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Volunteer Areas
Volunteer Areas
Volunteers are the backbone of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival! Learn more about the ways you can help bring our festival to life! Click one of the area below or scroll through to read through the descriptions.
Volunteer Core Team
Pre-Festival Set Up / Post-Festival Tear Down
Logistics Team
Stage & Cultural Teams
Race Team
Pre-Festival Set Up / Post-Festival Tear Down
Logistics Team
Stage & Cultural Teams
Race Team
VOLUNTEER CORE TEAM
VOLUNTEER LEAD COORDINATOR
We are looking for a lead volunteer who will take charge of Volunteer HQ with another lead coordinator! If you are a great communicator who knows how to solve problems and keep their calm, we want to hear from you!
Duties include:
VOLUNTEER HQ
This is where all the volunteer action starts! Volunteers at our HQ tent will be responsible for supporting our Volunteer Coordinators and Field Lead by directing both the public and our festival area volunteers. Our HQ Team will be assigned to one or more of the following positions:
We are looking for a lead volunteer who will take charge of Volunteer HQ with another lead coordinator! If you are a great communicator who knows how to solve problems and keep their calm, we want to hear from you!
Duties include:
- Communicating with our other lead coordinator before and during the festival
- Supervising on site volunteers
- Managing volunteer shifts Saturday and Sunday, July 25-26.
- Arrive one hour before the first volunteer shift
- Supervise end of day and end of festival clean up
VOLUNTEER HQ
This is where all the volunteer action starts! Volunteers at our HQ tent will be responsible for supporting our Volunteer Coordinators and Field Lead by directing both the public and our festival area volunteers. Our HQ Team will be assigned to one or more of the following positions:
- Volunteer Check-In, General Public questions
- Inventory Tracking: T-Shirt & Food Management, General Public questions
- Area Escorts - Will support our Field Lead
- Festival attendee assistance
FESTIVAL AMBASSADOR
Represent the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival at our info booths and greet festival attendees as they're arriving! Must be upbeat, outgoing, personable, and organized. Festival Ambassadors are the welcoming crew for our festival and are stationed at our information booths to help direct attendees around the festival. Festival Ambassadors will also be equipped to conduct festival surveys, which we use as an important measure of attendee demographics.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
Represent the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival at our info booths and greet festival attendees as they're arriving! Must be upbeat, outgoing, personable, and organized. Festival Ambassadors are the welcoming crew for our festival and are stationed at our information booths to help direct attendees around the festival. Festival Ambassadors will also be equipped to conduct festival surveys, which we use as an important measure of attendee demographics.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Answering questions from festival guests and ensuring they have a great experience
- Offering information and festival info sheets to guests
- Administering attendee surveys to gather information that helps fund and support the festival
- Promoting various festival highlights in accordance with the programming schedule
- Directing festival attendees to key festival points (lost and found, restrooms, food courts, stages, etc.)
NEW FOR 2019!
SOCIAL MEDIA AMBASSADOR
Instagram or Snapchat expert? We need you! Show up for your shift with a camera phone, and we'll give you a list of festival areas/items to snap photos of and official hashtags to use. Feel free to add your own hashtags as well! This is a great position for social media experts who want to help us share the festival experience with our online followers!
SOCIAL MEDIA AMBASSADOR
Instagram or Snapchat expert? We need you! Show up for your shift with a camera phone, and we'll give you a list of festival areas/items to snap photos of and official hashtags to use. Feel free to add your own hashtags as well! This is a great position for social media experts who want to help us share the festival experience with our online followers!
