. You can't just move them up and down.

The caller wanted to add a little spunk the the proceedings and I found him occasionally quite funny; but when he ran low on ideas he kind of started just talking to talk. I'll never forget him describing a garden basket as "what you really need is a basket of ice so you can get through this snow." I'm still scratching my head on that one. And never ever disparage the donations you've received. I would have loved one of those Calvin Klein bags. Food was great though as always and the prizes were wonderful. Gotta lay those numbers out properly next year so that people don't smash into each other.
Anonymous said…
There is a TT I like to go to. The Org says the date 3/19 is still TENTATIVE and they will post when it is finalized. It is 2 weeks away and its still not finalized? that have had this tentative date for about 4 months...or more..

is this typical..not finalizing plans until just days before..this org has done this for about 15 years

how are people supposed to plan--its on a friday night--people have work, kids, other obligations, etc
Anonymous said…
They must be amateurs and not realize the power of trickytray.com to make there event a success. There loss
2DIVAS said…
Just got home a short while ago from Mother Seton's Gift Auction/Tricky Tray in Clark and I have to say - what a disappointment :( I am sure everyone worked hard and with 600+ people there I know they raised alot of money but it was unorganized, ticket prices were high, what I know to be val packs of tickets were just called convenience packs and there was no savings to them.
The callers were horrible. The one guy said after he announced each basket " and the winning number is..." which got quite annoying. There were too many breaks and at one point he just stopped calling for a good 5 - 7 minutes and people starting banging on the tables. It was looooong, too long. People were leaving well before the last 2 levels of prizes were called.
They had 600+ people packed like sardines in ther gymnasium and the prizes were in the cafe and in the hallway. Level 1s and 2s were not good at all...and there was no organization in the lines, people jumping in, reaching over, it was bad. The caller was standing behind a large painting and you could not see them dumping the tickets, or shaking or pulling..so that is a NO NO. Also, they had a super seton 50/50 that ran all year and the winner got $7300. They were selling tickets tonight and in between calling regular numbers you just saw some woman walking on stage holding a pink ticket. No mixing in a drum, no big pull, no announcement - just a woman walking onstage with a ticket which was the $7300 winner - who ended up being one of the volunteers so that just looked bad - not that she won, bc everyone deserves a chance to win, but they didnt even show us when or how the number was chosen..another NO NO.
I hate to sound so critical, but with that many people it needs to run smoother, with a better caller who is loud, clear and quick.
On a positive note, the Paris theme was cute and the students coming around in french berets offering coffee and tea were very pleasant.
Unfortunately, I will not be returning to this one again. Sorry. Anyone else share my thoughts or completely disagree??
Anonymous said…
I just attended the Alan B. Shepard tricky tray. WOW! I have never seen such an organized event. There were well over 200 baskets, all of which were terrific. The callers did a really good job of going through them. We even got some dancing in. Great Job to the organizers!
Anonymous said…
I have to say that last nights Tricky Tray Event 3/5/10 at the Grand Marquis for Alan B. Shepard School in Old Bridge was great. Lots of prizes, beautiful decorations and theme. It was a beautiful night out with dancing and winning prizes. Looks like a lot of hard work and dedication was put into this event. Great job Shepard School!
Anonymous said…
Alan B. Shepard School in Old Bridge had a great Tricky Tray on March 5, 2010. Over 300+ at the Grand Marquis beautiful event and all to support the school.
Anonymous said…
Alan B Shepard attendees...Best tricky Tray of 2010 contender???

Sorry I missed this one!
Anonymous said…
Went to the Soroptomists of Hackettstown Tricky Tray last night and while the event seemed well-planned, just wanted to leave a few suggestions.

1. There were no descriptions in front of the baskets and I didn't receive a program with my tickets initially, so it was difficult to decipher what was in them.
2. I was underwhelmed with the variety of baskets. Some were nice, but there were a couple of fruit baskets (apples, oranges, & grapes?!), a corded telephone, and way too much Christmas stuff. Looked like a lot of regifted presents, actually.
3. The calling didn't start on time. There was plenty of time for people to place their tickets prior to the scheduled calling time, so a 5 or 10 minute warning should have been called ahead of time and calling should have started on time. I will say, though, that the caller did get through the baskets pretty quickly.
4. The tickets from the bag were not transferred to a larger container to be shaken up. They just used the lunch bags to shake up the tickets.
5. Most of the tricky trays I've been to supply some free munchies on the tables and have free baked goods set up. There was none of that here-everything, coffee, tea, baked goods, etc. was an extra charge.
6. Half the door prizes were called after the first tier baskets were called the other half after the "large gift" tier and 50/50 were called. Once all the baskets were called, I wanted to leave but didn't want to be impolite as they were calling the last of the door prizes. It would be better if door prizes were called intermittently during tier 1 baskets.

