The Northfield Hospital Auxiliary Book Fair depends on volunteers — more than 300 every year! Some work a few hours here and there, and others dedicate many hours throughout the sale.
For volunteers, there are two main parts to the book fair: Setup days and Sale days.
Setup days run from Tuesday, April 8 through Monday, April 21. We work 9-5 weekdays and 9-1 on Saturday, Apr 12. During this time there are two main volunteer jobs:
- Sorters separate the book donations that come in during this time into our 30 subject categories. This is interesting, active work with some problem-solving required.
- Organizers prepare the books in a particular subject category for sale. Depending on the subject, this usually involves sorting into sub-categories and/or alphabetizing by author. It may also involve pricing books based on provided guidelines.
Sale days run from Tuesday, April 22 through Saturday, April 26. We work 5-9 on Tuesday, 9-9 Wed-Fri, and 8-3 Saturday. During this time there are two main volunteer jobs, which are generally done in three-hour shifts, sitting at a table:
- Tellers work in pairs to look at each customer’s books and calculate their total purchase.
- Checkers complete the sale by taking cash and making change or running credit card sales.
Volunteers who have been organizing subject categories often drop in during the sale days to make sure their section is still tidy.
Finally, we can also use a few volunteers who are able to do some heavy lifting on Monday, April 8 for table setup and stored book transport; and on Saturday afternoon, April 26, for tear-down and cleanup.
Training is provided for all roles, so you don’t need previous experience.
Volunteers in all roles receive early access to sale items. In fairness to volunteers and shoppers, the Northfield Hospital Auxiliary does not permit anyone to volunteer who earns an income selling books or media.