Taq: Hi Town! It's me, Taq. I joined the ToO the first day it opened, eager to get involved. See, I lurked quite a bit on the Town Hall and even posted 26 times, but I was on the outside looking in. I saw the advent of the new Town as my chance to become the active participant. So I started posting and finally got used to it. Here I am. Over the past four years, it's been a pleasure getting to know members here, in particular LizzieG. We conversed at first through private messages and then in person in Colorado this past August. Lizzie is a sweet young lady, and I can vouch for her integrity and responsibility. She does everything with excellence and would make an exemplary admin. Together, we've come up with ideas we think you'll love.
LizzieG: Hi, this is LizzieG, temporary Hoosier, forever Californian, and Odyssian at heart, speaking to you with her own voice!
I found the Town of Odyssey back in 2006, thanks to the End of Season Awards (oh, those Golden Dixie Cups!), and no one’s been able to get rid of me since! Without the ToO, I would not be quite the avid Adventures in Odyssey fan I am today, and my internet life would be missing a lot of laughter and friendship. So thank you to everyone who has made and continues to make the ToO one of the gems of the world wide web! I especially want to thank Taq, my fabulous running mate, who was one of the first to befriend me. Getting to know her has been a privilege and an encouragement. 
Our birthdays are a day apart, and we are side by side in posting rank. Coincidence? Whit and I think not. 
It wasn’t until I went to Colorado last summer that I started seriously thinking about running for office. I’ve said this before, but if the ToO was responsible for rekindling my interest in Adventures in Odyssey, then my epic trip to Colorado was responsible for rekindling my interest in the ToO (and both of those ‘ifs’ are true). I’m very excited to be a part of this election, and to share with you our ideas for the Town!~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Remember when you were in fifth grade and your library had a summer reading program... and how much fun that was? We're proud to introduce a ToO-ized summer reading contest for people of all ages! We know there are many readers on the ToO, and so what better way to make the joys of reading even more joyous? This contest will run from June through August, and not only will there be prizes at the end for those who have read the most pages, but there will be special incentives throughout the summer for all participants that you won't want to miss, such as reading logs, Books of the Month, participation "buttons," and more!
Ever heard the story of how LizzieG conspired to kidnap a stuffed dog? Interested in hearing about her missions trip to Mexico this past Spring Break? You've come to the right place! Storytime with LizzieG will be a semi-regular feature where yours truly will tell true stories about some of the comedic, dramatic, action-adventurey, and inspiring events of her life. Be prepared for anything, but don't be too surprised if fun and funny tend to be the order of the day. And special thanks to Trent for suggesting this!
Ever draw comparisons between yourself and an Odyssey character? Here's your opportunity to show us just how similar you are! Entrants will provide us three exhibits with short descriptions of each. An aspiring Bernard might show us a picture of her squeegee. An aspiring Eugene might show us that cool molecular model she built in her room. The focus here is on attributes rather than physical resemblance, though you may include shots of yourself if you'd like.
Ever wanted to enter a writing contest but didn't think you had the chops? This contest is for you! We'll pose a question that you'll answer in 200 words or fewer. We decided to create this short-length, non-fiction writing contest in order to involve more people (in addition to the self-identified writers). We're more interested in your story than in the exact number of words or your grammatical prowess, though we do need to be able to understand you.
Whoa! Before anyone cries inevitable disaster, please note that the first and so far only contest of this kind ended well. We plan to administer a standardized test-style exam with a variety of question types (e.g., analogies, sentence completions, qualitative comparisons, ToOer produced responses) covering a variety of subjects (e.g., AIO Trivia, ToO Trivia, LizzieG/Taq Trivia, Bible Trivia). The two high scorers will serve as admins for a mutually agreeable 2-day period.
Who can forget Trent's offering to do push-ups and crunches for ToO money?
We would like to take this idea to a new level and reward people for all kinds of physical exercise! Prizes will be awarded based on the amount of time spent exercising. And who says the ToO keeps you from the real world? 
It's a fact: we make more ToO money than we can spend. We value your opinion on the economy, and so, in addition to offering new shop items, we'll take a poll to determine what changes to make to the job system and other facets of our economy. Also, we will surround ourselves with smart people so that we can expertly implement the desired innovations.
After a year of radio silence (not counting the re-airs), we will finally have new Odyssey episodes this September! In the month before the first show airs, we'll celebrate with an official countdown and festivities.
Freshman, sophomores, juniors, and seniors, all competing, through dress-up days and various games and contests, to earn the big Spirit Trophy at the end of the week! We plan to ToO-ize this popular high school event by dividing the ToO into groups, and holding mini-contests and games on themed "days" during which members can earn points for their team!
You may be thinking to yourself, that's a lot of contests. You're absolutely right! We plan to keep motivation high by offering a tangible prize for at least one of them. What is a tangible prize, you ask? Instead of virtual rewards, we will mail an actual item to the winner's house! Indeed, we'll reward our winners well.
Unlike Curt Stevens, we are serious about implementing each idea put forth in our platform. During the term, we plan to administer surveys asking how well we are accomplishing our platform, what aspects of the term are contributing to/detracting from your experience here, how the ToO might be improved, etc. We will aggregate the results and release it to the Town. We hope that the surveys will hold the leaders accountable and give them pertinent feedback so they might improve both themselves and the Town.
Since many members here are far more zealous than we are about economic and technological matters, we will create a faction for the express purpose of discussing the ToO economy and technology. The group will have open enrollment - anyone can join and offer opinions - but we will appoint one Eco/Tech Committee Chair, who will be responsible for moderating the faction and enacting the desired changes.
~We don't want to waste your time with lengthy explanations of various housekeeping items, so we've decided to address these issues in as few words as possible. 1. Mayor/CoP Poll: Thank you for your votes.
2. Donations: We've paid the fee. Post here or PM LizzieG/Taq to join our HQ!
3. Spam/Other Infractions: Warnings, incarceration, banning.
4. Mods: Global (majority), Gower's Field, and CCDS. We'll select a mix of new and old.
5. Factions: Non-interference policy.
6. $10 Post Day: We plan to feature 1 day giving users higher income per post.
7. User-Submitted Ranks: One (or more) of YOU will bring us a brand new set of auto-titles.
8. Availability: The ToO deserves admins who are there for the people. In the coming term, we will be free from the demands of higher education and will have plenty of time for you all. This is the prime time for us to lead the ToO, as both of us are approaching our last guaranteed free summer. A year from now, Taq will be looking at grad school summer work, while Lizzie will face the real world as a college graduate.