Friday, January 07, 2005

Of Tsunami's and Name Changes

The YD Staff are currently in deliberation about whether or not it would be best to change the name of our Spring Retreat on San Juan Island to something else. It's currently called "Tsunami." We recognize that a "Tsunami" is a recurring natural disaster that had meaning before the December Tsunami in India, but we also do not want to be insensitive to the tremendous loss of life that has occurred. Our retreat is designed to bring 150 students to an isolated island setting in the Puget Sound for 3 Days of Activities and Evangelism. Most of these students are not Christians and the event makes a huge impact on the lives of these students.

So we're throwing around ideas. Suggestions have included "CastAway," "On the Rock," "Surge..." I am the appointed "CEO of Marketing" for this grand event, so I am supposed to be developing a logo and promotional materials right now...but I'm waiting for our team to come to a bit of consensus about the naming or potential renaming of Tsunami.

If you have any thoughts or ideas, I would love to hear them.

5 comments:

suz said...

I'd like to submit RockSolid. And, for the vocabulary lovers among us (and I'm only half kidding) "Sluice" meaning "To flood or drench with or as if with a flow of released water" - it's the idea of letting loose a flood that's been held behind the wall of a dam (a flood of the Holy Spirit perhaps? of love? of understanding? of passion? Oh, the Christian metaphors are endless.) Similar thought to tsunami but without all the horrible connotations...because most people don't have connotations for words they don't know yet--teach them! And, it's also fun to say..c'mon, say it: Sluice.

hmb said...

Suz, I just learned that word today when I went to www.m-w.com to get alternate words for Surge. Do you think that sluice sounds like it should be a beverage?

Anonymous said...

i don't have any brilliant suggestions, but definately agree that it is a good idea to switch the name. good luck finding the perfect fit.
~pam

suz said...

I think it's just the fact that it happens to rhyme with juice...and really, very few words do. Perhaps somewhere down the line it will become slang for all of those beverages out there that claim to be juice but when you read the fine print it's only like, 2% juice...in which case "sluice" would refer to "slightly juice." but, you could curb all of that nonesense now by adopting sluice as your own and ascribing your own happy connotations. or not. your call. :)

Drewser said...

I'm quite keen on Sluice. I agree, it's a pretty rad word. As is "rad". As long as we're starting trends, I propose we bring back "rad" as an active member of our language. Hm...perhaps a new name could have Rad in it. The "Rad Sluice"? Nah, needs some more work...