Volunteer, It’s
Worth It
Anonymous
Checking my email one afternoon, I saw a call
for volunteers for the Special Olympics. I decided I could take a day off
of work and help with this worthy cause. In the past, I had volunteered
to coach a local Boys and Girls Club and an up and coming USAV team. I
had even provided one-on-one training sessions for a junior player working
to improve her skills, but I had never volunteered for something like the
Special Olympics. I had no idea what to expect.
The venue for the volleyball competition was the
DuFours Center at Catholic University. When I arrived, I saw many faces
I knew. I was happy to see a tremendous turnout of volunteers from the
Chesapeake Region Volleyball Association (CHRVA). CHRVA President Karol
Shadle was the Coordinator. She had the monumental task of organizing the
event. With the help of JoBeth Killough, all volunteers were assigned to
several duties ranging from check-in, team warm-up, and delegation lead,
to scorekeeping, officiating, and awards presentation. There was no such
thing as having too many volunteers.
The biggest buzz was the scorekeeping
assignment. The competition format was best three of five regular scoring
games (think back a couple of years, you may remember how it was played).
Everyone was trying to remember how to scorekeep the “old fashioned” way!
Once the teams were assembled in the hallway,
the opening ceremony started. Led by a volunteer, all teams marched in
with a banner to the playing of the Olympic Anthem. The athletes were very
excited, and there were smiles all around. Volunteers cheered, whistled,
and clapped as the athletes entered the gym, letting the athletes know
it was their special day.
CHRVA also added to the excitement of the
day by presenting a check for $3,000 to the Special Olympics, District
of Columbia, to aid in the continued growth of the event. In addition,
all athletes received gifts from the Region, tee shirts, and key rings.
These totally unexpected gifts brought cheers from the athletes.
After introducing all of the athletes by name,
the competition began. Emotions were running high, you could see it on
the faces of the athletes. The coaches and athletes had been training for
months, and most matches went four or five games.
As with all competition, there is always a
winner. I think it was as tough on the volunteers as on the athletes. Everyone
was emotionally involved. I saw volunteers congratulating the winners and,
in the next instant, consoling the second place team, many of whose athletes
had tears in their eyes.
The competition ended with an awards ceremony
where the athletes received a gold or silver medal from CHRVA Commissioner
Anne Hughes. The athletes went home knowing that this was their day, and
everyone was there for them. It is a memory they may never forget.
I believe I misspoke before when I said all
competitions have a winner. This was an event that had many winners. The
athletes, the community, the volunteers, and the Special Olympics were
all winners.
Next year, set aside one day and volunteer.
You won’t regret it. |
|
