I think everyone is aware of the amount of work that volunteers do in communities all over the world. It’s a lot.
The MVA President, Deb Davis, admitted that without volunteers helping out at a recent evening event we could not have gone forward with it. Volunteers not only worked at the event – serving up soup and bread and cake and tea and coffee and alcohol – they also contributed to the making of said soup and cakes.
Other volunteers set up the hall over two days with bunting and chairs and tablecloths, crockery and flowers and dismantled it all at the end of the evening and on the following day. Volunteers did letterbox drops of leaflets.
A total of 59 hours was volunteered and the value to the organization was $1,950.00. And as a not for profit organization that is money we do not have. So, we are incredibly grateful to our volunteers for all the work they do – for events that we hold, for our monthly markets, for always putting their hands up.
But we can’t sit on our laurels. We need more volunteers. Volunteers don’t sign a contract that says they must give themselves to us for a period of time to do X amount of hours. They let us know what they can help with and how often. I volunteer for as many Montville markets each year as I can but like many of us on the Range, I go away and sometimes those holidays or trips to family coincide with market day. The more volunteers we have the more likely we will be able to cover all slots. Market Day for instance requires two hours of a volunteer’s time. It’s a great environment – people are always smiling when they come to you asking for breakfast – and the volunteers are always happy and positive and if you aren’t feeling fab in the morning, by the time you go home you will be on top of the world. Not only have you done something terrific for the community but you have had a great dose of fun along the way.
Please can you put up your hand and give us a few hours every few months? We would love to welcome you to our volunteering community. And you get a free breakfast! And as you know, Montville Market breakfasts are the best, both sides of the Black Stump.
Please let me know – secretary.mva@gmail.com. I’m happy to answer any questions you have. If you just want to talk about it to see if volunteering for the MVA is for you, then let’s chat.
Louise