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Harbourfront Centre Volunteers

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Volunteer Opportunities

From assisting chefs at the cooking demos to filming readings by world-renowned authors, to helping children make crafts and welcoming visitors to our festivals and events, we have something for everybody! Come express your talents and interests throughout the year!

Volunteer Positions

Activity Assistant

The activity assistant supports and enhances the delivery of various programmes and activities.

Responsibilities:

  • Work as part of a team to organize hands-on activities
  • Prepare materials and maintain a workspace
  • Assist children in making their creative projects within the programme
  • Assist with the set-up and clean-up of workstations

Artist Liaison Assistant

The artist liaison assistant assists artists with a number of tasks throughout festivals/events. Required qualifications include a mature and friendly attitude. An interest in the arts would be preferred.

Responsibilities:

  • Help artists with carrying props/costumes for the two stages
  • Guide artists from the stage to the green room or vice versa
  • Help maintain barrier during autograph signing and performance
  • Act as a runner between the assistant production coordinator and programmer

Book Assistant (for Literary Events)

The book assistant plays an important role in assisting the book-selling staff at literary events.

Responsibilities:

  • Help to stock the book tables
  • Assist the book-selling staff, as needed

Cooking Demo Assistant

The cooking demo assistant provides a service to enhance and support the cooking demonstrations that are an important part of many festivals at Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Assist patrons in entering, exiting and finding a seat within the venue
  • Assist the chef with set-up, clean-up, organizing tools and anything else, as needed
  • Hand out information and recipes
  • Collect tickets and hand out food samples

Cooking Demo Ticket Seller

The cooking demo ticket seller provides a service to enhance and support the cooking demonstrations that are an important part of many festivals at Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Count the cash float prior to selling any tickets
  • Sell tickets for food sampling at the cooking demos
  • Record the number of tickets sold at the end of each shift
  • Reconcile the cash float at the end of each shift and mark down on the sheets provided the number of tickets sold and the revenue that was generated
  • Return the cash float (with the start amount) to the next volunteer on shift or return to the staff employee

Education Programme Assistant (for School Visits)

The education programme assistant supports and enhances the delivery of the educational programmes. Qualifications required include an interest in education and a willingness to deal with children of all ages and abilities. An academic, environmental or arts background would be an asset, but is not necessary.

Responsibilities:

  • Help set up the required programme in assigned room
  • Help prepare materials for the programme
  • Assist the teacher in presenting an organized education programme that emphasizes participation and hands-on activities
  • Assist children with hands-on activities
  • Assist with rearranging the assigned room after completion of the programme

Event Assistant

The event assistant assists with the set-up of the event and preparation of artist packages and gift bags for openings and other social events at Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Assist with the preparation of artist packages and gift bags for the event
  • Assist with the preparation of the venue – arrange flowers, put out the tablecloths and decorations, assist with food trays, etc.
  • Assist with the set-up and clean-up of the event

Event Photographer

The event photographer provides an important service in capturing the festivals and activities that occur at Harbourfront Centre to provide a visual record. Volunteers should have some basic photographic skills and be able to operate a digital camera. An interest in photography and some experience taking photos during events is an asset.

Responsibilities:

  • Take photos at the festivals under the direction of the festival programmer
  • Label the photos and create a CD for archival purposes

Floater

The floater assists the Volunteer Coordinator with a number of tasks throughout the festivals/events.

Responsibilities:

  • Provide proper break rotation for volunteers
  • Carry out other duties as assigned by the Volunteer Coordinator

Front of House Assistant

The front of house assistant – including greeters, ushers and ticket takers – assists and supports the effective running of the event by monitoring the audience that enters the venue.

Greeter responsibilities:

  • Welcome and greet audience members at the doors
  • Distribute brochures or other information
  • Inform audience members about the performances

Usher responsibilities:

  • Open doors when directed by staff
  • Direct audience members to available seats in the venue
  • Assist with crowd control and capacity management

Ticket taker (for literary events) responsibilities:

  • Take tickets at the outer doors of the venue (tear at the perforation, keep small stub and return larger stub to audience member) and remind ticket holders to retain their stubs for re-entry if they must exit for any reason
  • Remain by the doors to welcome and direct latecomers or re-check ticket stubs

Gallery Attendant

The gallery attendant directs gallery visitors through the various exhibitions at the York Quay Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Welcome and direct visitors around the gallery, give out brochures and handouts
  • Direct audience to sign the guestbook, not allowing food or drink into the gallery
  • Monitor the installation, make sure that no one touches any art objects
  • Answer questions (staff member to provide information beforehand)

Green Room Assistant

The green room assistant provides superior customer service to ensure that the green room is a place where artists can relax, have refreshments and socialize with each other.

