Winterfest: A celebration of our heads, hearts, and hands

PRESIDENT OF THE GARDEN CITY BIRD SANCTUARY / TANNERS POND ENVIRONMENTAL CENTER


On January 10, the Garden City Bird Sanctuary/Tanners Pond Environmental Center (GCBS/TPEC) will be celebrating its seventh annual Winterfest. It’s a holiday unique to us and our supporters. Deep in significance and rich in symbolism, Winterfest is there as a reminder that we, who are involved in this ecological endeavor, do so out of an interest/talent of the head, heart, or hands. There have been whole books dedicated to leadership styles based on the head, heart, and hands; but the principles apply most aptly to those who volunteer to make their little corner of the world a better place.

Our Founder, past president, and current member on the Board of Directors, Mr. Rob Alvey, turned a nineacre storm water basin full of junk into a shining jewel of environmental stewardship. He has the gift of leading with head, heart and hands. He then inspired the rest of us to follow, bringing our talents to sustain what he started. However, everyone does not have talents in all three areas, like Rob Alvey.

When you’re a volunteer leading with your head, you realize the importance of environmental stewardship and use your God-given gift of intelligence in thinking of various ways to raise funds and brainstorm ideas for solving our problems. You rely on the professional knowledge of yourself and others to find unique ways of keeping the dream alive. Those on the Board of Directors, like me, contribute to setting a vision and can run meetings according to Robert’s Rules of Order. The “nuts and bolts” of legal requirements and filing paperwork are top on the agenda of helping.

Volunteers leading with their heart love our work fervently. After a vision has been established, they eagerly set out to spread the word and invite others to join. Their passion is contagious and inspires people. They volunteer to help out at various functions, like Halloween Fest, and encourage everyone to attend. You can find them at most of our events.

Those who give with the gift of their hands serve happily by getting those same hands dirty. They can be seen planting, building, watering, etc. What the head conceives and the heart inspires, the hands bring to fruition by doing the “dirty work.” We have volunteers who have one or more of these three great talents to share, and they are the reason we still thrive. The GCBS/TPEC will celebrate its twenty year anniversary in 2015, and it’s all thanks to our wonderful volunteers. Rob Alvey is one of those rare individuals who can lead with head, heart and hands. Winterfest was founded in 2009 because Rob inspired those of us on the Board of Directors to honor the men and women, just like Rob, who make all worthwhile endeavors a reality and sustain them over the years.

It is my honor to invite all who wish to be there to the seventh annual Winterfest, the GCBS/TPEC’s own holiday that celebrates these wonderful characteristics and our supporters; “people of good will” is a phrase you will hear quite a lot at our ceremonies!

Winterfest begins at 4 p.m. as twilight approaches. As our supporters file in, there is warm coco to drink as we fill the birdfeeders and put up some decorations for our fine feathered friends. About 4:30 p.m., we have a poem recitation around our newly planted trees. Then we culminate the event with our Candle-lighting Ceremony in which we have the “Great Telling.” Just as some Native Americans have a ceremony that describes the history of their tribe, the Directors tell the story of the GCBS and Winterfest itself. Each Director tells a part of the story. During the ceremony we will publicly honor one or two of our outstanding helpers and then remember with gratitude both the persons who dedicated trees in 2014 for someone special (either in honor or in memoriam) and those people for whom they were planted.

At Winterfest we also remember the past year’s accomplishments and dream of the ones to come in 2015. We celebrate Winterfest in the middle of the gloomiest time of the year when the days are short, the nights are bitter cold, and nature sleeps in the seeming throes of death. Why? Because our message of hope is “All Winters Must Come to an End.” Not only will the seasonal winter pass to a new springtime of life, but the various “winters” in our lives will also pass. The winter of health problems, financial worries, relationship problems, work related problemsall these “winters” will eventually end. The great religions of the world tell us that the winter of death itself is not the end of us, but a passing into a new life. As long as we donate our talents to the best of our God-given ability to make the world a better place, things will work out. Winterfest is an opportunity for a communal hope that things will be better this coming year and allows people to focus on what unites us, rather than divides us.

Winterfest shall take place at 4 p.m. on Saturday, January 10, 2015 at the front gate of the GCBS opposite 181 Tanners Pond Road regardless of the weather. The event is free and open to the general public. Hope to see you all there with heads, hearts, and hands united!



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