Volunteers are needed to keep the wheels a turning

I was asked a rather troubling question last week. The asker was wondering what it would take to find the volunteers that are needed today and will be needed in the future.
Following the July 1st celebration, I heard from many that they were upset that little happened at Pither’s Point Park this year. They were complaining that there were no food booths, or activities for children, teens and adults. They wondered who was in charge because they wanted to complain about the lack of July 1st activities at the point.
It is an example about the fallout of volunteers growing tired and retiring from activities. It takes an organized group of volunteers to coordinate a day of activities with food vendors at Pither’s Point Park. It just doesn’t happen by magic.
Kitchen Creek, the Fort Frances Curling Rink, Riverside, Family and Children Services, the Fort Frances Clinic and every church depend upon volunteer board members. The Town of Fort Frances as other municipalities in the district depend upon volunteers to fill many advisory positions looking after everything from recreation to roads, to planning and more. Clubs like the Aquanauts, Border Figure Skating, and Minor hockey depend on volunteers for their existence.
The Fort Frances Canadian Bass Championship relies on a board of twelve who work year round for the week of activities and then on 400 volunteers during the week.
Scouts and Girl Guides depend on volunteers for those youth programs.
Many employee groups also have volunteer executives that work on behalf of their fellow employees.
The asker suggested that I look at the average age of the majority of the people sitting on those boards across the district. It is kind of frightening to see that the age very much matches the median age of the district. He wondered who was going to take over from those young seniors.
Often serving on those boards and commissions carries legal risk for the volunteer. Sometimes it even includes public ridicule and I have heard more than one-person “tongue in cheek,” say “I must be crazy to be volunteering for this.”
Yet, they are totally committed to the activity and believe that their volunteer effort makes a difference in the community.
Governments don’t hold community festivals. Governments rely on groups to assist in funding arenas, libraries, hospitals and parks. Governments look to service clubs and community organizations to do the leg-work of planning, organizing, and creating those facilities. With community participation, governments will then step in with the final cash.
At one time Fort Frances had a Rotary Club, a Kinsmen Club and Jaycees as well as a Lion’s and Kiwanis Club. Across the district there were several Kinsmen and Lions Clubs. All were committed as service organizations to making their community better. Today in the Fort only the Kiwanis and Lion’s Clubs remain.
The province mandated that all high school students had to perform 40 hours of volunteer service to the community to graduate. It was the hope of the Ministry of Education that in volunteering, students would appreciate the experience and look to volunteer in their communities in the future.
And most volunteers will tell you that they receive more in personal fulfillment from any job they perform volunteering. It is often why you see the same people volunteering for many different organizations across the district.
Many of those volunteer positions require time and commitment away from family and the community. And in accepting those volunteer responsibilities, the families of those volunteers and their employers also become part of the volunteering team.
I still don’t have an answer for that person, but it too has me wondering about who will carry the torch for activities like Fun in the Sun, the fishing tournaments, the district fair, the hospitals, the Chamber of Commerce’s, the many youth clubs and churches across the district.
I do know that every group in the district needs new and younger people to begin assuming the reins. It is never too late or too early to start volunteering.
–Jim Cumming,
Publisher