Volunteer for Vegfest!

Who can volunteer?

We have lots of different roles, to suit all kinds of people. We need people for most roles throughout Saturday March 24th and Sunday March 25th, and help with set-up all day on Friday March 23rd. Take a look at the roles listed below – click on a role for more information – and see which roles work best for you. When you’re ready to sign up, complete our Volunteer Application form.

Role		Summary of Duties		Requirements
Food Demonstrator		Prepare and serve food samples		Must be 15 years or older
Food Stocker		Keep tables and membership area stocked with food		Must be 18 years or older, involves lots of lifting and carrying
Demo Support		Support the Food Demonstrators by getting stock, supplies, help and support as needed. Involves lots of walking, carrying of light loads.		Must be 18 years or older, and have volunteered at Vegfest previously.
Security		Involves supervising entry ways or walking around the event and watching for inappropriate behavior.		Must be 18 years or older. Involves lots of walking or standing. Security experience preferred.
Membership bag prep		Involves preparing the membership bags to be given out as members join.		Must be 15 years or older
Cashier		Take cash, check and credit card payments for food and books		Must be 18 years or older, and have cashiering experience
Ticket Sales		Take cash and checks for ticket sales		Must be 18 years or older. You will be seated for this role.
Greeter/Ticket check		Hand out bags and event guides, check tickets		Must be 15 years or older.
Chefs’ Assistants		Assist guest chefs with preparation for their cooking demos		Must be 18 years or older, comfortable with basic cooking skills
Outdoor Advertisers		Walk around the Seattle Center grounds, to attract people to the event.		Great for kids, parents, individuals and groups
Set-up		Friday role, helping to set up the event		Must be 18 years or older, some lifting and carrying involved
Tear-Down		Sunday evening role, helping to take down and pack up everything left		Must be 18 years or older, some lifting and carrying involved

       
Please check our Volunteer FAQ for more information about volunteering at Vegfest, and answers to common questions. When you’re ready to volunteer, complete our Volunteer Application form

If you are the leader of a large group of volunteers, please send an email to volunteer@vegofwa.org and provide a phone number so that we can contact you to discuss the opportunities directly. Each member of your group will need to complete the volunteer form online, once you’ve agreed which shifts you all plan to sign up for. You can print out a flyer to give to the members of your group. Students under 18 years old will also need a parental consent form.

We’ll look forward to your help in making Vegfest a wonderful success!

 

Role Descriptions

Food Demonstrator

Shift Legend: Open Full   Available shifts   8am-12pm 10am-2pm 12pm-4pm 2pm-6pm 4pm-8pm Saturday           Sunday

This is the role for which we need the most volunteers, so if you are not sure which role to pick, pick this one!

Note: 30 minutes of preparation time is included before your first shift starts (45 mins for the 10am shift), to have time for registration, orientation and to receive your free T-shirt. Shifts that start at 8am will help with delivering food to booths before the event opens. Shifts that end after 6pm will help with cleaning up booths and on Saturday preparing for the next day.

In this role, you will be serving samples of food and other products. All products have been generously donated by various manufacturer, brokers, distributors and retailers, so please do your best to present them positively. You should provide samples to anyone interested and encourage them to taste and if they like it, to buy some of the product.

You will be assigned to a single booth, serving one or more products. Preparing samples for this event can vary from simple tasks like putting out pre-packaged samples, pouring cups of juice or cutting up snack bars, to more substantial cooking tasks like frying veggie burgers or cooking noodles. Please inform your team leader what level of cooking you feel comfortable with.

If you are serving food, you will need to be clean and tidy in appearance, with any long hair tied back. You must wear non-latex gloves which will be provided to you. You will need to familiarize yourself with the products you are serving by reading the packaging, and be willing to talk to attendees about the products.

Health and Safety rules are very important to us. You will be given training on health and safety requirements when you arrive. You must be willing to comply with King County Health and Safety rules, and to take instruction from the leaders of this event.

