OLYMPICS/ Volunteers
City volunteers are happy hosts
By Guan Xiaomeng (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-08-15 15:02
Liu Jing interrupted and agreed.
Their self-made bulletin with weather report, warnings of heatstroke prevention and a copy of tabloid-sized paper about Olympic volunteers is in front of their booth. |
"A middle-aged man asked me what he needed to do to qualify to become a volunteer and I told him in great detail. At last, he clenched his fist and exclaimed, 'I want to be a volunteer!' and we all laughed," recalled Liu, a high school graduate who will enter Beijing University of Technology this fall.
"To be a city volunteer, we brushed up on our English, read some material related to the Beijing Games and got familiar with the amusement park so that we can deal with most of the visitors'questions," Shen said.
The trio worked at the amusement park on a staggered schedule so that today was Shen's last day, and it was Liu's second, while Beijing Youth sophomore Li Ting began her three-day stint.
"Tomorrow Shen will leave and a new person will come, so I will be considered 'Number One'here as I will be the longest serving of the three," Liu joked.
The organizing group ordered lunch for them from a nearby Chinese fast food restaurant and they collected the food at the park gates.
"Yesterday, while I was waiting for the lunch to come, I met a lost boy," Shen remembered. "To my surprise, the boy was so smart that he knew I could help him. He used my cell phone to call his father and then I stayed with him until his father came."
"It is so great that we are recognized as people who can help," Shen exclaimed.
Li finished another paper rose and asked Shen to help her make it look better.
The finished paper roses |
"My father loves watching sports very much so he influences me a lot," Li said. "We watched the Athens Games and I was deeply impressed by the sweet smile of the pretty Greek volunteers. I want to be a smiling volunteer just like them," she said, holding her finished paper rose.
A man with his son approached their booth and Shen handed him a copy of the volunteer paper and a brochure, saying, "Please read this on the Olympic volunteers, thanks!" The man stood there to read the paper for a while, but his young son had already run towards the bumper cars.
"Adults, especially parents are interested in volunteer opportunities or things related to the Games and so they take our leaflets or ask us questions," Shen said. "Most children or young people our age aren't that curious so I have to stand directly in front of them to give them things."
"Most people were nice, even though some of them were not interested in us," Liu said. But they were embarrassed when a man complained that volunteers are not paid. "He said we are stupid to work here with no pay at all," Shen said, "We just told him we're doing this because we are hosts in the host city."
Nevertheless, they can also communicate to deaf people too. They know sign language for "the smile of the volunteers is the best name card for Beijing," the slogan for Beijing Olympic volunteers.
And as hosts, they will be out there smiling proudly and welcoming visitors to Beijing next year.
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