Twice a year, over 250,000 art lovers descend on to Downtown Tempe for a weekend of shopping, dining, and entertainment. If you have ever been to the Tempe Festival of the Arts, you know this event is a beast. The spotlight shines on the 300+ artist, food vendors, and entertainers, but just under the surface lies the festivals 300+ volunteers making the whole operation run like clockwork.

Needless to say, the festival loves our volunteers. But why do volunteers love the festival? Everyone volunteers for their own reasons – be it school, work, or just their love for their community. As the Volunteer Coordinator for Tempe Festival of the Arts, I am proud to say that our events are full of people who come back to volunteer at the festival year after year. Let’s take one of our dedicated volunteers, Brian B. for example. Brian has been helping out at the festival for years, and even helps out at our weekly Beyond the Bricks music series. When I asked him why he volunteers and this is what he said:

“Volunteering in Tempe is an amazing adventure.  I have volunteered for the festival for the arts for 4 years.Each art festival is new and exciting.  The best things about volunteering are meeting the artists face to face as well as showing off Tempe to visitors from all over the valley.  Whether you are riding around on a chilly December morning delivering hot coffee as the artists are setting up, to manning the information both so guest can find their way around the festival and downtown Tempe (restaurants, ice cream shop etc.) After your short volunteer shift is over you have a chance to go back and pick up some of the things you liked as you were working.”  Thanks Brian!

There are 350+ volunteer shifts and 9 different volunteer jobs to choose from at the upcoming Fall Festival (December 2-4). Whether you like problem solving with the community, working up close and personal with the artists, or making sure no litter goes untidied – there really is a volunteer position for everyone.   If you’ve been thinking about getting involved, now is the perfect time! Check out TempeFestivalofTheArts.com/Volunteer to read about our volunteer roles and sign up for a shift.