Overall, it wasn't a bad tricky tray, it just needs some work. I'm sure it will get there, and be much improved next year.
Anonymous said…
To the above poster, you are correct. I was very disappointed in no container to shake the tix in. I made that suggestion last year and I guess it fell on deaf ears. Also with a $10.00 admission you should at least get coffee.
Anonymous said…
Went to the ACS TT in Barnesville PA yesterday. They had great prizes but a few flaws. ACS is very close to my heart and I would have went anyway, but 1st NO CONTAINER!! There were alot of tickets in the cups and they dumped into a bucket and swirled and then pulled. The same people were winning over and over. Then with the bigger prizes, the tickets were huge, no way of properly shaking them. I was watching how they were drawing them and there was no good way of doing it with those tickets. I understand there were advance ticket sales but there has got to be a better way then what was going on.
Anonymous said…
WITHOUT A DOUBT, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND STILLWATER SCHOOL (NJ) TT! ALWAYS GREAT PRIZES. NOTE THEY CHANGED THEIR LOCATION THIS YEAR!!
Anonymous said…
Amiable post and this fill someone in on helped me alot in my college assignement. Thanks you on your information.
Anonymous said…
I didn't understand the concluding part of your article, could you please explain it more?
Anonymous said…
NO NO NO NO - MR. TRICKY TRAY - CAN'T SOME KIND OF FILTER BE PUT ON THIS BLOG TO PREVENT THE 3/15/10 3:11AM VIAGRA COMMENTS? I'm open to relevant TT topics being posted and even argued, but I hate seeing spam like this that was deliberately put on this site.
Mr. Tricky Tray said…
Sorry..every once and awhile some spam gets through..but just let me know and I will remove..no problem.

Mr Tricky Tray
Anonymous said…
I can't wait to go to Stillwater's Tricky Tray on Friday. I love that there is no admission fee, and the prizes are always great!! I am glad that they decided to have it at Sussex County Community College this year, the parking will not be an issue, and it is a much easier location to find! I can't wait to win myself a Mini-Chopper Motorcycle!!
Anonymous said…
TT committees that place signs along the roadside need to be responsible and remove those signs after your event is held. They promptly shift from being informative into roadside litter that can cause accidents. There is nothing as dangerous as TT fanatics slowing down in traffic trying to read details off a sign. Mostly because of the road rage when they discover its out of date.
Anonymous said…
Went to the Triangle HSA event at the VFW in Manville last night. I was disappointed by the baskets - although there were around 400 of them, most of them were small and of low value. I think it would have been better had they combined some of the baskets and had fewer baskets with higher overall values. Considering their ticket prices ($40 for a value pack?), I definitely thought the basket quality and value should have been MUCH higher.
Anonymous said…
Hope TT: Great Event but We Don't All Know Who Erin Is. Inside jokes are groaners.
Anonymous said…
Went to Morris Catholic H.S. tricky tray last night at Hanover Marriott. Good prizes. Although I remember there being more 1st level baskets last year as 133 baskets for well over 300 people are not great odds. 2nd level prizes were ok, had a bigger variety last year. Food was excellent! One comment to the caller; when you have your hand in the bag to call a second number because the person holding the winning ticket isn't paying attention the 3 times you announced the number, you SHOULD CALL the ticket number. Not say "Oh late winner". In my opinion that's a NO NO. Don't know how others feel, but as the saying goes "You snooze, you lose." Overall though good night and I did win a 1st level prize; just won't spend as much next year as $15 for one sheet in these economic times for some people is a bit much to put it nicely.
Anonymous said…
I was hoping someone would have written this before now, but I went to the Linden St. Mary's event Friday nite, and Something's been bothering me sufficiently that today I thought I should share it. I have never in all the hundreds of TTs I've gone to have I seen so many people NOT paying attention to the numbers when they were called. Easily 4-5 dozen times the callers not only repeated the numbers three times, but then called them again and again and again. First or all it is beyond annoying for people to not know their numbers...I do not care how many tickets anyone has...get conscious or stay home. Secondly, the callers needed to say 'three times and out' and mean it. Again, how many times did on the 4th or 5th try, did someone finally notice that they'd won. Last, the caller on the left side of the stage actually yelled back at the guests that if anyone called out to shake the tickets prior to pulling one out " I will take away your tickets." Rude...you think?!? People may have been yelling that out because the same 3 or 4 groups kept winning. The gifts were just ok...that surprised me, as I chose to go to this one based on the nice comments made last year in the blog about the quality of the gifts. The event was nice enough, but I won't be going back...
Anonymous said…
The Ogdensburg Fire Dept. Tricky Tray last night was great. All the prizes were of value and interesting. Good job! Can't beat the 50 cent admission and free refreshments. Ticket prices were very affordable. We won two trays!
Anonymous said…
Re: the Hope School TT (3/19) - Yes! The "Erin, did you win it?" got old after, oh, about the 10th time. Who? :P That and the group with the police whistle. Having made those two complaints though, I will say it was a nice, well run event. The caller was wonderfully fast considering the number of prizes and the runners were efficient and friendly. My mom and I won several trays and sat with a nice group of people. A great time.
Anonymous said…
For the Ogdensburg TT. Awesome job again. Went the past 2 years and not disappointed this time. Excellent caller, I love that guy!! Also great job shaking the tickets. I won 7 of the 1st level and that's with shaking them up. Also awesome job on the bent ticket rule. I saw quite a few in the bags and I knew the number and you did not call any of them. Thanks for a great night.
Anonymous said…
Went to the Harmony PTA TT on Friday. Really nice stuff, love the entertainment books also as some of the door prizes but it puzzled me a little that you had a container with a lid on it but you took the lid off and swooshed the tickets around. Don't understand that move but hey won 3 and I was happy when I left. Next time shake as in one of the donaters "Shaken but not stirred"
Anonymous said…
Just a heads up that April 9th's Tricky Tray at St Marks in Long Valley is sold out.
Anonymous said…
"A Top 10 Tricky Tray of 2009"

