The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Over the last several years, the phrase 'cancelled due to a lack of volunteers' has appeared in the pages of The Reminder more times than I can remember. There's no denying the fact that the Flin Flon area has fewer volunteers compared to 40, 30, 20 or even 10 years ago. We can thank population decline and aging for that. You can also make a case that members of the new generation either have less time or less will to give freely of their help; and that a weakened sense of community has diminished the prestige that volunteerism once held. Since 2000, a lack of volunteers has spelled the end of local branches of the Odd Fellows and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada. There's no more Evergreen Rebekah Lodge No. 56, Burbot Derby or Bakers Narrows Day, and the venerable Trout Festival has had more near-death experiences than the protagonist of a Friday the 13th movie. Many other groups are struggling to fill vacancies on their boards of directors. Some exist literally because of one or two people who valiantly keep plugging away. A number of these organizations will almost certainly fold in the coming years, and their members know it. But volunteerism in our area is not dead yet _ to a large degree, it is shifting. Shifting to newer groups and events such as the SPCA, Habitat for Humanity and the cancer-fighting Relay for Life. Shifting to more localized projects like the sensational Flin Flon Skate Park or the popular beach and playground overlooking Schist Lake in Channing. And shifting to community events with specific themes, such as Culture Days or last year's Diamond Jubilee celebration in honour of Queen Elizabeth II. Organizations and events with a narrow focus continue to draw a healthy number of volunteers while older, more all-encompassing groups often struggle. Passionate Perhaps we should not be surprised by this. Everyone is passionate about at least one thing, be it fighting cancer in the case of the Relay for Life or caring for animals in the case of the SPCA. Finding people who can be just as passionate about a dozen or more projects, as is the case with some of our volunteer groups, is more difficult. Maybe it is time for all of our volunteer organizations sat down together to review their respective mandates. Rather than trying to be many things to many people, each could hone in on a particular charitable tract. This could help organizations recruit new blood. It could also ensure the community is better served with minimal overlap among the various groups. When folks complain that people today are unwilling to carry the torch of volunteerism, I counter that they are _ just not in the exact same way as the last generation. It is sad but unsurprising that some volunteer groups will fizzle out while new ones sprout up. As the philosopher Heraclitus of Ephesus taught, nothing is permanent except change. There probably aren't enough willing bodies to go around to save all of the volunteer groups we have now. The ones that survive will be those that remain relevant not only to the needs of the community, but also to the specific passions of volunteers. Local Angle runs Fridays.
