Megan Lowe

It was a wonderful time serving in the name of the Lord.

I applaud the purpose of the event. I have volunteered at Shelby Farms multiple times. I enjoyed meeting the volunteers and the intern. However, I left immediately after the organizer Courtney was blatantly rude and condescending to me. As a volunteer, I made suggestions to the other volunteers for efficiency of the registration process. Everyone agreed. Our processes were very practical and efficient. My tasks included the handing out of t-shirts and placing safety pins on each bib. For over 2 hours, t-shirts were placed under the table and handed out per registration. Several replenishes of t-shirt sizes were completed by other volunteers. When I went to get more t-shirts for the registrations, Courtney thought I was lost or looking for the packet pick-up when I clearly stated I am getting more t-shirts. Finally, she assumed I was a volunteer (I am African-American). Instead of coming into the room to stop me from bringing out more t-shirts, she goes to the registration table and grabs the boxes. Simultaneously, I am exiting with multiple t-shirts and asking what is happening. Courtney is aggressively saying something but not addressing me. I asked Courtney politely, in private, why were we bringing in the t-shirts all of a sudden (after over 2 hours) as the current process was very efficient. She said because she said so and did I need a reason. She said it was her event and was super rude and disrespectful. I said, “I know, you are Courtney, and I’ve heard great things about you. I asked about all processes when I arrived and didn’t know that there was a preferred method for handling the t-shirts.” She never once calmly spoke or acknowledged what I had just said, changed her aggressive stance, remained open-minded, nor showed appreciation for my volunteerism. So I left because I am a volunteer who loves the Shelby Farms. No volunteering should interrupt my joy and peace. Friendly reminder: Courtney treat all people with respect.

enjoyable and impactful

Very friendly event. The coordinator was nice, approachable, and informative. The system is very efficient and many community members (parents) were positively impacted. I would volunteer again. One of the staff members gave us water.