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Buffet Dinner & Tricky Tray

Sponsored By Oxford Central School PTA

Location:

Belvidere Manor

689 Water Street

Belvidere, NJ 07823


Doors Open: 5:00 pm

Drawing: 7:00 pm approx.

Admission: $30 in advance/$35 at the door

*Adults Only*

Handicapped Accessible

6th Annual Bright Beginnings Tricky Tray and dinner.

Admission includes buffet dinner, coffee, dessert, tickets and chance for door prizes.

Contact Kiki Frasca at 908-453-4389 or frascafamily@comcast.net for tickets or more information.

www.ocspta.org

Thank you for your support,

Adrienne Nixon

OCS PTA President
Anonymous said…
I was wondering if anyone has ever attended the Mothers' Center of the Jersey Shore TT in the past? It's being held this year on 4/29 at the Ramada in Toms River, and before I mail in a check, just wanted some feedback on prior year's events. Thanks!
ppeople83 said…
attention table number 27 from st. thomas tricky tray 3/18/10. If anyone can respond we would like to ask you some questions about the night...
Anonymous said…
Went to the Whippanong Library TT last night and I have mixed comments about it. 1st when I went in all the tables were reserved, there were no seats or tables to sit at. They had to bring some out afterwards. Then the prizes were o.k.. Alot of knitted items and the baskets were alright.They did not have enough prizes to go with the amount of people that came, also the prizes were not in numerical order so the people that followed the program could not figure out were to go. Pretty easy for me since I look at the items not the program until I sit down. Don't like to hold up the line. They did not shake the tickets very well and no mention of bent tickets so of course the same numbers were being called. It did move pretty quickly for their 1st TT. Also the workers were very pleasant but if you put your event on this site you will have alot more people showing up. Please go to other TT's and see how they are handled. Overall good but will not return again.
Anonymous said…
There was a TT at Roxbury HS on 3/12. The signs are still all over town. People are slowing down to read them and then get frustrated that the event has already occured. I thought it was a law the signs must be removed in a reasonable amount of time.. 2 weeks is not reasonable amount of time. Thanks for listening.
Anonymous said…
Mt. Tabor last night. Under 100 gifts for about 400 people. ok concept, needs to iron out the bugs but not going again. Not enough prizes to make it at all fun.
Anonymous said…
Roxbury HS TT committee: The above commenter is absolutely right Those signs are trash and a hazard to safe driving. If enough complaints are lodged you could be fined for littering the highway
Anonymous said…
Went to TT last night. When mentioned to organizer to please announce about bent tickets, response was, "doesn't matter that is an old tail." This annoyed me. Please organizers, level the playing field for all by not accepting bent tickets. Thank you.
Anonymous said…
I went to the Montague Elementary School Tricky Tray on Friday night and it was fantastic! Over 300 trays, specials and super specials! The whole night was very well organized and I will definitely go again next year.
Anonymous said…
Went to a Tricky Tray in Hamilton NJ, first time, at St. Raphaels School. It was a $10 addmission that came with pizza, drinks and dessert!! There was a DJ!! All of the Committee members were in yellow T-shirts, easy to identify. Everyone was friendly and helpful. The baskets were the best I have ever seen! Over 300 of them plus a Priceless level of autographed items that were to die for. They had a Patio Set, a 42in TV, Great Wolf lodge, ipods, wiis, DS, a huge kids bouncy blown up on the floor!! Unbelievable!! We will not miss that next year! Came home with two things plus a $25 dollar gift card from B&N that I paid $10 for at this Luck Fortune game that they had. Great time! Great Job!
Anonymous said…
My friend and I went to St. Raphaels on Saturday. The whole you have to buy a pinwheel for $20 to get a patio set ticket thing was a little confusing, they actually believe that by giving every person 3 tickets, you increase the chance to win. Anyway, the rest was great! Three prize levels all cleverly named. the Primary level was the regular prizes that you used the admission sheet for and extra sheets were only $5. The premier level was $1 each but it had really good prizes like Vera Bradley, Tiffany, Kuerig, microwave, ipod nano with ihome,Nintendo DS and more. Really, really nice stuff for $1 chances. The priceless level was $5 but well worth it. They had Taylor Swift autograph, and Caroline Kennedy, too. Unbelievable prizes. One worker told me they have this every year. I look forward to next year's. Great prizes, and event committee members. One of them announcing the numbers was even playing with the crowd a little. They enjoyed the night, you could tell. Good Job Ladies and Gentlemen!
