Volunteering With Minor Sports
If you are involved in minor sports this one is for you ... if not keep scrolling!
The signs are going up in neighbourhoods across the country promoting enrolment in soccer or baseball or another outdoor ball/field combination. There are tons of perks to children engaging in sports, so definitely think about it if you have not before.
However, we would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the thousands of volunteers that make these sports possible. First off thank you - you are doing wonderful work! Coaches, equipment managers, team managers, change room attendants, team coordinators, orange slice providers ... so many more, HOORAY for all of you!
If you are involved in these spaces as a board member or staff here are some quick morsels of support as you think about recruiting support for the teams:
- Include a couple sentences describing the role, even two. We have all been out of routine and capacity has shifted significantly in the past 2 years. We might have just forgotten what is actually meant by "co-coach" or maybe we are new to the whole experience.
- Include a time commitment in hours (even just a best guess). Sometimes that shared google calendar has lots of room and sometimes it's on overload. A human needs to know what they can expect and that includes the surprise mandatory training in 2 weeks on a Saturday morning.
- Add what the volunteer will gain from the experience, will you keep them caffeinated? Is the coach training transferable? Do they get an opinion on uniforms? A discount on next year's registration fees? Lots of things motivate lots of people so give it a go!