PRE-FESTIVAL SET UP / POST-FESTIVAL TEAR DOWN
This is where we need our strong women and men! This is our behind the scenes team that works hard to transform Sloan's Lake into an amazing athletic and competitive space for our dragon boats. After the festival is over, we also ask a team to tear everything down and help us pack up so that we can hand the lake back over the City of Denver for everyone's public enjoyment! Our pre and post festival teams are crucial to building up the festival and ensuring that we leave no trace! Volunteers should be prepared for the possibility of getting wet! Shift times are below:
Pre-Festival
FRIDAY ALL DAY - Race Course Set Up
FRIDAY 8AM-12PM - Race Course Set Up
FRIDAY 12-12PM - Course Set Up
SAT MORNING 6-10AM - Set Up
Post-Festival
SUNDAY 6-9:30PM - Course Tear Down
Pre-Festival
FRIDAY ALL DAY - Race Course Set Up
FRIDAY 8AM-12PM - Race Course Set Up
FRIDAY 12-12PM - Course Set Up
SAT MORNING 6-10AM - Set Up
Post-Festival
SUNDAY 6-9:30PM - Course Tear Down
LOGISTICS TEAM
OPENING CEREMONY TEAM
STAGE LEADS - COURTNEY OZAKI, ALYSSA HOLLAND
SHORE LEAD
Each year, the opening ceremony officially marks the return of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival! Volunteers will be able to witness the chanting of Chinese monks, the eye-dotting ceremony of boats, and the parade of teams. Volunteers will work right in the midst of these sights and sounds as they ensure a smooth running of the ceremony.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Directing crowd traffic
- Providing preparation for the eye-dotting ceremony
- Setting up and taking down the opening ceremony preparations
- Gathering race teams for parade
FESTIVAL SHUTTLE AND TRANSPORTATION AREA
LEAD COORDINATOR - BRYAN YEE
SUPPORT COORDINATOR - TERESA CARNES
The Festival Shuttle Program is one of our proudest accomplishments! If you have a passion for people and great customer service, this is the place for you! A sense of humor entertaining folks in line also helps! Our shuttle runs daily from 6:30am to 8:30pm between our offsite parking at Auraria Campus and the festival site at Sloan's Lake Park.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Setting up shuttle queue with provided stanchions
- Setting up appropriate directional signage
- Welcoming/bidding farewell to festival attendees
- Passing out festival program books (including delivering more program books to the Sports Authority parking site on the shuttle)
- Loading people on buses
- Making the decision of when when to release buses in accordance with the shuttle rotation schedule
- Help to load attendee equipment (i.e. strollers)
NEW FOR 2019!
VENDOR COORDINATOR SUPPORT
VENDOR COORDINATORS - ANDREA FURNESS
Our vendor coordinators help create our Marketplace exhibits and demos and our two Taste of Asia food courts! This volunteer team will support our coordinators where needed. Duties include:
STAGE LEADS - COURTNEY OZAKI, ALYSSA HOLLAND
SHORE LEAD
Each year, the opening ceremony officially marks the return of the Colorado Dragon Boat Festival! Volunteers will be able to witness the chanting of Chinese monks, the eye-dotting ceremony of boats, and the parade of teams. Volunteers will work right in the midst of these sights and sounds as they ensure a smooth running of the ceremony.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Directing crowd traffic
- Providing preparation for the eye-dotting ceremony
- Setting up and taking down the opening ceremony preparations
- Gathering race teams for parade
FESTIVAL SHUTTLE AND TRANSPORTATION AREA
LEAD COORDINATOR - BRYAN YEE
SUPPORT COORDINATOR - TERESA CARNES
The Festival Shuttle Program is one of our proudest accomplishments! If you have a passion for people and great customer service, this is the place for you! A sense of humor entertaining folks in line also helps! Our shuttle runs daily from 6:30am to 8:30pm between our offsite parking at Auraria Campus and the festival site at Sloan's Lake Park.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Setting up shuttle queue with provided stanchions
- Setting up appropriate directional signage
- Welcoming/bidding farewell to festival attendees
- Passing out festival program books (including delivering more program books to the Sports Authority parking site on the shuttle)
- Loading people on buses
- Making the decision of when when to release buses in accordance with the shuttle rotation schedule
- Help to load attendee equipment (i.e. strollers)
NEW FOR 2019!
VENDOR COORDINATOR SUPPORT
VENDOR COORDINATORS - ANDREA FURNESS
Our vendor coordinators help create our Marketplace exhibits and demos and our two Taste of Asia food courts! This volunteer team will support our coordinators where needed. Duties include:
- Providing customer service to vendors and exhibitors
- Relaying information to our vendor coordinators
- Providing runner support when something needs to be transported
- Saturday morning: Assist with the Culinary Contest by communicating with food vendors and guiding our judges through the food court as they taste each of the contest entries
STAGE & CULTURAL TEAMS
GATEWAY CULTURAL VILLAGE: VIETNAM CULTURAL TENT AND ACTIVITIES
CULTURAL TENT COORDINATOR - LONG NGUYEN
Our 2019 festival highlights the country of Vietnam in our Gateway Cultural Village. Volunteers for this area will support our Vietnam Cultural Tent, as well as provide support for our Spicy Pho Eating Contest, and support for our Dragonland family & education area where needed.
