The design based on volunteers working many jobs, playing many roles, in succession, not necessarily in the same order as one another, has an egalitarian flavor when you assume everyone eventually does every job (even if that’s impractical in some situations). Because in a sense there’s just one job: to perform all the roles of the community, and everyone does it.
That’s how we did a lot of stuff around the Centers Network. When I say “we” I mean I was one of the volunteers, and there were sequences, like in college. You needed to be a mic runner before you did some job that involved supervising the mic runners.
I rose to the level of Logistics Supervisor, which in the New York City situation might mean hailing a checker cab and transporting beaucoup bankers boxes full of supplies from Port Authority East Side Bus Terminal (where NY area center had space) to whatever hotel ballroom venue (we’d book some of the bigger ones, right downtown).
When I look at it that way, I realize my high comfort level around being in hotels and mingling with its paid staff (Centers Network did have paid positions, in addition to us volunteers), did not all start in a later chapter, when I’d work with Holdenweb and later Open Bastion.
In fact, come to think of it, may comfort level around hotels might trace back to Kent Bondi days. His dad was manager of the Cavalieri Hilton and their whole family lived on the premises. Room service every night seemed ideal to me. Get on the phone: “send me a milkshake”. Utopia. And lets not forget the Fairmont.
However, hotels are not usually run on the principle of volunteers rotating (more could be). You’ll find more of that in unprogrammed Friends, the Quakers, where million-dollar properties with substantial budgets, as certified nonprofits, might be managed entirely by unpaid yet committed Meeting people.
When the offspring of said meetings (GWYF) gathered at near Myrtlewood, Oregon, renting facilities at the Church of the Brethren’s Camp Myrtlewood (with paid caretakers, whom we cherished), we’d rotate through meal prep, dishwashing, cleanup and janitorial, fireplace duty, other duties I could continue listing out.
Amidst all these amiable volunteers, we’d have stars who would take up pre camp duties, such as meal planning and supplies procurement. This place was remote, so we packed in most of our requirements, think a hundred people over four to five days (mas o memo). The commitment to specific standards in cuisine is a marker of ethnic identity and we were mostly Cascadians which has its Asian characteristics (not limited to fresh tofu, which we brought in by the bucket full).
Those involved in these role would likely be foodies who also wanted to serve as chefs. Their roles were somewhat typecast. When they showed up, that’s what they did, and were expected to do. I recall helping out with procurement and transport, but in the kitchen I’m usually not the head chef although in Food Not Bombs days I’d be close to that sometimes.
A skilled ski instructor might be a harder to find and would tend to spend relatively less time doing dishes, though doing some of that might be welcome respite for hard work on the slopes.
A lot depends on a camper’s goals. Are you joining in gain experience and acquire skills (soft and hard) or are so-called chores entirely ancillary to your main purpose, and so you are fine with doing your share, but without great ambition to do more?
