OLEAN — More than 400 volunteer shifts need to be filled to help a trio of events get off the ground in June.
The Greater Olean Area Chamber of Commerce put out a call this week for 425 more volunteers for the Gus Macker 3-on-3 basketball tournament set for June 2-4, the annual Chamber clambake on June 8, and the June 22 Southern Tier Corporate Challenge.
The bulk are for the Macker, siad Chamber COO Meme Yanetsko.
“They’re very vital,” Yanetsko said, adding volunteers are essential to running the events every year.
The first event in June — the Macker — “represents around 300 of them,” she said, with the three day basketball tournament requiring timers and scorekeepers for each court. “Realistically, we’d love to have two people at each table all day.”
The event is the most volunteer-intensive event on the Chamber’s schedule. So far, Yanetsko said around 80 shifts worth of volunteers have been filled. Olean high school students will also assist, with the football, volleyball and soccer teams to lend a hand with setup and teardown duties.
“It normally takes four hours, they get it down to an hour and a half,” she said of the students and other volunteers who help unload the courts, baskets and other equipment. “I’m very grateful the school releases them and allows them to help out.”
Scorekeepers and timers do not have to have intimate knowledge of the sport to be helpful.
“As long as you pay attention you don’t need to really know basketball — you have a ref right there,” Yanetsko said. “You get front row tickets, a seat, and you get all the action.”
So far, 113 teams have signed up for the tournament, and brackets are being prepared.
“It’s just shy of what we had last year,” Yanetsko said.
Macker also lines up with the Chamber’s StrOlean event June 2, a downtown exhibition of businesses and nonprofits. Groups looking to participate in the event, set for 2-8 p.m., may call the Chamber at 372-4433 for more information.
At the Corporate Challenge, dozens of volunteers are needed to help the roughly 600 attendees along the 5K course safely and avoid vehicular traffic.
“You have 40 people off the campus directing traffic and handing out water,” Yanetsko said, while others assist at the headquarters and back up Chamber staff as needed.
Spots went quickly for the Clambake volunteer positions, Yanetsko said, helping set up and handle an expected 500 attendees at Lincoln Park.
Volunteers often receive perks, including a t-shirt, food and drink. To volunteer, email info@oleanny.com or call 372-4433.
