Expo a Wonderful Success

I would like to thank all the volunteers who helped the night before to set up for the Expo and before, during and after the Event. Without the hard work and planning of the volunteers this event would not be possible. Thanks to the County of Giles, and the Town of Pearisburg their staff was fantastic to help loan/move tables, loan chairs, help with set and clean up. I also want to thank everyone who participated as a vendor, special speaker/presenter, musical/dance entertainers, and the massage therapist who provided free massages. Thanks to Giles County TRIAD for sponsoring the Mobile Shred-A-Thon at the event! All the door prizes donated were great! Thanks to everyone for making this years Expo a wonderful success!

Planning for next years event has already begun. If you would like to serve on the planning committee please notify me and we will discuss the possibilities. I also welcome suggestions in helping to make next years event even better.

Busy Autumn Days

Sally Grogan packing a bag!

Autumn is one of the busiest times of the year for Giles RSVP or at least right now I believe it to be. The first of September we held our 2nd Annual Book Bag and Supply Drive. Our goal this year was to provide 20 school children with a new book bag filled with the basic school supplies before they started school. Our drive was a success, needless to say we met our goal! This was the first year we partnered with Magic Mart and held the drive on a Saturday morning in front of their store. Our Advisory Council President Sally Grogan, took this project under her wing. She received donations from the VFW Auxiliary, the American Legion and other private individuals. She also headed up the supply drive held at Magic Mart. Recruiting organizations and individuals to contribute to this worthy project we met our goal thanks to Sally’s determination. We estimated that each bag filled with supplies was worth $25.00 thus assisting Giles families with an estimated total of 500.00 support in going back to school.

With the Book Bag and Supply Project a success we moved on to our next event, the Giles RSVP Boomer and Senior Lifestyle Expo to be held on October 24th, just 4 days from now. The Giles RSVP Advisory Council serves as the event committee, each member takes on a responsibility related to the success of the event. This event contributes to the education, information and socialization for all seniors in Giles County. A full day of live music, entertainment, special presentations, 31 vendor information tables, exercise and dance participation/instruction, and a fashion show. This year for the first time at the Expo will be a Flu Clinic sponsored by the NRV Free Clinic and a Mobile Shred-A-Thon sponsored by Giles TRIAD! The mobile shredder has drawn much excitement! Seniors will be able to bring those sensitive documents that they need to dispose of to the Expo and actually watch them after they dump them in the shredder on a video monitor being torn, chopped, shredded and annihilated by the machine. All free for seniors! In addition for only $3.50 a lunch will be sold by RSVP volunteers to help with costs related to the Expo. This year Volunteers will serve brown beans, corn bread muffins, onions/relish, a slice of pumpkin bread, and either a can of soda or cup of coffee. We welcome all seniors to come out and enjoy a fun day with Giles RSVP!

The annual Volunteer Appreciation Banquet will be on Thursday, November 13, 2008! At this time I am busy working on making sure our invitations are mailed to all the volunteers who have served 50 hours this past year. I am assuring that each will have a certificate and gift. Making sure that the decorations, program, food and entertainment are all lined up. Organizing the recognition gifts for our GRSVP Advisory Council and with much deliberating I will be deciding who will receive the honorable volunteer of the year award! Stay tuned to hear who receives this honor!