Worn out

Wellington Rec Committee disbands. New volunteers needed.

The Wellington Recreation Committee (WRC) has disbanded. It was a closeknit team of volunteers in our community that were able to pull off some pretty spectacular events during their tenure. Not only the obvious ones like Canada Day, but new activities like pickle ball and line dancing were introduced in recent years. When asked about reasons for disbanding, the answer was not a single decision, but the result of a couple of members leaving, and the rest wondering how they could cover the work left in the wake of the exiting members. With no new volunteers in sight, they collectively decided to call it quits.

“We have had a great time getting to know the community, but my husband and I are looking forward to spending some time travelling and visiting the rest of the country,” said Brenda Little, committee president. “Another factor is that over the past few years, it has also gotten difficult both logistically and administratively to execute these events.”

Brenda has been on the committee with her husband, Doug Little, for four years. They will both stay on until April to make sure that anyone interested in taking over will receive as much info and support as possible. Brenda will also be there at the start to help guide through the administrative hassles that seem to be bogging events down in the County. A new Rec committee will have to be formed. Without one, the events that the community loves will be in jeopardy.

“Everyone wants these events to continue and be successful, so we will always be a resource to future committee members,” said Krista Tevlin. When asked about the disintegration of the committee, she responded. “It was a hard decision, but we all decided collectively it was time to move on.”

Events like Canada Day and Who-ville take an enormous amount of planning. The success and safety of these events has always been the focus of the WRC. Over the years, local services and insurance providers have been able to cover the events and all its liabilities. But with the rising success of Wellington events like Canada Day, more visitors mean more red tape.

In fact, the Wellington Recreation Committee’s events have gotten so big that local insurance companies can’t afford to put the events under their plans anymore. There are literally thousands of people attending some of the events put on by the WRC and that’s a lot of liability. A good example of how both the event and the times are changing is that this coming summer for the Canada Day celebrations, there will be no bouncy castles on the lawn of the school, or anywhere, because of insurance issues. A larger corporate sponsor could provide the coverage, but then what is being given away? What happens to the Canada Day we are used to?

The trajectory of these events over the past few years and how well they have been received are due to the hard work and positive energy of these volunteers. They have set an incredibly high bar for the next Rec committee, but it’s not about that right now. It’s about finding new volunteers with the energy and enthusiasm to represent the WRC. It’s the village that now has to rally and find a new team to help keep these community events alive.

Recreation Committee applications are available at The Times office located at 269 Main Street, Wellington.