I'd never been to a WaterFire before beginning to volunteer with them this year, even though I grew up a short drive away from Providence. I'm interested in economics and city planning, and as a part of my work with WaterFire I got to interact with a bunch of local vendors and got to see firsthand what an impact this event can make on the local economy and culture of the downtown. My other main charge was organizing volunteer kayakers for an annual event called "Clear Currents," which celebrates the health of the waterways after much environmental effort to clean up the Woonasquatucket River.
The day itself was a bit chaotic; me and the other "Events and Operations" volunteers Leila and Ananya were up at 6am chasing logistics and doing everything we could to make sure the event would run smoothly. If we had made a mistake in our planning, it was going to be visible to the thousands of attendees. I was also nervous about how the kayakers would find their way with all the routes and coordinations we'd given them to follow. I remember Leila fretting over the batteries for the lights, and Ananya being anxious about getting all the fish attached to the kayaks on time. No matter how much we prepared, challenges still came up -- like kayakers getting separated from their groups and one person even capsized! But all in all, the event was a huge success. I loved watching all the work we had done in the office come to life, and meeting all the folks I'd been emailing with for months. We even sang one girl "Happy Birthday" before getting on the water!
This was my first time doing something like this, and being in a small leadership position with something like a city-wide event on the line made me feel important. By the end of it I understood why WaterFire is around-- it brings people together and creates such a magical place for them to be present. The next time I'm at WaterFire I'll appreciate the people behind the scenes so much more. I'm grateful that I had the chance to be a part of it.
The day itself was a bit chaotic; me and the other "Events and Operations" volunteers Leila and Ananya were up at 6am chasing logistics and doing everything we could to make sure the event would run smoothly. If we had made a mistake in our planning, it was going to be visible to the thousands of attendees. I was also nervous about how the kayakers would find their way with all the routes and coordinations we'd given them to follow. I remember Leila fretting over the batteries for the lights, and Ananya being anxious about getting all the fish attached to the kayaks on time. No matter how much we prepared, challenges still came up -- like kayakers getting separated from their groups and one person even capsized! But all in all, the event was a huge success. I loved watching all the work we had done in the office come to life, and meeting all the folks I'd been emailing with for months. We even sang one girl "Happy Birthday" before getting on the water!
This was my first time doing something like this, and being in a small leadership position with something like a city-wide event on the line made me feel important. By the end of it I understood why WaterFire is around-- it brings people together and creates such a magical place for them to be present. The next time I'm at WaterFire I'll appreciate the people behind the scenes so much more. I'm grateful that I had the chance to be a part of it.