Rotarians are asked to serve their communities using their skills, strengths, and talents. Westlake Village Noon wanted to create Holidays In the Village (HITV), a European style Christmas Market, as an annual community event in early December that was family friendly. It was too big a challenge and needed more skills than they had in their Club. Solution – partner with Westlake Village Sunrise and the City of Westlake Village!
We pulled it off! On Sunday, December 12, 2021, HITV was an amazing success with thousands of attendees! The overwhelming feedback from attendees: We had a wonderful time! Please tell us you are doing it again next year! Well – we are! The second annual HITV will be on December 4, 2022.
Success required months of planning, organizing, designing, procuring, prepping, and promoting. It required follow through and last-minute problem solving the weekend of the event to make it happen. It took over 250 volunteers from our two clubs and the community. The skills, strengths, and talents needed included: leadership, project management, logistics, budgeting, construction, carpentry, scenic art, entertainment, food service, purchasing, communication (PR, social media, and print), printing, fund raising, vendor support, legal services, insurance and risk management, health and food safety, traffic and security. Whew! Ultimately, we succeeded through trust, commitment, and service above self!