Calling All Volunteers!

Thursday, October 8, 2009

Written by Kate Blackwell, IABC/Toronto member and volunteer

The evening of September 29th began with a warm welcome, a colourful billboard and a crown.

It was the IABC/Toronto volunteer recruitment event and Oakham House at Ryerson University was swarming with more than 55 professional communicators and volunteer hopefuls.

The introduction to the festivities came from Brent Carey, ABC, President of IABC/Toronto and Marie Fitzpatrick-Hall, ABC, Vice President of Volunteer Services. And although it was a lovely and warm welcome, it was the billboard game that immediately caught my attention.

The room was organized in a speed dating format with IABC/Toronto executive board members sat behind tables labelled according to their portfolios. We were all told to write one word that best describes ourselves on a large, bright post-it note, or “billboard.” We were then told to discuss that word and its meaning with as many of the executives as possible. And here’s where the crown comes in. Once discussed, we had to exchange business cards, and the person with the most cards at the end of the activity, won the honour of wearing the crown.

Although I didn’t win, and I suppose a very small part of me wishes I had, it was the perfect icebreaker and the group was comfortable and relaxed for the remainder of the evening.

This was my first event, and as a recent graduate and new IABC/Toronto member, I was nervous. I didn’t know anybody and I wasn’t sure what to expect. But the executives were friendly and approachable and took the time to explain the various volunteer opportunities and express excitement in working with yet another group of enthusiastic volunteers.

“It was wonderful to see so many of our members engaged with the chapter and making the most of their membership,” says Carey. “Volunteering really is a key member benefit, and we’re looking forward to their help in making this a successful year for our chapter.”

I thoroughly enjoyed myself at a wonderful event, in great company, and although I didn’t eat any of the food because of my nerves, it certainly looked tasty.

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