by Danielle Schneller
There is no “I” in team but there is a “U” in volunteer! Precisely why you and/or your team shouldn’t miss out on volunteering at the 2012 Orange Conference, right?! This will be my fifth year to volunteer at The Orange Conference and it has become a yearly trip that I wouldn’t miss out on. First off, it’s fun! There is an instant friendship with the other volunteers.
The volunteers at The Orange Conference are people who have traveled from all across the country. One year, several of us who were volunteering together decided to give each other nicknames and call each other solely by the cities we are from. Hearing “What’s up St.Louis!” for three days was pretty funny.
Secondly, it is an honor to serve alongside of those who are igniters of change. It is an honor to serve those who seldomly get served in what they do each week. There is something so rewarding about helping others have the best experience they possibly can.
One of my personal favorite things from Orange Conference is hearing the stories of how God is at work in churches across the country. These are volunteer and staff leaders from all different stages of their journey in ministry, bouncing ideas and struggles off of each other. In my second year of volunteering, I met a man who was ready to throw in the towel on doing ministry and walk away from church for a while. I can’t remember what I said but in my third year of volunteering at The Orange Conference, that same man found me and told me that what I said to him at the conference the year prior kept him going. He didn’t quit. He kept serving in his local church.
You see, the best reward to volunteering at The Orange Conference isn’t the possibility of scoring a front row seat, a free T-shirt or great free meals. It’s the common bond of being with other people who are fighting for families and kids of the next generation. I have three kids under the age of five that are the next generation. Being around people who are fighting for them and the kid down the street, and their classmates and families all over the world, well, there’s just nothing quite like it. You won’t walk away from the experience the same, I promise.
To learn more about how you and your team can be volunteers at Orange Conference 2012, visit: http://www.whatisorange.org/orangeconference/volunteers/
Danielle Schneller is a wife and mom to three kids under five years old in St. Louis, MO. She has served in her local church in staff and volunteer positions within children’s ministry, student ministry and a Family Experience. She’s volunteered at The Orange Conference for the past five years. For more from Danielle, check out her blog or follow her on Twitter.
