Winterfest: Volunteering with Our Heads, Hearts, and Hands

On January 8, 2022, the Garden City Bird Sanctuary (GCBS) will be celebrating its fourteenth annual Winterfest. It’s a holiday unique to us and our supporters. Deep in significance and rich in symbolism, Winterfest is there as a reminder that we, who are involved in this ecological endeavor, do so out of an interest/talent of the head, heart, or hands. There have been whole books dedicated to leadership styles based on the head, heart, and hands; but the principles apply most aptly to those who volunteer to make their little corner of the world a better place.

The founders of the GCBS turned a nine-acre storm water basin full of junk into a shining jewel of environmental stewardship. The Board of Directors carries on their work by maintaining and improving the Sanctuary year after year. All of us do this as a work of love, receiving no remuneration. We couldn’t continue to exist without our donors and our volunteers who support us.

When you’re a volunteer leading with your head, you realize the importance of environmental stewardship and use your God-given gift of intelligence in thinking of various ways to raise funds and brainstorm ideas for solving problems. You rely on the professional knowledge of yourself and others to find unique ways of keeping the dream alive. Those on the Board of Directors contribute to setting a vision, and plan the events. The “nuts and bolts” of legal requirements and filing paperwork are top on the agenda of helping.

Volunteers leading with their heart love their work fervently. After a vision has been established, they eagerly set out to spread the word and invite others to join. Their passion is contagious and inspires people. They volunteer to help at various functions, like Halloweenfest, and encourage everyone to attend. You can find them at most of our events.

Those who give with the gift of their hands serve happily by getting those same hands dirty. They can be seen planting, building, watering, etc. What the head conceives, and the heart inspires, the hands bring to fruition by doing the “dirty work.” They also help to keep the gate open to the public. We have volunteers who have one or more of these three great talents to share, and they are the reason we still thrive. The GCBS will celebrate its twenty-seven-year anniversary in 2022, and it’s all thanks to our wonderful volunteers.

Winterfest was founded in 2009 because the Board of Directors realized we needed a special day to honor the wonderful people, volunteers, who make all worthwhile endeavors a reality. This Winterfest, we will honor Sessions of H.O.P.E. (Helping Other People Everyday), a Christian organization dedicated to assisting others. They helped us keep open during Sundays in the summer. We honor two individuals from Sessions in particular: Aderinwale Aderemi, and Amanda Sanchez. The GCBS is also making a big announcement: We are starting a VOLUNTEER CORPS that will work with the Board of Directors to keep us open every weekend from April 30th to September 24th 2022, and maintain/improve the grounds! If you would like to become part of something bigger than yourself, please contact me at: johnwcroningcbs@outlook.com.

It is my honor to invite all who wish to be there to the fourteenth annual Winterfest, the GCBS’s own holiday that celebrates these wonderful characteristics and our supporters; “people of good will” is a phrase you will hear quite a lot at our ceremonies!

Winterfest begins at 4 p.m. as twilight approaches. As our supporters file in, there is warm coco to drink as we fill the birdfeeders and put up some decorations for our fine feathered friends. About 4:30 p.m., we have a poem recitation around our Winterfest tree. Then we culminate the event with our Candle-lighting Ceremony in which we have the “Great Telling.” Just as some Native Americans have a ceremony that describes the history of their tribe, the Directors tell the story of the GCBS and Winterfest itself. Each Director tells a part of the story. During the ceremony we will publicly honor Sessions of H.O.P.E.

At Winterfest we also remember the past year’s accomplishments and dream of the ones to come in 2022. We celebrate Winterfest in the middle of the gloomiest time of the year when the days are short, the nights are bitter cold, and nature sleeps in the seeming throes of death. Why? Because our message of hope is “All Winters Must Come to an End.” Not only will the seasonal winter pass to a new springtime of life, but the various “winters” in our lives will also pass. The winter of health problems, financial worries, relationship problems, work related problems—all these “winters” will eventually end. The great religions of the world tell us that the winter of death itself is not the end of us, but a passing into a new life. If we donate our talents to the best of our God-given ability to make the world a better place, things will work out. Winterfest is an opportunity for a communal hope that things will be better this coming year and allows people to focus on what unites us, rather than divides us.

Winterfest shall take place at 4 p.m. on Saturday, January 8, 2022 at the front gate of the GCBS, located at 182 Tanners Pond Road, regardless of the weather. The event is free and open to the general public. Hope to see you all there with heads, hearts, and hands united!