Kay Bratton already had several years of drum corps volunteer experience prior to joining the Pacific Crest support staff. Though her daughter aged out of Pacific Crest in 2016, Kay plans to return for the 2017 season.
“I’ll be perfectly honest, when my first child started marching drum corps, I wanted to volunteer to make sure the members in his corps were being taken care of properly – eating well and being cared for. I found a group of enthusiastic and capable people who were working towards a common goal: Taking care of our kids.
There were new parents like myself as well as veteran volunteers who had been doing the job for several years. Some had children in the corps and others came back each year because they loved the activity so much. My time was spent on the food truck (with occasional uniform duty), and there were wonderful veteran volunteers that helped me learn what to do. I had no idea how to fix a meal for 200 people (four times a day)! Once I got the hang of it, I kept coming back!
My first summer I volunteered for 10-days; my second summer was a month. The last three summers I have been able to do the whole summer. It is really gratifying to see the members everyday and hear their “Thank You” every time they go through the food line. (And you do get a glimpse of your own child every once in a while.)
It is also very exciting to watch a show come together and see how hard these young people work to achieve their goals – not to mention getting into the shows for free!
In 2016, my daughter moved to Pacific Crest for her age-out season. I followed her as a volunteer, and I have to say, PC really takes care of their volunteers! It is hard work, but never did I feel unappreciated.
Even though my daughter aged out, I am planning to come back this summer and volunteer again. I have made life-long friends through this activity and I encourage anyone who is considering it to give it a try. You won’t be sorry!”
For more information about volunteering for Pacific Crest, click here.
