Miami Thank You Event
After seeing the reviews from the volunteer events in Canada, I wanted to share what we experienced at the Miami volunteer thank-you event.
I arrived at 11:45am for for the scheduled thank you event that started at noon. I certainly didn’t expect to be let in early.
Instead of an organized check-in, well over a thousand volunteers were packed together in the Miami sun with almost no communication. We weren’t in a line. we were essentially one giant crowd being herded toward a single entrance.
Meanwhile, the general public, who weren’t even allowed into Fan Fest until 3:00 p.m., seemed to have a more organized queue than the volunteers. (They also made it abundantly clear to use prior to and during the event that if we wanted to attend fan fest after we not only had to exit and then queue for general admission but we also needed to change out of the uniform they required us to wear )
people finally started trickling at 12:28. I was finally in at 12:40
We repeatedly heard announcements reminding everyone to stay hydrated, but it wasn’t at all clear where volunteers were supposed to get water. The only water I personally received came from a volunteer lead pulling a wagon through the crowd only once in the event.
Once inside, the confusion continued. Every few minutes the process seemed to change. You needed tickets…then you didn’t. You needed a ticket for a bracelet…then bracelets were handed out without tickets. Lines formed with no explanation, and different volunteers were giving completely different answers depending on who you asked., volunteer continually offered to help distribute and organize things and leads were reluctant but ultimately allowed us to help distribute items, and things finally started moving.
Once the initial chaos settled, the event itself was genuinely enjoyable (minus the Miami heat) There was a decent variety of food, music, performers, face painting, patches, plain microfiber towels, premade charm bracelets, and commiserating with fellow volunteers
Then, around 1:40 p.m., they announced the raffle was canceled with little explanation, and shortly afterward everyone received a notification through the app to leave because the event would end at 2:00 p.m. due to excessive heat. Was it excessively hot? Yes. But is it July in Miami? Yes.
I knew when we were standing outside and they started 30 mins late that they would still be kicking us out by 2 because fan fest admission started at 3. There were at least 5 different ambulances called for people passing out in the short two hours we were there.
So my question is how long was this raffle going to be that they couldn’t just call out a couple numbers and what are they going to do with all the items they planned to giveaway?
the first hour was, without question, the most disorganized event experience I’ve ever experienced. Better communication, better crowd management, and better access to water would have made an enormous difference. The volunteers deserved a much thank you. But I now that I’m in the air conditioning and hydrating with my charm bracelet and free patches I’m in a much better mood. An hour ago I would have been much harsher