[quote style=”2″]Lack of Volunteers Could Mean Event Canceled This Year[/quote]
The annual Hermiston Public Library book sale is facing the same challenge many other nonprofit events are facing – a lack of volunteers.
Hermiston Librarian Marie Baldo said the board of directors for the Friends of the Library are considering alternatives to the book sale if additional volunteers cannot be found.
“Lack of volunteers to man the book sale was recognized as a critical problem,” said Baldo. “Board members felt that a final appeal to the Friends membership and the public was appropriate before finalizing any other plans.”
A tentative date for the fall book sale was set for Oct. 9-11 in the Hermiston Library Lanham Room. Volunteers are needed for the following duties and dates to make the book sale a reality:
• Oct. 5 – Set-up at 2 p.m. Five to 10 people are needed to help set up tables, move book boxes from storage, and place books on designated table locations. This takes about two hours. Volunteers are needed who can lift boxes weighing up to 35 pounds, as well as those who can help with sorting of books.
• Oct. 6 – Four or five volunteers to straighten and organize the books into their genres and categories. Access to the Lanham Room is available throughout the day and volunteers work on their own to prepare the books for sale.
• Oct. 9, 5 to 8 p.m. – Three to four volunteers are needed to man the counters and assist buyers taking purchases to their vehicles.
• Oct. 10, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Two teams of two volunteers each are needed to cover sales shifts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 2 to 5 p.m.
• Oct. 11, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. – Two teams of two volunteers each are needed to cover sales shifts from 10 a.m. to noon, and 2 to 3 p.m.
• Oct. 11, 3 p.m. – Five or six volunteers are needed to place the leftover books into boxes, move the boxes to the hallway and take down the tables used in the sale. This team routinely requires about an hour of work time to accomplish the task.
“Volunteers for these tasks are critical to the successful accomplishment of a book sale this year,” said Baldo. Members and the public are asked to contact the library at 541-567-2882 to volunteer for any or several of the dates and duties outlined above. Sept. 12 will be the last day to volunteer for the book sale.
Based on the outcome of this outreach the decision will be made at that time to continue with the book sale or cancel it for this year.
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