GATEWAY CULTURAL VILLAGE: STAGES
EXPLORE ASIA COORDINATOR - PETER PHAM
DENVER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER: 360 STAGE COORDINATOR - PETER PHAM
Our Gateway Cultural Village is our premier cultural education area. Stages include the popular Explore Asia stage, where folks can get up close and personal with Asian culture, and the dynamic 360 Stage with Martial Arts and Hip Hop performances. Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees, and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Assisting with setup and breakdown of performer equipment, including transporting equipment to/from performer vehicles and other festival stages
- Managing dressing room schedule
- Encouraging/enticing patrons to watch/stay for performances
- Keeping area clean of trash and/or hazards
- Passing out festival program books
- Being friendly and sociable with performers and attendees
PERFORMING ARTS STAGE
PERFORMING ARTS COORDINATOR - META
This is where we feature our concert style performances: our Performing Arts Stage is an exciting place to volunteer! Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Helping with sound checks
- Organizing backstage area and maintaining cleanliness and safety
- Assisting with stage décor
- Managing dressing room schedule
DRAGONLAND ACTIVITIES
LEAD COORDINATORS: JENN GARCIA, TARA DRESSLER, LUCIA CHEN
Dragonland is dedicated to education for all ages. This family focused area hosts our favorite educational and non-profit exhibitors, as well as outdoor fun and hands-on workshops. Volunteers must be great with children.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Assisting with setup up and workshops
- Supporting educational and non-profit exhibitors
- Keeping area clean of trash and/or hazards
- Passing out festival program books
BAND STAGE
BAND COORDINATORS: ANDREW HO
BAND SUPPORT: JAKE VESTAL, ANDY WHITE
Located within the bustling Beer Garden, the Band Stage serves up rockin' tunes all weekend! Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Helping with sound checks
- Organizing backstage area and maintaining cleanliness and safety
CULTURAL TENT COORDINATOR - LONG NGUYEN
Our 2019 festival highlights the country of Vietnam in our Gateway Cultural Village. Volunteers for this area will support our Vietnam Cultural Tent, as well as provide support for our Spicy Pho Eating Contest, and support for our Dragonland family & education area where needed.
GATEWAY CULTURAL VILLAGE: STAGES
EXPLORE ASIA COORDINATOR - PETER PHAM
DENVER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER: 360 STAGE COORDINATOR - PETER PHAM
Our Gateway Cultural Village is our premier cultural education area. Stages include the popular Explore Asia stage, where folks can get up close and personal with Asian culture, and the dynamic 360 Stage with Martial Arts and Hip Hop performances. Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees, and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Assisting with setup and breakdown of performer equipment, including transporting equipment to/from performer vehicles and other festival stages
- Managing dressing room schedule
- Encouraging/enticing patrons to watch/stay for performances
- Keeping area clean of trash and/or hazards
- Passing out festival program books
- Being friendly and sociable with performers and attendees
PERFORMING ARTS STAGE
PERFORMING ARTS COORDINATOR - META
This is where we feature our concert style performances: our Performing Arts Stage is an exciting place to volunteer! Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Helping with sound checks
- Organizing backstage area and maintaining cleanliness and safety
- Assisting with stage décor
- Managing dressing room schedule
DRAGONLAND ACTIVITIES
LEAD COORDINATORS: JENN GARCIA, TARA DRESSLER, LUCIA CHEN
Dragonland is dedicated to education for all ages. This family focused area hosts our favorite educational and non-profit exhibitors, as well as outdoor fun and hands-on workshops. Volunteers must be great with children.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Assisting with setup up and workshops
- Supporting educational and non-profit exhibitors
- Keeping area clean of trash and/or hazards
- Passing out festival program books
BAND STAGE
BAND COORDINATORS: ANDREW HO
BAND SUPPORT: JAKE VESTAL, ANDY WHITE
Located within the bustling Beer Garden, the Band Stage serves up rockin' tunes all weekend! Volunteers will be interfacing with performance groups as well as festival attendees and will need a great attitude about customer service and cross-cultural communication skills.
Duties include, but are not limited to:
- Helping with sound checks
- Organizing backstage area and maintaining cleanliness and safety
DRAGON BOAT RACE TEAM
DRAGON BOAT RACE AREAS
The dragon boat races are one of the primary highlights of the festival! Volunteers with experience in sporting events are encouraged to apply! You will be in the sun for the majority of your shift. Be prepared for a fun day outside and wear comfortable clothes and breathable shoes that you won't mind getting wet. No flip flops! This area is very fast-paced and requires organizational skills, flexibility with task assignments, and an ability to manage a project with little supervision.
Race Volunteer Areas:
Registration & Record Keeping
Registering race teams
Leader board updating
Loading Docks / Start Line
Team loading-on and loading-off of boats
Flag-setters
Checking team wrist bands before each race
Timing Tent
Assisting on the starting line as timers
Video recording races/race finishes
Race announcer
The dragon boat races are one of the primary highlights of the festival! Volunteers with experience in sporting events are encouraged to apply! You will be in the sun for the majority of your shift. Be prepared for a fun day outside and wear comfortable clothes and breathable shoes that you won't mind getting wet. No flip flops! This area is very fast-paced and requires organizational skills, flexibility with task assignments, and an ability to manage a project with little supervision.
Race Volunteer Areas:
Registration & Record Keeping
Registering race teams
Leader board updating
Loading Docks / Start Line
Team loading-on and loading-off of boats
Flag-setters
Checking team wrist bands before each race
Timing Tent
Assisting on the starting line as timers
Video recording races/race finishes
Race announcer
