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Volunteers are at the heart of community events

Volunteers are at the heart of community events Volunteers are at the heart of community events

It is your own fault if you were bored in Taylor County last weekend.

With Lublin Days, the Rumblefest Car Show, the Taylor County Fair and the Lions Duck Race going on, the weekend was packed to the gills with events and activities for everyones’ taste and budget. Beyond the organized activities, the weather was near-perfect when it came to temperature and comfort.

As the pictures on the pages of this week’s issue of The Star News and plastering area residents’ social media feeds demonstrate, people were hard at work having fun.

As much fun as all these events and activities were, it is important to remember that they don’t happen by themselves. Even a small event can take a large number of volunteers to make it successful. The workload only grows as the events grow larger.

Fairs, car shows and community festivals require months, if not years, of advanced planning. Booking a performer or carnival may occur more than a year in advance. Throughout the planning process there are inevitable hurdles to overcome and proverbial fires to put out as personalities or plans go haywire. The committed volunteers working behind the scenes do so because they are passionate about their events and not for any sort of paycheck, because there are none. Any money raised goes back into improving events and supporting community activities. The work that goes into planning, organizing and putting on an event is taxing on the volunteers and their families. This burden puts strain on volunteers’ relationships.

For example, fair board members might see family members only in passing in the weeks leading up to the fair as they are busy working with other volunteers to install new coolers, put together rabbit hutches or making sure there is enough power for vendors and rides. Volunteers are there to get signs hung before opening and are there long into the night making sure jobs are done and things are ready for the next day.

This is equally as true for Rumblefest and Lublin Days volunteers and for any other major event. Volunteers are the ones keeping the food and beverages flowing while they themselves may only have the time for a quick bite or a sip of their own drink before it goes warm and flat. They are the ones who are running to make sure the porta potties have enough toilet paper instead of being able to listen to the band. They are the ones at the end of the day who stick around and put things away until the next year.

Events don’t happen by themselves. They take commitment from volunteers who are willing to step up and get things done. Next time you are at an event take a look at the people serving and pause to thank them for taking time out of their lives to help make the community a better place to live, work and play.

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