Anonymous said…
Also went on Saturday to St. Raphael School PTA Tricky Tray Gift Auction and just wanted to say to the previous blogger that if you did not want to buy a pinwheel for the patio you did not have to. I have been to many tricky trays and this was by far one of the very best. Great prizes, good food, wonderful 50/5, and very pleasant workers. They had more people than they expected come in and just pulled out more tables and chairs with no problem. You could tell about half of the people were from their school, but everyone had fun and won prizes - there were about 300 prizes in all. Everything was out of the boxes and on display, the packages were professionally done, and the DJ and guest DJ's were great! I would pay $20 to get in to an event of that level. It was truly above the other tricky trays that I have been to before. Kudos to the core committee that is listed in the book!
Anonymous said…
Great Job St. Raphaels Tricky Tray. Where do we vote to make you Tricky Tray of the Year 2010?
Anonymous said…
Went to tricky tray at St. Raphael's. They opened the doors to the seating area at 5pm, sold admission only there. Had to wait until 6 pm to buy extra sheets. Line to place tickets in buckets would have moved MUCH faster if they had sold extra tickets at same time as admissions. Had to wait for people to tear tickets as they walked through line to place in buckets. Had about 180 items (not 300 as mentioned previously) for the regular tickets. Lots of items for the more expensive tickets, altho I didn't buy more than the $1. tix as nothing interested me. Extra tickets for regular items $5. sheet. Others went from $1 each to $20 each. Admission $10 included one sheet, 2 slices pizza, dessert, drinks not bad. Not many door prizes tho, and not enough regular prizes for the amount of people there.
Anonymous said…
Went To St. Raphaels TT like above commenter and according to my program and what I saw and bid on, there were 200 items for the admission ticket and almost 100 for the $1 ticket, the complaint at our table was there were "too many" door prizes. In the past we had to wait in line outside and sometimes it has been very cold. I thought it was a great idea to let us in out of the cold and get our addmission ticket and coffee as opposed standing outside. I don't know how a DS, Wii, Tiffany and lia sophia, snow board, kurig coffee machnine, Phillies, Eagles, 76ers, Flyers and circus tickets would not interest anyone on the $1 table but, ok. It was one of the better TTs I have been to.
Anonymous said…
just got back from the warren point pta tricky tray and i had the worse time. one of the little rooms where they had baskets was not organized at all. i stood in line for 1/2 hour trying to see baskets only to find that the line was now coming at me and no one was moving. it was ridiculous. I just left and then when I got back in the other line to finish they announced they were serving food and were going to start calling. oh well they didnt get all my money cause I had no time to see everything. very dissappointed and so were a lot of other people.
Anonymous said…
re Announcing no bent tickets in order to level the playing field: This is not really the right approach. So many events they post signs and make announcements but no one tells the people drawing tickets that they are the ones responsible for disqualifying any tickets that are marked by bending, ragged tearing, corners dogeared or even curled tightly so they won't lay flat. Those who mark their tickets know exactly why they do it. Train your volunteers that your license requires fair and random choice of winners
Anonymous said…
The Tricky Tray on April 30, 2010 at Sacred Heart in South Amboy, NJ is Sold Out! Wish us luck!
Anonymous said…
ST. MICHAEL SCHOOL TRICKY TRAY: St.
Michael School HSA is hosting its annual tricky
tray on April 16, 2010 at the Netcong
Elementary School, College Road, Netcong.
Doors open at 6:30 p.m. This is a great way to
catch up with friends, family, co-workers or
neighbors and win lots of great prizes. (No one
under 18 admitted.) If you're looking for a night
out for a fun-filled evening, come and join us.
For more information, please call 973-347-
0039. We look forward to seeing you there!

