My bid for the Olympics
I am not an athlete — at least not good enough of one to have ever even come close to having Olympic dreams. The closest I have gotten to an Olympic competition was as a spectator in Park City. I only got to see one event there, but just being in the “Village” was an incredible experience. So when Vancouver was awarded the 2010 Winter Games, I knew I had to find some way to be there.
Back in 2006 I had actually looked into getting a paying job with the Games.. But any U.S. citizen who’s ever looked into working in Canada discovers pretty quickly that is a nearly impossible task … unless you fit into certain special categories of workers or have an employer ready to sponsor you. As that dream was basically dashed, the seed for volunteering was planted.
I loosely contemplated the idea of applying to be a volunteer for a few years, but by the time the Games drew near enough I was gainfully employed. Having a full-time job with very little vacation makes the notion of committing to a few weeks of volunteering seem nearly impracticable. At some point, though, I decided that the likely “benefits” of such a one-time opportunity outweighed any possible negative consequences … and I threw caution (and potentially my job) to the wind. My bid for the Olympics officially began on April 6th, 2009, when I submitted an online application which put me “one step closer to joining the volunteer team that will host the world for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.” I wasn’t really ready to host the world, but I definitely wanted to be involved in the party. I felt that it was probably a long shot, and that I was a bit late in the game already … but I was not entirely without hope. (Those who know me well know that I really never am.)
My deepest desire was to do something involving risk management, but the volunteer application is pretty extensive and broad in terms of garnering what sorts of skills you have to offer that might be of use to VANOC … and I reconciled myself with the notion that I’d just be thrilled to do “whatever” for the chance to be a part of it all.
The middle of June came and went last summer, and I still hadn’t heard from VANOC. I decided that my chances might be improved if I could secure my own housing. As one might imagine, rentals during Games-time were already not only pretty scarce but pretty exorbitantly expensive. I decided to contact a friend who lives (and owns a business) in Squamish to see if he might have any leads for me. I was looking for anything, no matter how sparse (as long as it was cheap and came with parking) — even a small slice of a basement floor shared with a boatload of others would have worked. It turned out he had an extra room he uses for occasional inventory overflow that he was willing to let me crash in for free. I still don’t know how I will repay him, but I was (and am) grateful beyond words. Life has a way of working things out for the best, and one thing I have learned over the years is that it rarely hurts to ask (and more often than not, asking has very positive results).
Two months later I received my first offer:
Volunteer position offer – Vancouver 2010
Job title: Ski Patrol: Athlete Care
*Event: PARALYMPIC
Venue: WHISTLER PARALYMPIC PARK
Functional area: MEDICAL SERVICES
Ski patrol? Really? Um … okay. I felt I had a lot more experience in other areas, but if that’s what they needed (and they felt I was qualified), who was I to question their decision? Ski patrol it would be! I didn’t need to ponder whether I was going to accept — in my mind I was already there.
One month later I received my work schedule. I let them know I had no problems with it and that I still hadn’t heard about the Olympics. I had heard rumors that people were being turned away already because all of the slots were full, but until I directly heard otherwise I figured no news was good news. The next day I was asked if I could work both the Olympics and Paralympics — and if so, I could be added to the cancellation list. Less than a week later, I received notice that a vacancy had become available and was asked if I was interested. “Yes; definitely! Thank you!!!” And I was in.
Offer number two arrived that day:
Games-time position offer – Vancouver 2010
Job Title: Ski Patrol: Spectator Care
*Event: OLYMPIC
Venue: WHISTLER OLYMPIC PARK
Functional Area: MEDICAL SERVICES
Now that I had accepted positions at both the Olympics and Paralympics, I was faced with the daunting task of informing my boss. I had no idea what his reaction would be. I wasn’t conflicted about having accepted my volunteer roles already, but the thought of telling my boss that I would need about five weeks off from work actually made my stomach turn. I think it took me a few weeks to muster up the courage. He congratulated me and said he expected our workload to be light enough to allow some flexibility for time off. Whew!
While it kind of sucks that I basically have to pay myself to volunteer at the Games, I fully expect the experience to make up for it in non-monetary ways.
but what they become because of it. — John Ruskin
Here’s to becoming something!
Motto
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