AUGUST 27, 2009 ISSUE
Woolly Worm Festival Volunteer Positions and Grant Applications Available
For folks interested in this year’s Woolly Worm Festival—either in volunteering to help raise money or in receiving some of the proceeds—forms are now available online. The 2009 grant application forms and volunteer interest forms can be downloaded from either of two websites. Click to www.averycounty.com or www.askavery.com.
The festival, held Saturday and Sunday, October 17 to 18, is co-sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Banner Elk and the Avery Chamber of Commerce. Net proceeds are split by the two organizations, with all of the Kiwanis profit distributed back to community projects and organizations. Included on both websites is a form for anyone interested in helping the festival succeed. More than 200 time slots need to be filled, both before and during the festival.
“It takes lots of volunteers doing lots of jobs for lots of hours to make this work,” said Volunteer Coordinator Ann Swinkola. “Naturally, we want the festival to be successful financially, but we also want our well-oiled machine of volunteers to make the festival an exceptional, fun-filled event for those who attend.”
Completed volunteer forms can be returned to the chamber office or to any Kiwanian. Grant applications must be mailed to the address on the form and postmarked by October 3.
“The Kiwanis Club has a variety of fundraising projects during the year,” said Kathy Boone, club president. “The Woolly Worm Festival obviously is our largest effort, but we put all monies together, solicit grant applications and then give funds away in January.” The club regularly sponsors two Kiwanis youth groups, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, funds a Reading is Fundamental (RIF) program in all Avery schools, helps Little League and sponsors scholarships, hosts Child Fest, hosts Trunk or Treat and a wide variety of school programs.
Other fundraising projects include an annual used book sale, several spaghetti dinners, the sale of programs at the Highland Games and the new duck race event on the Fourth of July.
“Our purpose, our goal, is to help children and families,” Boone said. “Therefore most successful grant applications help us fulfill that purpose. We do not provide general budgetary support to organizations, and we try to fund projects that serve larger rather than smaller groups. Hopefully, our grant monies will have a longer-term effect, rather than a shorter one.
“We have almost 100 percent volunteer participation from our club members,” Boone continued, “but the task of hosting some 10,000 visitors means we have to call on folks across the community to help. Last year, the Kiwanis Club distributed some $40,000 back to the community,” she said. “That’s a lot of support that a lot of folks can be really proud of.”
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