August sees the nationwide launch of the London 2012 Games outdoor advertising campaign, with hundreds of buses across the UK encouraging people to find out if they have what it takes be a volunteer – or ‘Games Maker’ - for the London 2012 Games.
Up to 70,000 people will be recruited as Games Makers - so-called because it will be these volunteers who will literally make the 2012 Games happen. Volunteering will take lots of dedication and hard work, but it will give people, from all over the UK, the chance to be right at the heart of the action of one of the biggest events the world has ever seen.
Applications for generalist Games Maker roles will start from 15th September 2010.
To kick off the regional leg of activities, a branded Birmingham bus, carrying the message ‘Wanted: London 2012 Games Makers,’ was launched on Thursday 12 August by local voluneer Jane Beech and David Moorcroft, Chair of the West Midlands Leadership Group for the 2012 Games.
Jane Beech volunteers at Kewford Eagles Football Club, a supported ability football club giving up an average of 5 hours a week organising things at the club, doing secretarial work and as a second mum to the players. The players, children and adults, train weekly and play at Aston Villa once a month in the Birmingham Ability Counts League as well as playing regular friendly matches with other groups.
Jane Beech said: “Volunteering began for me when I was looking for something for my own disabled son to participate in and I continue volunteering as I want to put something back into the club. The chance to volunteer during the Olympic and Paralympic Games is once in a lifetime and I would urge anyone, young or old, to grasp the opportunity and sign up to be a Games Maker, and in the run up to 2012 find out how they could volunteer now in their own local area.”
David Moorcroft, Chair of the West Midlands Leadership Group for the 2012 Games: “Volunteering is just one way that people in the West Midlands can get involved with London 2012. Jane is a fantastic example of how people across our region are making a real difference in their own communities as well as seeing the fantastic opportunity to have their own Olympic or Paralympic moment as one of the thousands of people who make the Games happen in 2012".
Anyone interested in general volunteering positions can go to www.london2012.com/volunteering and find everything they need to help them decide if they have what it takes to be a London 2012 Games Maker. To find out about opportunities to volunteer right now in the West Midlands go to www.wmfor2012.com/volunteering.