- Select a location 6-12 months in advance for a "Family of the Year" reception.
- Prepare a nomination form ensuring your focus is on the family and their family time. Encourage those who nominate families to avoid lists of community involvement, employment successes, or out-of-home extra-curricular activities.
- Distribute the nomination form to businesses, schools, PTA’s, churches, civic organizations, and individuals.
- Distribute nominations at least 4 months in advance of Family Week.It may be necessary to ask schools, churches, businesses, or civic organizations to nominate a family.
- Prepare a reception for the nominated families. Suggestions for the reception could include a light dinner or refreshments, guest speaker (keeping in mind there will be small children), choir, entertainment, video/slide presentation of nominated families, child hands-on activities, etc. Prepare a gift bag with donations from local merchants and a trophy, plaque, or glass plate inscribed with "Family of the Year" nominee "year" for each nominated family. Invite the Mayor and community leaders to attend.
- Prepare a program with the families’ names and a biographical sketch including information taken from their nomination form. Share this information with the local media.
- If you choose to have a winning family, choose "family friendly" judges, and prepare judging criteria for the selection of the winning family. The winning family could receive a grand prize, such as: large plaque, homemade quilt, or special vacation "get-a-away". Local merchants may be willing to provide a larger gift for the winning family. We eventually eliminated judging and moved to the nominated families silently selecting the winning family. It worked very well.
- Keep in mind "Family of the Year" is a Recognition, not a competition. The objective is to honor and pay tribute to each family for their efforts and quality of family time.