When Hayden Weenig, Jeff Hakala, Kai Barlow, and Madalyn Udall first started talking about creating a school-wide club during their sophomore year of high school, none of them really thought that it would get all that far. But when it took off the way it did, with some of the activities boasting forty, and fifty plus participants within a month or two of the start up, everyone was pretty impressed. But it definitely took a lot of work to get there.
"I remember thinking that yeah, this could be fun," Jeff says. "I figured that it would be a great way to get friends together and watch our favorite nerdy T.V. series, eat junk food, and just altogether have a blast. We thought that for sure it would a great way to get together, and an excuse to get away from it all, and summer break seemed like just the opportune way to do that."
Jeff, Kai, and Hayden's hopes for the club were sky-high, (Madalyn joined the team a little bit later) and although they didn't know exactly just how it was going to work out, they weren't afraid to try something new. They began by mapping out a calendar, and planning out every single month exactly what the club was going to do. They planned everything from pool parties, to a monthly service project, and then Jeff had this weird new idea that, initially, no one had really thought about.
"As a kid, I had loved playing noodle wars with my neighbors," said Jeff. "Basically we got started when one of us came up with the idea to use cut up pool noodles as weapons, and it kind of took off from there. At one point the whole neighborhood was coming on an almost weekly basis. It was just a blast!"
It had been years since Jeff had really played the beloved neighborhood game, because it had died out when some of the older boys had moved out, and either gone to college or headed off to serve a two year LDS mission for their church. But the fun memories had remained, and it wasn't long before the idea that was executed by a bunch of neighborhood kids just a few years previous clicked in Jeff's head as a possible activity for the club that the team was creating. Jeff decided to give it a shot, and almost immediately the guys latched on. Everyone thought it would be a great idea, so long as it didn't interfere with the other projects going on, and so, with an excited air of determination about them, the team began tenaciously attacking the work of construction, building flags, swords, promotional posters, and a crazy awesome website.
Initially, the guys knew that it would be a lot of money, and work, and that they'd need help. That's where Madalyn Udall, and a lot of other supporters came in. They were an invaluable resource to the team in preparation for the games and activities to come.
Finally, after countless hours of work, careful preparations, and team meetings, the first actual meeting of the team's participants was held, on June 14, 2014. The rules were laid out, teams were chosen, and refreshments were awarded. Then just a week after the first ever group meeting, the Avatar Games began.
"It was awesome," says Jeff. "Totally worth it. Amazing! Everyone had a blast, and although we were a little bit shaky at the first couple of activities, as the time went on, everyone got to know one another, and it was just altogether a great success!"
Jeff was also happy to report that they had made up all of the money it had taken to build the weapons, and then some. It was a total victory. Everyone loved it! Sure, there was the occasional bruise or cut (the game was set in some pretty crazy territory) but the prize far outweighed the cost. Numbers grew, and so did the club's popularity. Game matches were intense, and the team was soon dealing with almost more than they could handle. The website now boasts of over 1500 views, and the number is still climbing.
All in all, Avatar Club is a triumph. Cheered on by countless individuals and supporters, it truly has became one of the greatest things you can do on a Saturday morning. Because of the club friendships have been forged, and memories made. And that's exactly the kind of thing that the team was shooting for, when they started the OAC all of those months previous. There really is nothing else like the Official Avatar Club.
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