I recently heard about several different models of organizations. There were several bad examples… One is the bus model – where if the leader is not driving, the bus doesn’t go anywhere. Another is the football model – where 80,000 people all cheer as 22 people work really hard. The organizational metaphor that was suggested was the “body” model. Everyone uses their particular talents to do something, and no one does everything.
While not rocket science, getting 250 people together every Wednesday for a run does take some coordination. And since no one makes any money, East Nasty relies entirely on volunteers. I’m not saying that everyone has to do something, but there are some areas where we could use some help. There are a lot of special activities and we will recruit your help for those, but here are some ways where we need help every week:
Washing the Cups. The first year that East Nasty existed we probably went through 150+ cups every week. So we decided that we would purchase plastic cups to reduce the amount of trash that we were producing each week. The only challenge is that we have to wash them every week. So we need volunteers to wash the cups.
Here are your responsibilities: 1) Take the cups home. 2) Wash them. (dishwasher encouraged) 3) Bring them back the next week. Easy stuff. Please sign up for a specific week here.
Lead A Route. One thing that is different about East Nasty is that we have 12 different routes. For those of you who have never run with a group before, this is pretty unique. We also have 8 different pace groups. This is also very unique for a weekly fun run. The challenge is that we need to find leaders for each of those groups each week. This is nothing that you need to sign up for, just learn the routes, find us on Wednesday night, and pick a pace that you are comfortable with.
Donate/Deliver Shoes. East Nasty collects old shoes to deliver to local track clubs, school teams, and even our own members. Everyone can participate by bringing their old running shoes. But if you would like to help out with inventory/deliveries please email Cary Graham.
Foster/Adopt a Dog. Each week you are going to get a chance to meet an EastCan rescue dog. If you are looking for a new best friend, please adopt! The number of dogs that are being euthanized is mindboggling. But, if you are not in a place to adopt, they could really use more fosters. Stay after the run on a Wednesday night to talk with one of the EastCan folks if you are interested.
There will certainly be other opportunities to volunteer, (Couch-to-5k coach, alley clean-up, Christmas party planning, etc.) but the list above are the things that we need help with every week.
Thanks Nasties! See you on Wednesday!
