Location: Soldier Field
Date: Sunday, May 19, 2013; 6:30-9:30 am
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| This time I was outside the stadium |
For a second day in a row, I
found myself waking in the wee hours of the morning and being in a cab headed
to Soldier Field. Once again, I arrived
there just as first light of morning was upon us and I texted to a buddy “Let’s see the Bear’s do that!” The main difference between yesterday’s event
and this morning was that we would be outside the stadium rather than on the main
playing field. A flurry of set-up
activity was going on as I checked in at the Volunteer tent and was directed
towards my first assignment. One of the
leaders, Seth, needed to get boxes of vests and t-shirts stored outside, at the
back of the tent, brought inside and looking at the huge pile, it would take a
few turns.
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| The shirt boxes |
A few other souls joined us and
we brought most of the boxes in. Following this,
I went over to my main job this morning, which was in the pre-registration
tent. Today’s event was a 5K Walk and Run
which meant that we would be getting participants who were either walking or
running and there was only one tent to serve both categories. We had a setup where some of the volunteers
were sitting up front with laptop computers to check the list. The participants would come in, give their
last name and based on the code in the computer, their bib number would show
up. The people on the computer would
then turn around and tell the people working the back of the tent – like me –
the number and we would pull the bib from the appropriate box. The boxes were arranged according to bib
numbers with up to 1000, 1000-2000, 2000-3000, 3000-4000 and then one for
teams. The runner’s bibs, which had a
chip in them to measure time, were up to 2000 and then on it were walkers. Three women, Emma, Mave and Jessica took to
the computers, while I, Stephanie and 2 other volunteers were responsible for
pulling the bibs based on their instructions.
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| The bib filing system |
Initially the process was a bit
chaotic, with bib number requests coming in and the people pulling the bibs not
knowing who should be getting what. Then
we figured out a system, where one bib puller would work with one caller. That way we would have teams of two who could
work efficiently in satisfying the requests.
I started working with Emma but over the course of the morning, had an
opportunity to work with other partners as well. This system was working very well and I was
having a good time. The interesting thing
was that for some walkers we did not find the right bibs and since they were
not timed anyways, gave them a separate walking bib. I pointed out the obvious fallacy in the
process wherein there was no need to have a pre-assigned bib for walkers
anyways and we could have just handed them numbers as they came in. Well, you learn with experience!
The number callers were most
polite and would say “Please”, while
requesting a bib and “Thank You”,
once they got it. They did it without
fail, no matter how many times they made the request. One team came in with 10 members in it and as
the team captain collected the bibs, she said she had raised the most money
amongst all of them and hence was the captain.
Nothing wrong with leading from the front I say! She then took the entire package of bibs,
hoping that the team would come looking for her. Another gentleman came in wearing a Chicago
Cares Volunteer Leader shirt and I asked him about the projects that he had led. The process was very smooth and the lines were moving rapidly and of all the walk/run events that I have done this year, this was by far my best experience. Plus the organizers and my fellow volunteers were nicer; and unlike some of the other events, everyone got a t-shirt, irrespective of them raising money
or not.
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| The band to welcome the runners home |
Today’s event was to benefit ‘Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s
Hospital of Chicago’, a magnificent facility that I often pass by on my way
home. According to their website, “The research arm is devoted to the
understanding, prevention and investigation of pediatric illnesses and
injuries. It has been designated a Northwestern University Feinberg School of
Medicine research center for its central role in the university’s integrated
research program. Established in 1986,
our pediatric research center has over 200 investigators, 500 staff members and
100 trainees who contribute to six growing programs in basic research and
translational medicine at the research facility. We also have interdisciplinary
centers of excellence that target specific child health issues and complement
our core programs.” Some of the
other impressive statistics inform us that in 2012, Lurie cared for more
children than any other pediatric hospital or system in Illinois, with children
coming in from 49 states and 34 countries.
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| Everyone needed water after this |
Once the walk began, the people
weren't coming in as much and we were running out of bibs as well. We were done soon thereafter and I gave
everyone a high-five on job well done and proceeded to the finish line to cheer
the runners who were about to finish. As
I went there, I saw that not only were there people who were clapping; there
was a band that swung into action when a runner approached, and several
cheerleaders waving pompoms. They
certainly did not need me there, but rather at the water station. Runners were coming in thick and fast and all
were looking for water. I grabbed a handful
of bottles and started handing them off to grateful participants. Once the bottles were over, I helped fill out
cups and even made a trip to the other side of the site to get some more bottles. I did that for some time and then seeing that
there were other volunteers, left for home and a brief rest before my next project. I had been exhausted earlier this morning,
especially after my previous day’s activities.
But the overall experience had been invigorating and people had been
friendly. The hospital’s website also
states that, besides funding from philanthropic sources, one thing the hospital
relies on heavily is help from volunteers.
In 2012, more than 1,200 volunteers gave 62,000 hours of their time for
play activities, respite to parents and other services. Compared with that, our role this morning had
been insignificant. But as Dr. King
teaches us, even though our tasks may have been small, we had done them in a
great way.
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