Found in 4/11 Sunday Church bulletin!
Anonymous said…
Has anyone ever attended the Animal Rescue Force TT in East Brunswick? Was just looking for some comments about the events that were held in the past and if it's worth going to this year. Thanks!
Anonymous said…
They have a few there at that high school. This one is crowded and poor prizes except for a few nice grand prizes donated. everyone who works there donates stuff they don't want (new but??) Grand prizes are expensive too.. Last year they din't mix tickets. Gone two years in a row and everyone at my table said no more!Called alot of co-works donated but business said no
Anonymous said…
HI ATT, ALL TRICKY TRAYERS, PLEASE GO TO HAPPY TAILS ANIMAL RESCUE TRICKY TRAY,MAY 10, AT PARAMUS ELKS, BEHIND RAYMORE AND FLANNIGAN DOORS OPEN AT 6 AND THE ELK GRILL AVAILABLE,WE WILL HAVE GREAT PRIZES, 4 TIERS OF PRIZES, A COMPUTER FOR THE SUPER PRIZE. THIS IS OUR FIRST TRY AT THIS I HOPE WE PLEASE ALL THE LOYAL TTS. THANKS AGAIN!!!
Anonymous said…
went to Green Township PTA will not return next year! put the tickets from the containers and dumped them into a bin which is big enough to shake them in. she swooshed them back and fourth instead of shaking everyone complained to several workers to shake them and they proceeded to just swoosh them. Everyone yelled to shake them and some dude just shooked his body. prizes were ok on the upper levels. lower level was the best. if they had shooked the tickets I would return next year.
Anonymous said…
I also attended Green Twsp PTA tricky tray.....I had emailed them regarding advance ticket sales and was told that they were not selling advance tickets. When I got there I learned that they did have packages of tickets that were pre-sold. I'm not sure if they were only for the parents of the school children or what, but I was not happy. I mentioned it to them at the door, but it fell on deaf ears. I will re-think attendance next year also.
Anonymous said…
Ok My Tricky Tray friends Bushkill Elementary is having their Tricky Tray on Friday May 7 at 6:30, They didn't get the car the woman who said she got all these big prizes lied, but there will be a wii with rockband and many other great prizes
Anonymous said…
anyone know anything about the sayreville main st theater company TT--last i heard it was supposed to be tentatively scheduled for march after already being postponed from the fall..did they have it--has it been rescheduled.....they said they would post info,but never did and I'm tired of bedding them for info
Anonymous said…
i mean begging them for info
Anonymous said…
Does anyone know of any good tricky trays coming up?
Anonymous said…
Calebs pennies at Erhardts today in Hawley was amazing they had so many prizes and so much food!!!!! The 50/50 was a sweet jackpot and they raised thousands of dollars for the Ronald Mcdonald House..
Wallenpaupack is having a tricky tray may 15th and word is that it is going to be smashing... come out
Anonymous said…
Wanes PTA
Location:
Wallenpaupack
North Intermediate School
Atlantic Avenue
Hawley, PA 18428

Doors Open: 4:00 pm
Drawing: 5:30 pm
Children Welcome*
HANDICAPPED_ACCESSIBLE: Yes
The Wanes PTA 5th Annual Tricky Tray.
Doors will open at 4:00 pm and the calling will start at 5:30 pm.
The Tricky Tray is located at the North Intermediate School
in the Wallenpaupack school district.
There are some terrific large prizes this year including
a Milwaukee cordless drill, $400 framed art, leaf blower,
a romantic get away at one of 3 Cove Haven Resorts,
A years membership to Lackawac Sanctuary, Golf outing sponsored by Woodloch
Jewelry from several local Jewelers,and more prizes are coming in daily.
The classrooms and teachers have out done themselves
with terrific ideas and baskets.
Area businesses have come forward with gift certificates,
baskets, spa treatments, dinners, and much much more.
The children can enjoy our kids room with games and face painting,
while chowing on some great food.
So come out for fun, food, door prizes, 50/50's, and lots of chances to win.
There is still time to donate to this event.
If you want to take advantage of getting your business advertised
and helping the community please contact
Eva Warner at Wanespta@yahoo.com
Anonymous said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
LVRPTSA said…
Limited to 240 people. Buy your tickets now! You can reserve a table for ten or simply order one or more tickets!
We recommend that all parties
submit payment as a group to avoid seating confusion.
Actual tickets will not be issued in advance, but given out at the door. No one under 18 admitted.
To order tickets please email us & send your check or money order to: LVR PTSA, PO Box 99, Stanhope, NJ 07874
If you have any questions please email us @ lvrptsa@yahoo.com
or contact: Virginia @ 201-317-2613, Barb @973-222-3863, or Stacy @973-202-3371
Tickets: $30
Your ticket price includes:
Dinner with dessert, tea/coffee
plus a starter pack of tickets &
a chance to win a door prize!
Dinner choice: Chicken Francaise or Sliced Beef au jus
LVRPTSA said…
LVR Tricky Tray on May 7, 2010

Ticket info:
$30 ticket is for your dinner & starter pack. The starter pack is a value of $16 if tickets were purchased separately).

