LEROYPENNYSAVER&NEWS -NOVEMBER 8, 2015
byLynneBelluscio
OnHalloweenwe treatedsome
of our volunteers to lunch. They
are the folks who help us out at
theHistoricalSociety.Volunteers
make a lot of things happen
in LeRoy. We also gave each
of them a little bag of treats,
which includedgrahamcrackers,
marshmallows, and chocolate,
with a note, “We need S’More
docents like you.” (A historical
note. S’Mores were introduced
by another volunteer organiza-
tion, the Girl Scouts, in 1927.
There aren’t too many people
who haven’t stuck a marshmal-
low on a stick and cooked it
to their perfection - - burned or
lightly toasted - -and stuck it be-
tween two graham crackers and
a square of Hersey’s chocolate.
Now you can buy little table top
cookers, or you can do them in
the microwave - - no need for a
campfire. Guess that’s a sign of
the times. I prefer mine lightly
toasted in a campfire.)
All of our organizations could
use S’More volunteers. Some-
day, it would be interesting to
add up all the volunteer hours
that are given in LeRoy. This
year it is estimated that a volun-
teer hour is worth $23.07which
isa lotmore thanminimumwage.
Thevalueofadedicatedvolunteer
is almost immeasurable.
TheHistoricalSociety relieson
a dedicated group of volunteers.
Ourvolunteerdocentshavehad to
pulla lotof tricksoutof theirhats
this year to keep LeRoy House
running smoothly and open to
the public.
They have given up mornings
working in their gardens towork
in our gardens and the gardens
have been spectacular this year!
They have cheerfully greeted
folks at the door and shared the
intriguing story of the LeRoy
family and Ingham University.
They have dealt with tour buses
that arrived early – others that
arrived late. Even a couple of
buses that “just decided to stop
by.” We even offered our first
tour for a group of blind folks
from the alumni of the School
for the Blind inBatavia. Amost
rewarding experience!
Our docents have stayed late
when a group of folks really
S’MoreTreats
wanted to go through the house.
They have patiently answered
many, many questions and di-
verted littlefingers from touching
things they shouldn’t touch to
things they can touch. Some-
times, on slow days, they help
catch up on our house keeping.
Wecouldn’tkeepLeRoyHouse
openwithout them. SoSaturday,
on Halloween, we’ve invited
them for a little treat and lunch.
It’swas a small token of our ap-
preciation for all they do. Shelia
Furr has been our Volunteer Co-
ordinator for the past two years,
and she has put in many, many
hours, training and coaching our
new docents, and making sure
the schedule is filled eachweek.
She is always looking for new
peoplewhomightbe interested in
volunteeringaday,aweekduring
the summer.
We also try to keep LeRoy
House open on weekends in the
spring and fall when folks are
out and about looking for some-
thing to do. We have been very
fortunate tohave suchagroupof
dedicatedand reliablevolunteers
andaverydedicatedcoordinator.
Doing a little calculating, I
figure that in June, July, andAu-
gust, LeRoyhouse is openon an
average of 30 hours aweek, and
many times, thereare twopeople
working together. LeRoyHouse
is open about 20hours aweek in
May and September and maybe
10 hours a week in April and
October. Then there are the tour
buses, when we open the house
with additional docents. Well,
you get the idea and I figure that
our volunteers have given their
time inexcess to$15,000–prob-
ably closer to $20,000.
We have also enlisted folks
who take care of the garden and
the lawn, and come in to bleed
the boiler, and shovel the snow
(I think they must earn more
than $23.00 an hour!!!) We also
have a group of very dedicated
volunteers who help with our
educationprograms. Then there
are the volunteers who help
with the chicken BBQ and the
antique show, and the tent at the
OatkaFestival. Ialsohaveavery
talented group of “actors” who
help with our candlelight tours.
(I kiddingly tell everyone that I
will put them in for a raise.)
So this year, we had all our
docents stand on the front steps
holding the America’s Best
Communitybanner,becausewe
know that LeRoy has the best
group of volunteers, whether
theyvolunteer for theHistorical
Society, or for theRotaryClub,
or one of the churches or one
of the many organizations that
depends on the generosity of
theirmembers.
Thank you to all the volun-
teers - - nomatter which orga-
nization that you are involved
with. LeRoy is so much richer
forall the time thatyou invest in
making thisagreatplace to live.
