Volunteering at ACFW Conference in September

» Posted on Jun 1, 2010 in Blog | Comments Off on Volunteering at ACFW Conference in September

Volunteering at ACFW Conference
by Margaret Daley

This year we have an exciting conference planned in September (17-20) in Indianapolis. Tim Downs is our main speaker with many great workshops planned for all levels of writing. Not only will this be a time to learn from some wonderful teachers, but it will be a good opportunity for you to network with industry professionals and other authors. Check out what the conference has to offer at: http://www.acfw.com/conference.

One of the most important aspects of the conference is the role of volunteers in making it a success. In fact, the conference wouldn’t be possible without its volunteers. This will be my second year as the Volunteer Officer, and I was so impressed by the generosity of the members last year who volunteered at the conference in Denver. There are a lot of opportunities to volunteer this year whether you want to host/hostess a workshop, work registration, be a timekeeper for the editor/agent appointments, work in the bookstore or be a meal greeter and take tickets for the different meals.

Registration will open Thursday night because of the James Scott Bell workshop that starts bright and early (8:00) Friday morning and goes until 12:00. The people who are taking the workshop will need to register the night before. We will need most of our volunteers to man the registration desk on Friday. On Saturday and Sunday we will need a few to be at the registration desk for people who come in late or only attending one day.

Then there will be a need for people to help in the bookstore, with the editor/agent appointments and taking up tickets at the meals. Those activities happen during the conference. Beforehand, we’ll need people on Thursday to help stuff the conference bags for all the attendees and set up the bookstore. Now you see how the conference wouldn’t be a success without its volunteers. Every aspect of the conference is manned by people giving of their time to make the experience the best it can be.

So why should you volunteer besides the fact we can’t have a conference without people helping? It’s a great way to give back to ACFW. I’ve volunteered in the past. I love seeing old friends but also meeting new people. One of the reasons to go to a conference is to network. What better way while you are helping others?

So if you are going to the ACFW conference in September in Indianapolis, think about volunteering to help out in one of the places I mentioned above. You won’t regret it.