2 sheets regular
2 Mid level tickets
1 Upper level ticket

Also available that night & for prepurchase:
$20 Patriot Pack:
(If purchased separately $26.00)
4 sheets regular
3 Mid level
1 Upper level


50/50 are as follows:

1/$1
6/$5
15/$10

LIMITED TO 240 GUESTS. WE HAVE APPROX 40 SEATS LEFT. TICKETS ARE SELLING QUICKLY NOW. WE WILL KEEP YOU UPDATED AS BEST AS WE CAN.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT & YOUR PATIENCE.
Anonymous said…
What does LVR stand for..is it poted on trickytray.com???
LVRPTSA said…
Sorry ~ It is Lenape Valley Regional High School. Yes, this is the Tricky Tray on May 7th at Wyndham Garden Hotel in Mt Olive. The school is located in Stanhope NJ & is the regional high school for Byram Twp, Stanhope Boro, & Netcong Boro. All proceeds benefit Project Graduation.
bettycd said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said…
Shohola Elementary School PTA Tricky Tray.
Thank you to everyone for coming out to support our school. This was my first time running such an event and I hope everyone who came out enjoyed themselves. It is such an important fundraiser for our school, every dollar counts! Thank you to our gracious donors and the folks that were there to win fantastic prizes. I wish everyone could walk away with a special gift but it doesn't always work that way. Please know we tried to make it as fair as possible.. Some of our larger gifts were Disney World Orland Park Hopper Passes for 4, 3 days 2 nights in Daytona Beach, Fl at the LaPlaya Resort, 3 Frye Hand Bags worth over 500.00 each numerous Lia Sophia baskets and tons of gits certificates from various businesses and families.

Thank you again for each and every person that came out to support our school, it meant so much to us!

Thank You...

The Shohola Elementary School PTA
Anonymous said…
Stonybrook Tricky Tray May 7h
North Plainfield
Sorry, I won't be back. The
price of $5. a sheet was too expensive. The quality and quantity of the small table did not fit the $5. price. $2. a sheet would have gotten you more money. A lot of your $5. cups didn't have many tickets in them. Gift certificates were good. Children were charged $2. Why? I'm not bitter. I won stuff. Just some friendly advice. Hope you made money. P.S. Meatball sandwich was good.
Anonymous said…
WENT TO ST. JAMES TRICKY TRAY ON MAY 7TH 2010 AND GUESS WHAT FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW IT HAS TO BE THE WORST TRICKY TRAY I'VE BEEN TO IN YEARS. THEY LIKE TO USE TWO DIFF COLORED TICKETS, YOU GOT 5 GREEN THEN HAD TO BUY PINK. FOR THE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE THERE PINK TICKETS SHOULD OF BEEN CALLED MORE THAN THE GREEN ENTRANCE TICKETS WHICH WASN'T WHAT HAPPEN ST. JAMES NEEDS TO HAVE ONE COLOR TICKETS SO IT'S FAIR FOR EVERYONE BECAUSE I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO AREN'T GOING ANY MORE ST. JAMES CLEAN UP YOUR ACT!!!!!!!!!!!
Anonymous said…
Hey, is it me, or are there alot fewer blog comments this year? I haven't gone to an event in months...Have TT's lost their appeal?..there are too many with the same kinds of gifts...some friends of mine stopped going because they are bored. OR
has the economy finally hit home??? What's your thoughts?
Anonymous said…
Please stop writing ridiculous things on this blog that do not have anything to do with tricky tray events.
Giving Network said…
to the anonymous about talking about boring prizes - what would you like to see at a tt?
(planning our annual TT in Oct, and always looking for ways to make it better!)
Anonymous said…
So how was Roxbury Ice Hockey event? No one seems to bother sharing how they did. Was looking forward to going and all my plans fell apart.
Anonymous said…
I think the Demy recipe card electronic keeper would be a wonderful idea..tired of Ipods

