Not so long ago, our club (La Pétanque Marinière) was organizing regular picnics that were widely enjoyed by our membership.
Gradually though the pique-niques were spaced off and finally taken off the menu.
This decision did not sit well with everybody. As a matter of fact, many people (notably my wife) indicated to me that they would like to see picnics coming out of retirement.
So, the main question is: what was the main reason for the picnics’ obsolescence?
The answer is simple. Volunteer’s general burnout.
Let’s not forget that all the heavy lifting was done by participants who were never recognized or compensated for their efforts. Volunteers are silent heroes, and we need to acknowledge their efforts and sing their praise.
Let’s not remain silent about our gratitude.
Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it. ~William Arthur Ward
In my book, volunteerism needs some incentive. The very least we should do for our volunteers is to offer free food for their services. And I would also exempt them from paying a fee to participate in the co-occurring tournament.
Gratitude always goes two ways. We should be thankful for their hard work, and they should be in a position to appreciate our recognition.
In the same vein, previous volunteers have expressed interest in restarting picnics with the agreed sine qua non that they should be treated equitably. Let’s agree beforehand on some designated volunteers and keep them happy in their undertaking.
Just remember that new members and people (from different clubs) come to our picnics to share food and meet or get reacquainted with friends.
They don’t expect fabulous dishes, just decent food, possibly fortified by some locally fermented brew.
In the unforgettable words of our venerated leader, LMPGA!
Let’s make picnics great again!
Talk to your board members to bring this issue to the forefront.
Alain
PS: I would love to hear your thoughts about this issue. Please don’t be shy.