We are proud, walking around Vancouver in our volunteer uniforms and it is also a daunting experience. We cannot go ten minutes without someone asking us for information, directions or insight into the best local venue. We have been trained to be ambassadors, even if we can't answer the questions, and have bravely handled the challenge of directing people in the appropriate direction whether they speak English, Chinese or Lithuanian. Hand signals come in handy during these situations.
Being trained in Event Services for Canada Hockey Place, we have little to no experience in any other venue here during the Olympic Games. The blue jacket volunteers number in the thousands but are assigned to a specific team within a specific venue. We want to be able to help everyone but have learned to redirect and pass guests to the next source of information seamlessly.
As we make our way from the skytrain station to our shift we make a mental note to give ourselves more time to get to work because we are enjoying making friends everywhere we go! Putting on the uniform seems to be a beacon of "I am your friend" and Jen, Ben, Daisy and Sean have made new friends on every Skytrain ride, in every restaurant and on every street. This group of people have been magically accredited as representatives of all things Olympic, a staggering transformation from undervalued citizens. It is amazing what a blue jacket can accomplish.
As staff we are trained in supporting people who have an intellectual disability in achieving all the things that make a person feel valued in their lifetime whether that be natural relationships, the ability to accept responsibility or ownership over one's own actions and the symbols that facilitate those achievements.
I am going back to work to suggest to the trainers that they use the Olympic Volunteer jacket as an example of one of those symbols.
