Volunteering 101
Aside from the coaching staff, our team is 100% run by parent volunteers. Whether it’s timing a race, flipping burgers at the concession stand, or helping our kiddos find their lanes, every single job is powered by volunteers. When every family picks up a few shifts, the season runs smoothly and nobody gets overwhelmed. Many hands make light work!
The best part is, there are plenty of roles that are easy to learn and often require no previous experience. We’ll teach you everything! If you can push a button on a stopwatch or cheer loudly, you’re qualified.
But, how do I know when to sign up to volunteer if I don't know when my kids are swimming or if I am new to the team?
Excellent question! Some jobs are pool-side and close to the action; others are in the shade. Some are part of every meet, home and away. Others can be done on your own time, with or without smaller children in tow. There's something for everyone.
If you are new, the best opportunities to sign up for jobs are at our home meets. As the hosting team, home meets offer plenty of pool-side (timer, runner, set up, take down) and concessions jobs that require little to no experience. This is especially true for our weeknight home B meets at Lake Marion.
More swimmers participate in B meets than in the Saturday A meets, particularly in the younger age groups. You'll have the familiarity of the home-pool advantage, and plenty of friends to help you get up to speed, watch your little ones, etc. B meets are a great place to learn the fundamentals of how a swim meet runs, and what each of the jobs entail. It also helps you & your family become part of the summer swim family quickly. While it’s busy, it’s also a lot of fun – especially for our kids, which is why we’re all here!
When registering for the current swim season, you will be required to sign up for at least 5 out of the 10 volunteer points needed for the season. To give all families ample opportunity to earn their volunteer points, only the first half of the season will be open and available for volunteer job sign ups at the time of registration. The second have of the season will open for volunteer job sign ups on Monday, June 8 at 8am.
Once you sign up to volunteer through our online platform SwimTopia, please make sure you pay attention to our pre-meet emails for further details and reporting instructions. Be sure to check in with our volunteer coordinator once you've arrived to the meet with your swimmer so we know you're ready to go. Keep in mind, too, that every pool does things a little differently, so it's important (especially for pool-side jobs) that you participate in briefings announced prior to the start of the meet to review procedures and instructions.
If you have questions about what each specific role entails, please check out the Volunteer Job Descriptions tab for more details.
For step by step instructions on how to sign up for volunteer jobs through SwimTopia, please click HERE.
