Volunteers Wanted
Gofers needed! Bubonicon 55 will need your help running the con!
Sure, we have lots of advance planners (the con-com), but we need your help during the convention weekend to make this event flow smoothly and work. Whether it’s four hours helping unload (or pack up), or 11 hours manning tables during the whole weekend, your assistance is invaluable in making this convention happen! “Gofers,” as con volunteers are known, will receive some kind of movie promotional swag, be in a drawing for additional goodies, and be invited to a pizza party after Bubonicon 55 ends (usually mid- to late September)!
We should note that as a smaller convention, we cannot provide free passes to volunteers. Everyone pays at Bubonicon, and thus we can keep our rates as low as possible. We do encourage gofers to register early! At-the-Door is always the most expensive way to go. And at the Gofer Meeting (usually one week before the con), we do offer a discounted weekend pass for those who have not purchased one yet.
If you can help us, please email the Gofer Co-Coordinators.
Gofer Meeting – Friday, August 16, 2024
All Volunteers for Bubonicon 54 are invited (and strongly encouraged) to attend an organizational meeting 7:30 pm Friday, August 16, 2024, in the Adult Education Room of St. Andrew Presbyterian Church, 5301 Ponderosa Ave NE (home of the Albuq SF Society – located near the Erna Ferguson Library off San Mateo, between Comanche and Montgomery).
At this meeting, we will go over the 2024 convention highlights, talk about volunteer positions and duties, have our gofers (workers) sign up for their preferred time slots, and hand out some book/comic swag to all attendees (subject to what has arrived from our donors). And we will offer a discounted weekend pass for anyone who has not yet purchased one (cash/check only).
So, please plan to join us before Bubonicon 55 begins! All volunteer workers are very much appreciated!
What We Expect From Volunteers
Volunteers are important! Even more vital is what we need from our volunteers during the convention. In general, we need Gofers to be on time and to be polite (but firm as needed). We do not need more than two gofers per position per shift, please.
Below are descriptions about our various departments where Gofer help is needed —
Registration:
If you are out-going and like being front-and-center, you might consider volunteering at Registration. It entails checking in the pre-registered attendees, handing out badges/wristbands and attendee packs, keeping a tally of paid attendees, and hanging with cool people. Our staff will handle all financial transactions, so no gofer will have to handle money or credit cards! Plus, you get to know the people at the convention better, and feel like an integral part of the action.
Dealers (Sales) Table:
Help run the table that sells the official Bubonicon t-shirts and merchandise, along with various other items like books, toys, movies and sometimes even towels! Working at the Dealers Table requires that you handle money and credit cards (if you are approved), and keep track of what you’re selling. It can be fast-paced at times, but it’s a ton of fun interacting with con-goers.
Art Show:
Bring your smiles and help make the Art Show a pleasant experience for everyone. Gofers primarily help in the Greeter/Bag Check area. You will be among the first people Art Show patrons see upon entering. Do not worry – you will not be handling money or paperwork. Have people skills and a great smile? Be a greeter and bag check helper! Have artistic skills? Help us display art work during set-up. Have strong muscles? Help us set up and take down the show, and handle the art flats! Want to be among the first to see what wonders our artists have brought this year? Help with set-up.
Con Suite:
No handling money here. Just individually wrapped snack foods, candy, and drinks. Duties for gofers include: Keeping food tables clean, keeping snacks stocked, icing down sodas, stocking sodas, roughly counting people (we have a 60-person limit for the rooms), letting Con Suite hosts know of any problems, help sponsors set up, and giving info to con members. Also, we need major help setting up on Friday afternoon and tearing down/clearing on Sunday morning. Any questions, email the Con Suite coordinator.
Gaming:
Help run the Game Rooms. The primary duties are: Being friendly and directing gamers to one of the three people in charge. You also have to help monitor the room, making sure the participants have con badges/wristbands. Working the Game Room is a great way to meet other gamers. No money handling here – but just one gofer per shift, please.
Door/Badge Checks:
At Bubonicon, people do need stinkin’ badges! The gofer duty is to man various doors of programming rooms, gaming and the con suite to see whether people entering have Bubonicon 55 passes or not. If a badge is not visible, politely asking whether the person has a B55 pass. If not, kindly direct them to Registration. There should be no aggressive confrontations – also, it is not your job to quiet children. If absolutely necessary, please talk with the parent (not directly to the child). We also need the “Rat Patrol” volunteers to hold up “5 Minutes” signs close to the end of panels/talks and check water cups/pitcher at head tables when possible (get rid of dead soldiers, if nothing else). It is not required to stand your whole shift – you can sit down. We can use up to six gofers per shift for the various rooms where badge checks are needed.
Loaders/Unloaders (MOVERS & SHAKERS – Very Important):
Help move the Art Show flats, Registration boxes, Con Suite goods, General supplies, and Freebie/Auction items! On Friday, August 23, all these items have to be hauled from locations near I-40/Washington NE and in the Uptown area – to arrive at the hotel about 11:15 am. On Sunday, the process goes in reverse – moving everything out of the Marriott and back to their storage locations between 5:00-6:30 pm… You must be able to lift at least 25 pounds without difficulty, and have a safety-conscious focus.