Food Stocker

Available shifts   8am-12pm 12pm-4pm 4pm-8pm Saturday       Sunday

You will be keeping booths and the membership area stocked with food supplies from the refrigeration units. You will need to be able to carry heavy cases of food through a crowded room.

 

Demo Support

Available shifts   8am-12pm 12pm-4pm 4pm-8pm Saturday       Sunday

You will support the food demonstrators by fetching whatever they need, including supplies such as sample cups, napkins, gloves and toothpicks, and fetching the Zone Leader for resolving any problems. This role involves a lot of walking, generally with light loads.

 

Security

Available shifts   8am-12pm 12pm-4pm 4pm-8pm Saturday       Sunday

You will be given a uniform and specific training for this role. Your task will be to either stand by entry/exit ways or walk around the event and observe people’s behavior. If you see inappropriate behavior, you will report it to event management as necessary.

 

Membership Bag Prep

Available shifts   10am-2pm 2pm-6pm Saturday     Sunday

You will be putting food give-aways, magazines and envelopes with coupons into tote bags ready for the membership sales volunteers to hand out as new and renewing members join.

 

Cashier

Available shifts   10am-2pm 2pm-6pm Saturday     Sunday

You will take payment in the form of cash, checks or charge cards for books and food items. You will need to be comfortable with handling cash and change, processing credit cards and using a cash register, in a busy environment.

 

Ticket Sales

Available shifts   10am-2pm 2pm-6pm Saturday     Sunday

You will collect payment for admissions in the form of cash or checks. The admission price is $8 per ticket for everyone except children 12 and under who are free, so change is easy to calculate. You will be seated in a secure area, with a ticket window to the outside.

 

Greeter

Available shifts   10am-2pm 2pm-6pm Saturday     Sunday

You will greet attendees as they come in, hand them a shopping bag and any free give-aways, and check that they have tickets for the right day.

 

Chefs’ Assistants

Available shifts   8am-12pm 10am-2pm 12pm-4pm 2pm-6pm Saturday         Sunday

You will be assisting the chefs in preparing for their cooking demonstrations. This includes basic cooking skills such as washing and chopping fruits or vegetables, cooking over a burner, serving food samples to attendees, and cleaning up dishes after each demo. 

Health and Safety rules are very important to us. You will be given training on health and safety requirements when you arrive. You must be willing to comply with King County Health and Safety rules, and to take instruction from the chefs and volunteer leaders.

 

Outdoor Advertisers

Available shifts   10am-2pm 2pm-6pm Saturday     Sunday

You will be walking around the Seattle Center grounds with a signboard and a handful of flyers, answering questions and directing people towards the event. This role is important since many people do not know where to find the Exhibition Hall. This role is ideal for families with young children or disabled volunteers – strollers or wheelchairs can be pushed around the Seattle Center grounds, or you may be stationed at a busy intersection on the grounds in order to attract attention to the event.

 

Set-up

Available shifts   6am-10am 8am-12pm 10am-2pm 12pm-4pm 2pm-6pm Friday

You will be unloading food and equipment from trucks and cars, carrying it to the relevant booths, putting out tablecloths, equipment and supplies on each table, putting up pipe and drape, signs and any other tasks needed to set up the event. We need a lot of people to help get this done, so if you are free to help for the whole day, it would really be appreciated. Times are flexible on Friday, so if you would prefer to do your 4 hr shift from 10-2pm for example, please choose 8am – 12 noon but make a note in the Comments section that you will come at 10am.

 

Tear-down

Available shifts   4pm-8pm 6pm-9pm Sunday

You will be helping to clean up the event, including packing up all remaining food, and supplies, cleaning and packing cooking equipment, taking down pipe and drape, gathering signs and tablecloths, and loading everything into trucks and cars.  If you help on the 4pm-8pm shift, you may be asked to help with food demonstration or some other role until the event closes at 6pm.

Volunteer

Now that you’ve checked out the volunteer roles, sign up on our Volunteer Application form.