http://www.mydemy.com/
Anonymous said…
To all the organizers of the TTs, please make sure you announce no bent tickets and please have a container big enough to shake them in with a lid. The worst thing you could do is swish them around. This ticks off the regulars so much. If you did that you would not have as many people yelling out to shake them up. If I was at a TT and all the steps were done I would have nothing to complain about and then you could read the pros and cons of your event. I would return to one where the steps were followed even if I did not win there before. The ones where the swish like Greendell School I will not go back to and Belvidere School as well. If you have reasonable prices and food is decent and you shake the tickets up you will have no problem with people coming back year after year. I have my list of the best and the worst, (really bad). There are some where the tickets are way to cheap and the people cannot mix the tickets properly and the same people win time and time again which is also annoying. If you bought alot of tickets that's understandable but when your buy alot and someone else only bought a couple you start to think. Also the variety of items is a big thing. People are looking for more gift certificates or even cash baskets get alot of tickets. Anyway please take the tips into consideration before the event and see more repeat people year after year.
Anonymous said…
I went to Roxbury. It was nice. The higher end gifts were really great, and there were lots of entry level gifts (over 200). Sheets were a bit costly, but organizers were very nice. They even had fresh sub sandwiches, which was a real delight from just pizza. Nice job...glad I went.
Anonymous said…
There is also a very important fact that needs to be followed more often and that is the ratio of people to prizes. You can't have 300 people and 200 prizes. When only 1/3 of the people win the non-winners go home with a bad feeling towards the tricky tray and won't return the next year. Keep the ratio close. If you have 200 prizes please limit the attendance to no more then 225.
Anonymous said…
I totally agree with the above post regarding prize~attendee ratio. One of the worst things an organization can do is have less baskets & prizes than the number of people they allow in the door. Unfortunately there are groups that have done this & pretty much don't care because they just want to make money. They need to realize people will not return & should not return especially those who complain. If they do return, then stop whining; it's your own stupidity!
Anonymous said…
Mr. Tricky Tray - are you reading this blog? Why do we keep getting comments like the 6/12/10 3:38am note? Can't you block them out?
Anonymous said…
Mr. Tricky Tray - are you reading this blog? Why do we keep getting comments like the 6/12/10 3:38am note? Can't you block them out?
Anonymous said…
Went to the Friends of Phil tricky tray today. The same people kept winning and winning because they picked tickets directly from the bag! They really need to empty the bag into a bowl and stir the tickets so everyone has a fair chance.
It is a good cause but don't think I would go again unless they pull tickets better.
Mr. Tricky Tray said…
To: Are you reading this Blog.

YES I Am...was it that offensive to you. It's been removed.

If you opted into receiving in email posts..you wil get then from time to time. Even though I remove from blog..there has not been too much spamming so far so I will leave as is...the alternative is to sign up for a username and eleiminate "Anonymous" postings which I think makes for more truth felt posts..what does everyone else think????
Mr. Tricky Tray said…
PS for "Mr. Tricky Tray - are you reading this blog? "

Should you be blocked for submitting your comment twice???

