Celebration Days asking for leadership volunteers

WAITSBURG-The Waitsburg Celebration Days (WCD) board of directors met Monday, October 26 at 7 p.m via Zoom call.

The board met to elect a new president, vice president, and an advertising director. Directors had to postpone the election until the November meeting, as they had not yet had any volunteers step up with interest.

Waitsburg Celebration Days is a volunteer-led non-profit, formed in 2013 to continue community celebrations originally hosted for over 100 years by Days of Real Sport. WCD stepped in to insure the celebration would remain an annual event on the third weekend in May.

Celebration Days events have included a Brewfest and tasting, a BBQ complete with live music, a soap-box derby, a car show, a parade, and Sunset Cruise and ATV rides.

The board hopes to have interested volunteers to fill the board seats by their next meeting on November 16.

Secretary Abby Grende raised some questions about funding and was informed of some quickly-approaching deadlines for grants from local entities like the Port of Walla Walla. There was also a brief discussion about different fundraisers, like the spaghetti dinner that the Celebration Days Queen has done historically. There was some interest in pursuing fundraisers, should the leadership positions be filled.

Currently, the board of directors is unsure what the 2021 Celebration Days will look like. The 2020 event was canceled in March, shortly after the coronavirus pandemic broke out globally, and the board is monitoring the situation closely. They plan to move forward and prepare for the event but are ready to cancel should the circumstances require.

Interested volunteers are encouraged to reach out to board members. Lisa Naylor, President (retiring), Joy Smith, Vice President (retiring), Secretary Abby Grende, Treasurer Pat Gleason. Other board members include Ann Adams, Wendy Richards, Denise Winnett.

Waitsburg Celebration Days will meet again on November 16, at 7 p.m, via Zoom call. For agendas and call-in information, email Secretary Abby Grende at abbysot@hotmail.com.