There’s no deny that the Fourth of July is a great holiday. It’s the celebration of our independence as a country. It’s colorful and loud. It’s a great excuse for a cookout. It’s smack dab in the middle of summer.
And the celebrations that occur around the country depend on VOLUNTEERS.
Goggle “July 4th” + “Volunteers” and you’ll find oodles of pages asking for help. Volunteers are needed to assist with organizing parades, festivals, concerts, fireworks and fundraising efforts. And that’s just in the months leading up to the actual day. There are many more needs on that day.
Now take a few minutes to think about it … what would happen if no one stepped up? If no one volunteered? Sadly, the parades, fireworks, community celebrations would all be gone.
Oh, how we’d miss that annual trek of dragging chairs, coolers, wagons and strollers through the streets in search of that perfect position along the parade route.
We’d miss stepping over throngs of people while carrying our blankets through the encroaching dark, looking for that special section of grass to stretch across and watch the bursting colors above.
We’d miss those glorious sounds of symphonies filling the air with patriotic notes; concerts of such magnitude that the very atmosphere seems to vibrate with excitement.
Oh, sure there could still be cookouts and we could still celebrate our independence, but somehow it just wouldn’t be the same.
Now think about what would happen if professional associations had no volunteers. Sure, maybe they could survive with a fully-paid staff, but where would the passion be? Where would the commitment to the profession come from? Who would uphold the integrity and mission of the organization? Think about this way—association are communities of individuals that share a passion for their profession, right? Then who better to govern an association than people within that profession.
Without these volunteers, professional associations would be like July 4th without fireworks.
So in the spirit of July 4th celebrations around the county, we thank all volunteers. Thank you for making our Independence Day celebrations, and our associations, the best they can be.
Happy Fourth of July.