H.O.P.E. Ottawa's premier event Hope Volleyball SummerFest

Volunteers with Us!

Our annual event - HOPE Volleyball SummerFest - is an outdoor festival combining recreational volleyball and live rock entertainment with a pumpin’ beach party. More than 15,000 players and spectators flock to Mooney's Bay Beach for the greatest weekend of the summer, with proceeds supporting three to six local charities. Without the crucial support of our volunteers, H.O.P.E. would not have been able to donate over $4.5 million to more than 150 local organizations since SummerFest began back in 1982.

Join Our HOPE
SummerFest Planning Team

The small and mighty staff at H.O.P.E is supported by a volunteer Planning Team of approximately 40 people, who in turn support at least 700 event day volunteers. At the beginning of each SummerFest season in early spring, we are on the lookout for new members to join our Planning Team. Below is a general overview of what is involved:

Over a four- to five-month period, you can expect to invest about 30 hours, with about half of the time commitment occurring in the week leading up to HOPE Volleyball SummerFest on the second Saturday in July.
You can expect a long - but gratifying! - day of volunteering on event day
Beginning in April, we hold at least one in-person Planning Team meeting every month, with the last one of the season occurring in the week after SummerFest. We expect individuals to be generally available for these meetings.

Interested in learning more?
Please get in touch with Lisa Hollingshead at lisa.hollingshead@hopeottawa.com

Committees & Information

The following committees form our Planning Team.
Please note: Not all committees will be recruiting new members every year:

Bar Services

This committee is responsible for the management of three bar areas, including setup and teardown logistics and providing oversight to the bar service Volunteers.
Charity Liaison

This committee acts as the communication liaison and overall support for the H.O.P.E. Recipient Charities and the H.O.P.E. organization.
Entertainment

This committee coordinates the hospitality for the musical acts and manages the setup and access to the backstage area.
Event Greening

This committee is tasked with promoting waste reduction strategies and helps manage a large group of Volunteers assigned to keeping the event site clean.
Finance

The Finance Committee will work under the guidance of H.O.P.E’s Treasurer to manage the processes for onsite sales, including preparing pricing information and setup of the POS system.
Food Distribution

This committee supports our partner food Vendor, Grill Master Express, in the distribution of Team and Volunteer lunches.
Information Booth

This committee oversees the information hub for SummerFest, and also helps manage sales and last-minute team check-in.
Logistics

Logistics activities are managed year round in the HOPE office, but there are essential contributions made by this committee for event setup and teardown, including putting up signage, setting up tables and chairs, and setting up nets
Parking

This committee manages Volunteers in three parking lots, while assisting with the traffic flow around the event site.
Photography

This committee caters to photographers (or aspiring photographers) who are able to document the Event with a collection of photos.
Registration

This committee helps manage the Team Registration system, and coordinates the preparation of court schedules, registration lists, and registration kit materials.
Security/Greeters

This committee is responsible for providing oversight for a large group of Game Day Greeter Volunteers and liaisons with paid security and other emergency personnel on site.
Scorekeepers

This committee is responsible for managing the tournaments for 700+ Volleyball Teams spread over three divisions, including providing orientation for Volunteers and supporting set-up activities.
Vendor/Bike Compound

These two areas are paired together into a single committee as most of the Vendor responsibilities take place in the lead up to the Event. This committee helps communicate with Vendors and provides onsite contact during setup; on Game Day, this committee manages the bike compound.
Social Media

This committee supports the H.O.P.E. Office by developing and capturing social media content for and across all platforms used by H.O.P.E., including Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
Volunteer

This committee assists with Volunteer communication in the lead up to SummerFest, and provides oversight for Volunteer check-in/check-out during the Event.