Volunteers are the lifeline of our work, and our success is a result of the time and effort provided by people like you. There are many opportunities available for the 2014 Festival, plus training and lots of fun! Visit the Tucson Meet Yourself website to sign up or contact Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator Amelia Reyes-Crozier tmyvolunteers1@gmail.com.
A Volunteer’s Tale
Amelia’s personal history with TMY as an annual volunteer…
The Tucson Meet Yourself festival, also known as Tucson EAT Yourself, is a colorful, folkloric festival founded in 1974 by University of Arizona folklorist and anthropologist, Dr. James “Big Jim” Griffith. Over the years, TMY has grown considerably, with more folklorists, cultures, foods and artists now than ever before.
I first experienced the Tucson Meet Yourself as a young child back in the 1970’s, and for many years I attended the festival as a spectator. Several years ago, I was asked to present a booth introducing a foreign exchange student program. A year later, I found myself volunteering alongside students from France, Germany and South Korea. These foreign exchange students all agreed that volunteering at TMY was one of the best experiences they’d had while living in Tucson.
When my youngest son turned five years old, we began our yearly TMY volunteer adventure as a family. My family, ranging from nine years old to mid-seventies (grandma is there as well) all agree, it is this time spent together volunteering that is priceless. The influence of this extraordinary “melting pot” here in Downtown Tucson has provided my husband and me with an avenue to teach our boys the importance of community involvement, while at the same time proudly showing them other examples of their Mexican, Filipino and Ulster-Scots cultures.
Volunteering with TMY has gone far beyond an annual three-day experience. I am now the Volunteer Recruitment Coordinator, working with a wonderful non-profit organization to enhance the experience of our 500+ volunteers needed for the festival in October 2014.
VOLUNTEERS like you help make it happen!
Visit website to learn more: http://www.tucsonmeetyourself.org/volunteer or contact Amelia Reyes-Crozier directly by calling 520-268-1295 or e-mail: TMYVolunteers1@gmail.com