Responsibilities:

  • Assist with set-up and clean-up
  • Help with preparation of refreshments
  • Welcome and greet artists and provide information about the festival and amenities

Hospitality Suite Assistant (for Literary Events)

The hospitality suite assistant provides superior customer service to ensure that the hospitality suite is a place where authors can relax, have refreshments and socialize with each other.

Responsibilities:

  • Welcome visitors to the hospitality suite as necessary
  • Prepare food trays
  • Replenish the refreshment area
  • Assist the staff with the preparation of marketing materials
  • Tidy the hospitality suite at the end of the evening (clean tables, keep newspapers organized, put food away, etc.)

Information Host/Wandering Host

The information host/wandering host welcomes visitors and promotes the various programmes, activities and events to the general public on behalf of Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Welcome and direct visitors around the site
  • Answer any inquiries about the programmes, activities and events
  • Distribute event brochures and/or "What's On" pamphlets
  • Promote the current and upcoming activities at Harbourfront Centre
  • Direct visitors to the appropriate staff for security and emergency situations

Membership/Information Assistant (for Literary Events)

The membership/information assistant performs the important task of selling memberships in support of the Literary Arts programme. All revenues generated from sales go directly to the Literary Arts programme.

Responsibilities:

  • Set up the membership/information table
  • Welcome and inform visitors about memberships
  • Accept payment for memberships
  • At the end of the evening, tally all the sales, sign the sales summary and membership summary sheets

Office Support Assistant

The office support assistant provides superior service and office administration skills to enhance and promote Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Input specific research/data into the appropriate database or computer
  • Make calls to various organizations or volunteers as required
  • Provide clerical support including filing, photocopying and typing
  • Provide office support including preparing mail-outs, stuffing and sealing envelopes

Prepping Assistant

The prepping assistant works as part of a team to prepare materials for use in School Visits and for arts and crafts activities at festivals. This is normally done on weekdays at the Harbourfront Centre office.

Responsibilities:

  • Prepare materials for arts and crafts activities and educational programmes
  • Sort, cut and organize materials

Reception Assistant

The reception assistant welcomes the guests to gallery openings and other social events at Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Greet guests at events and distribute brochures or other materials
  • Invite guests to sign the guestbook
  • Assist with the set-up and clean-up of the event

Site Decorator Assistant

The site decorator assistant provides a decorating service that is an integral part of the event or programme, both as a visual element and also as part of the overall creative concept.

Responsibilities:

  • Prepare site decoration materials
  • Install the site decor throughout the festival site
  • Dismantle the site decor after the completion of the event
  • Secure the site decorations in their appropriate storage area

Sponsorship Assistant

The sponsorship assistant assists the sponsor servicing team in delivering programmes during festival hours. Qualifications include the ability to stand for long periods of time and a willingness to work with children. Bilingualism is an asset.

Responsibilities:

  • Set up and take down work station
  • Interact with the public by delivering key messages and answering questions
  • Hand out samples

Video Camera Operator (for Literary Events)

The video camera operator plays a crucial role in preserving and compiling video recordings for the Literary Arts archives. Volunteers should be able to operate a video camera and have some basic video recording skills. An interest in literature is an asset.

Responsibilities:

  • Set up the video camera on the tripod before the event
  • Begin to film before the reading starts, (include the host's speech and introductions), and resume after the intermission

Volunteer Registration Assistant

The volunteer registration assistant performs the important task of checking in volunteers for their shifts and informing them of where they are assigned.

Responsibilities:

  • Supervise the volunteer registration area and check in volunteers
  • Distribute badges, TTC tickets, etc.
  • Assist with any other tasks as assigned by the Volunteer Coordinator

Volunteer Venue Coordinator

The volunteer venue coordinator performs the important task of coordinating the volunteers at each venue. The volunteer venue coordinator works closely under the supervision of a Harbourfront Centre staff member/team coordinator, and is responsible for one venue per shift.

Responsibilities:

  • Welcome volunteers, check them off in the volunteer schedule, brief them as to their duties/responsibilities and ensure that they are set up properly at their stations
  • Distribute TTC tickets and volunteer badges to the volunteers, if needed
  • Arrange breaks for volunteers and fill in for them when they are away from their post
  • For literary events, distribute the cash float and give instructions for the evening, then collect cash floats, membership applications and volunteer badges to hand over to the staff person at the end of the event

Workshop Assistant

The workshop assistant provides a service to enhance and support the workshops or demonstrations at Harbourfront Centre.

Responsibilities:

  • Greet participants and/or take tickets at the door of the venue
  • Assist the instructor to set up, facilitate the workshop, manage the crowd volumes, distribute materials or samples to the patrons and clean up after the event
  • Monitor the workshop and make sure that all materials are returned to their proper places and supplies are always well-stocked

Programmes Supported by Volunteers

To find out more information about the exciting programmes supported by volunteers, please click on the following links:

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