Happy 2010 to all, and here's to a prosperous and positively charged year to all of us. I know I can say I'm happy to shed the stench of 2009 off and start anew, I don't know about anyone else. I apologize for slacking on the website for the past month or so. We pride ourselves on being the most updated blog of any of the local Browncoat sites* (that data based on... rumor, speculation and potentially flat out lies), but December just fed us a little more than we could stuff down (what with all the fudge and turkey to eat as well). Now that the new year has begun, and with luck a return to some normalcy, we can get back into the business of doing good works. To stick with blog-ish cliche, I'll work my personal AZBC resolutions into a list. I encourage all of you to throw some of your own into the comments section.

CSTS will be the biggest and best yet! 2010 marks 5 great years since Serenity was in theaters, and notably since my own recruitment into the Browncoat ranks. It will also mark the 5th Annual Can't Stop The Serenity charity screening that has put Browncoats around the world on the map and raised $39,686.17 in Arizona alone. For 2010 we already have our friends at MADCAP Theaters and Bookmans raring to go on an event that will make past events look dinky in comparison. Plans are still in very early stages so we can't give too many details yet, but we hope to bring in other local organizations to host their own movie or event and turn this year's CSTS into a full scale film festival. My goal (as this year's coordinator) is to top $5,000 for our own Equality Now portion, and raise over $10,000 for the entire event and each organization's chosen charity. If you would like to volunteer to help, drop a line at CSTS@azbrowncoats.org.

Phoenix Cactus ComicCon and Kids Need To Read The other charity vying for our attention this year is Kids Need To Read. Last year they moved their base of operations to Phoenix, making the organization co-founded by our beloved Nathan Fillion a local organization. We've already made connections with them, and this year we hope to become BFFs with this fantastic charity. If you haven't been playing the home game, Kids Need To Read is an organization devoted to providing books to kids and supporting school libraries. Besides the Firefly star connection, this is a charity that fits perfectly with our goals and interests. For that reason, we've offered to volunteer for Kids Need To Read and their activities at the Phoenix Cactus ComicCon. We have a small handful of people already, but not nearly enough. Over the next few months we'll be making a big push to get as many volunteers as possible. Here's the catch though... you will need to have a membership to the con to volunteer. Currently memberships are $30 each for the entire weekend (cheaper if you just want a single day). What this will mean is you will have full access to the Con, but you will be asked to spend whatever time you can at the KNTR booth. Specific scheduling naturally will be defined better once you've volunteered. Think of it this way: not all of the weekend is gonna be packed full of goodness, you'll be doing fantastically good works, and it being Nathan's charity I wouldn't be particularly surprised if his buddy Felicia Day happened to stop by to say hi (and maybe her buddy Wil Wheaton). If nothing else, it never hurts to be on a list of people who helped out the charity of our mighty captain. No, I'm not hinting anything I secretly know. Nathan won't be making a surprise appearance (unless he does, but I'm not privy to that), and there's no reason to believe Felicia Day will at any point leave the Rock Band in the Hospitality Room long enough to say hi to us lowly types... but what you should be caring about is helping a great charity so hush! If we can get together 12 people, we can get a $25/person group price, so if you're interested in volunteering you can send a message my way and I'll pass it on to the relevant peoples. David@azbrowncoats.org

A new year with fresh energy "Only two things?" you say? What do you think we are? We're just people, and we're always in need of more fresh blood to help with our events. The Arizona Browncoats have been organized online for roughly 5 years (it's hard to pinpoint exactly when we went from browncoats in Arizona to The Arizona Browncoats) and we've made a ton of new friends over the years, and burned out our share as well. As time goes on, our group evolves. Going into the new decade who knows what the Arizona Browncoats will become, but as long as we continue to hold onto the family we've developed and bring in fresh people and volunteers to carry on our mission, the years to come will be even better than the past five!