EDITORIAL: It Takes a Village...

We all know the old saying: it takes a village to raise a child. However, that old adage can be applied to so many aspects of life. Most recently I've realized it takes a village to put on a community event. From Frontier Days to Fall Festival, to Shakespeare in the Parks to Screams Come True, there are so many people behind the scenes that don't receive the proper credit for everything they've done to make the event a success. Without that proper credit, we lose volunteers who make the event possible. Volunteers are already precious commodities in a town the size of Whitehall, so appreciation must be vocalized and shown.

Whitehall Chamber of Commerce's Fall Festival was a huge success due to the hard work and volunteerism of Pam Polachi, Dana Brunet, and Carey Burnside, with the help of Whitehall Chamber Executive Assistant Chiara Schober. All three business owners took time out of their busy lives to attend committee meetings, put together paperwork for vendors, and so much more. While these three were the spearheads of the Festival, many more people were involved in different ways. The Whitehall Garden Club took on the Pie by the Slice and Pie Auction sale, gifting hundreds of dollars back to local non-profits. Over a dozen different games were available by many different non-profits at the Gold Junction Presents Carnival, again bringing much-needed monies to local non-profits. Dozens of people worked behind the scenes of the Fall Festival in a variety of capacities to make the event a fun-filled family day. From the scarecrows throughout town which were wildly creative to the donations of candy, money, and time - volunteers made this all happen.

Most recently the Screams Come True haunted house had to vacate the south side of the community center rapidly in order to have enough space for the November 8th elections. It takes over a month to build and decorate the haunt; and usually takes two to three weeks to dismantle. Due to the election, we had less than a week. In little more than three days, with the assistance of so many volunteers, we were able to remove the haunt from the south side of the building. Volunteers made that happen. Did we accomplish it - yes! Do I ever want to do it that quickly again - NO!

I'd like to extend my true appreciation to the following: Corie Downey, Karen Ranta, Brenda Volz, Mark & Sharon Brown, Ron & Linda Jung, Mark Toensing, Don Lepinski, Tom Harrington, Tim Schober, Monique Morris, Charlie Morris, John Duford, Roseanna Hengst, Terry Chadwick, Katie Chadwick, D'Argo Clausen, Dorie Westhoven, Kylie Hansen, Zach Maershbecker, Amy Martin and family, Jay Johnson, Steven Johnson, Conda Mines, and many, many more.

On the backside of Screams, there were so many volunteer scarers! Aidden Burton, Harley Dunn, Charlie Morris, and Monique Morris - my apologies for missing you in last week's thank you. HUGE HUGE thanks must be given to Dana Brunet, Samara Doran, and Candice Ahlin for the amazing makeup work behind the scenes as well - you guys are absolutely amazing.

The Whitehall Christmas Festival, put on by the Whitehall Chamber of Commerce, is quickly approaching. How can you be a part of it? Volunteer! Create your own event to coincide with it! Get your business involved! Just ATTEND!

It takes a village. We get it. What's my point? Be a part of that village! Just because something is "brought to you by..." a group that you may not be a part of, see if you can get involved. Volunteers are SO needed right now. Yes, it's stressful, but yes, it is so worth it to see the end result.