Spamming the Blog??
Anonymous said…
I agree TT organizers should have at least one prize for every person allowed in. if you are having 300 people at least 350 prizes. You have people leaving after spending $100 dollars or more with nothing. Also door prizes? Forget the junk or just put something under one chair at each table and thats the winner, or just mark 50 admission tickets in some way and take 10 minute brake and let those people come up and you give a prize. When you take 1 hr to call stupid door prizes it becomes boring.
Anonymous said…
Well if you want junk & NO door prizes, St. Lukes in Stroudsburg was the place to best last night. Thumbs up for being the worst tricky tray my friends & I I've ever attended. Of course the number caller was a story teller with EVERY basket!! Who cares about details, that's why it's called a program people, we can read so it would have ended our misery at least 1/2 an hour earlier. Here's the topper: One of the upper basket levels had wine & beer. So when the number was called and the person who claimed to have the number but didn't have the matching ticket because both of the numbers were put into the bucket instead of keeping one, THEY STILL GAVE IT to her. Sorry, if you don't have the common sense to put your half away then put the tickets in the basket, you shouldn't be allowed to win. So between stupidity & the organizers obviously not having a clue of how to properly run a tricky tray it is safe to say I will never be returning to this one...EVER! Oh yeah one more thing, too many bent tickets in the buckets and not one notice or announcement about no bent tickets being called.
Anonymous said…
We appreciate quality prizes rather than quantity. Please don't think that including 100 low value doorprizes will make the crowd happy because it helps you reach a 300 prizes for 300 people goal. No one complains if an event does not have doorprizes but everyone will complain if you make them sit thru the individual drawing of an extra 100 prizes that noone cares that much about winning. Doorprizes are best handed out one/attendee as they come in the door. Some events have special doorprizes that they hand out as people leave only to people who did not win a tray.
Anonymous said…
I have only been to 2 TT's this year. It seems I am no longer a TT person. I am tired of going to TT's that ignore all the help we regulars have given to organizers on how to run a successful event.
It seems most organizers do not know about TT.com or just ignore us.
Maybe I'll attend one this fall, maybe not.
Anonymous said…
Maybe you should stay home because if your that tired of going it just makes matters worst for whatever tricky tray you walk in to. Sounds to me like you will find fault in anyone you attend. So please stay home and give these people a break. I have helped run several of these and it is no easy task. It is alot of long hours and dedicated time that we all don't have when you work a full time job.So honestly, just go and enjoy yourself with the company you bring.If you can't do that, you really shouldn't go. We have gone to plenty where we can make lists of things that we would like changed but the bottom line is WE HAD FUN!!! So what they didn't shake in stead of stir or the prizes were no good, go out and have fun and just don't spend more than you can afford and always hope to win something, But again, if not, HAVE A BALL........
Anonymous said…
good point - these are fundraisers and the vast majority of people go for the purpose of donating to that particular fund. tt.com gives voice to a very small proportion of attendees who perhaps should get over that tts should be run to please them.
Each event is unique and no one really wants to see every tt set up and run the same way. Those who are so displeased maybe have outgrown being a tt person
Anonymous said…
Not been on here in a long long time, but I see the same comments. We do look at TT.com regularly once we are in the planning stages - it is a LOT OF WORK and most of our volunteers have families, work, etc. etc. We do our best to have a fun filled evening with good prizes for a good cause!
elizabeth said…
Hi all! Since we've already started getting a few email requests, figured I'd better come here & let you all know advance tickets are going on sale this week for the Giving Network Tricky Tray on Oct 23 in Manville.
more info: www.givingnetwork.bravehost.com
Thanks to you all for your support, and for rating us #5 last year! We're already working hard to make this year's basket auction even BETTER! :-)
Anonymous said…
Just wanted to leave feedback on 2 of the last TT;s I attended. 1st one was Wurtsboro NY fire dept. Ok too cheap on the tickets. Should have been a penny social not a TT. YOU also should have the appropriate shaking container not a jug for drinks. You cannot possible shaken and draw from that pitcher. The 2nd TT was in Sussex fire dept for the auxiliary. really nice items, tickets were reasonable but when you change over to a new set of tickets please only have 1 size. There were 2 different size tickets which is not fair to the people that were in line for an hour to get in. I know there was no funny business but still it makes people and me one of them that you pick mostly the bigger size tickets. All in all nice night.
Anonymous said…
In my opinion, it is an interesting question, I will take part in discussion.
Anonymous said…
I advise to you to look a site, with a large quantity of articles on a theme interesting you.
Anonymous said…
Went to Lords Valley, Blooming Grove TT and was pleased with the items but upset with one of the comments I had heard at the door. One of the workers had locked the door to get in before it was to open. When she was asked why she had did it, she said to keep them out(PAYING CUSTOMERS). No one was going in anyway.
Anonymous said…
Does anyone have any information about how the theatre TT in Hardyston was last year? The announcement lists it as its 8th year.
Anonymous said…
Went to the Tri-State Actors TT at Wallkill Valley Regional High School last night. Excellent on all accounts. Well, maybe the super prizes could have been a little more "super". But on the whole the event was run smoothly by a friendly group of people who followed all the rules that make a TT a success. Congrats to all who helped make your event a winner.
Anonymous said…
Went to St. Matthews Block Party and besides for very few prizes they posted the drawing time as 3:00 pm when they drew @ 5:15 pm and wrote the names on a sheet of paper. I looked to see how they were picking and they were picking from a coffee can that was used for dropping the tickets in. Then put their hand in and picked one ticket. Hello big container and shake then pull. Will not return to this one. Prices were too high on regular items.
Anonymous said…
Any suggestions on which tricky tray to go to tomorrow nite, Lakeland or Netcong?
Anonymous said…
We are looking to go to good tricky tray. Anyone know of one that is coming up?
Anonymous said…
I only go to a few a year, but am looking forward to the Giving Network Tricky Tray in Manville next month. It was good & had lots of prizes for the number of people last year. I hope it'll be just as good this year. Just sent in for advance admission yesterday!
Hope that helps you.
Anonymous said…
Went to Monroe saints Football TT on 9-25. Just one thing to say. BAD!!!! There were dollar store baskets with expired food in them. The food was at least 3 years out of expiration. The tickets were not cheap to put in for the baskets either. Please people look at the dates and if they are expired, bring to the attention of the workers and have them take the basket out. Also for the organizers. CONTAINER WITH LID AND SHAKE!!

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