Volunteering is something important that I personally believe people should be encouraged to give back to their communities or have it related to things they are passionate about. When one devotes their own time to do something for an organization or event it gives a sense of accomplishment. I volunteered at the Corn Crib Stadium for their Easter Egg hunt the previous year and I went with my sorority sisters. I really enjoyed this experience because it was a good opportunity to not only build more bonds with my sorority sisters but also give back to the community and be able to see the smiling faces on the kids when they were participating in the different activities. This event would be categorized as a Non-profit event for the Bloomington-Normal community.
The major purpose for this event is to provide families from the community with a fun, safe, interactive and positive environment. This event is to celebrate the Easter Holiday and for some families this can be a yearly tradition they do or other are just now starting to go. I was assigned to scatter the Easter eggs around the field in my designated area for children within a certain age rage. With my group we had about 3-4 buckets with Easter eggs, they were all filled with candy, stickers, etc. and we had to lay them all around to cover the field. Near the entrance they had a variety of stands with different games, activities, and raffles to take part of, which were also held by volunteers. There are so many activities to do that it keeps all the families busy and engaged in the event. The town of Normal organizes this event and they do a good job of keeping it for all these years and continuing to host this event because they recycle the eggs and bins and other games. They target to get volunteers in the community but also to the college students and most organizations on campus to participate as a group to complete their community service hours.
When I signed up for the event, they did not have us do any pre-training. They just had us come in before the Easter Egg hunt started and those who were taking charge of it went over rules, expectations and an agenda on how everything was going to go for the volunteers. I learned to not be afraid to speak up for myself but also for the activity that I was put in charge of because some of the students would not stay behind the lines or would go to a go to the scavenger hunt beside us to get double the eggs. In this case I had to take charge of the situation and let them know how the activities were planned. I definitely gained more patience and how to handle different situations. I thought the whole experience was fun and the overall turnout was major success, so I personally would not change what they do or how they organize the event since it all worked out in their favor. It is always good to go into an event or environment with a positive mindset and an open mind especially if it is your first-time volunteering because you won’t know what to expect or how the day will go. I see this event growing in the following years because it is open and free to the public, it is an opportunity for family and friends to create memories together and stay involved in the community.
Agali Chacon's Blog 