Category: Off-site event

The Chicago Zine Fest is run entirely by volunteers, so your willingness to pitch in is sincerely appreciated. Here’s the announcement from the nice folks at CZF:

CZF needs volunteers the weekend before the fest (March 4th) and for the actual tabling day of the fest (March 10th). Below you will find descriptions of the volunteer opportunities available and the times we need help. Please read through the information and if you are able to participate send us an e-mail to chicagozinefest(at)gmail(dot)com with your full name, phone number, the type of volunteering you’d like to do, & what day/shift you prefer (please list three choices for shifts that you are interested in — if your first choice has been filled, we will move to the next available shift on your list). We appreciate your excitement and willingness to help, and will work around your schedules.

Volunteer opportunity available in preparation for the Chicago Zine Fest:

Sign Making Party! It has become a Chicago Zine Fest tradition to host a Sign Making Party the weekend or two before the zine fest. By this we mean the creation of informational signs to be hung at the venues i.e. “Information Table”,“Restroom This Way”, etc. The Sign Making Party will be held on Sunday, March 4th from 3-5pm at the Read/Write Library (914 N. California). We’ll supply all of the materials needed — all you have to do is let us know you are coming!
Volunteer opportunities for day two of the fest, Saturday March 10th at Columbia College, 1104 South Wabash:

Set-up volunteers. This will involve helping set up chairs and tables, putting up posters and signs, etc. You’ll have first crack at the free coffee! This shift is from 9-11am.

Information/Registration table volunteers. You will be responsible for maintaining one of the information tables at the zine fest exhibition. This includes handing out programs and answering any basic questions exhibitors and visitors have. Shifts are as follows:
Shift One: 9:30am-12pm
Shift Two: 12-2pm
Shift Three: 2-4pm
Shift Four: 4-6pm

Exhibitor food room volunteers. We will be offering free snacks & lunch to the zine fest exhibitors and volunteers. You will be responsible for maintaining the food room; refilling supplies as needed, making sure nobody eats a days worth of food or stuffs a tote bag full of chips, and cleaning any messes or spills. There will also be a coffee service by employees from Wormhole coffee shop. You may be asked to assist them with refilling water, cleaning up or where needed. Shifts are as follows:
Shift One: 11-1pm
Shift Two: 1-3:30pm
Shift Three: 3:30-6pm

Workshop volunteers. Tasks include helping workshop presenters with any sort of set up or breakdown (i.e. moving chairs around), monitoring the time and signalling to the presenter when time is nearing wrap up, cleaning up any materials left after the room is cleared. These shifts will be in blocks based on the length of the workshop, which vary.  Workshops start at 12pm and run until 5:45pm. If you are interested in helping with a workshop, let us know! We’ll email you the workshop list (with times) once it is finalized.

Art & Reading Room volunteers. This year’s zine fest will feature a room that features exhibitors’ artwork, as well as examples of the zines that are available for purchase at the fest. Tasks include handing out floor maps to folks interested in particular zines (so that they can purchase zines at the authors’ table), making sure no one steals the zines, making sure no one removes or tampers with the artwork, and answering general questions about the art or zines. The art show will begin to come down at 5:30. The last shift may require assistance with de-installing art pieces, returning zines or art work to exhibitors at the fest, and compiling all reading room zines into one box. Shifts are as follows:
Shift One: 9:30-12pm
Shift Two: 12-2pm
Shift Three: 2-4pm
Shift Four: 4-6pm

Kids table volunteers. The kids table will feature all of the materials that kids need to make their own zine on-site! Tasks include greeting the kids, encouraging them to make a zine, showing them the clip art/markers/etc, and taking pictures of their finished works. Shifts are as follows:
Shift One: 11-1pm
Shift Two: 1-3:30pm
Shift Three: 3:30-6pm

Roaming volunteer shifts. You will be available to attendees, exhibitors, other volunteers and organizers on either the first or eighth floor for miscellaneous tasks. Duties also include clean up of materials dropped on the ground (look for recycling bins throughout the building). You will be asked to direct patrons to where elevators, bathrooms, workshop/art rooms are. You might be asked to relieve an exhibitor from their table, thereby sitting at a exhibitors’ tables if they need to use the restroom, etc. Shifts are as follows:
Shift One: 10am-12pm
Shift Two: 12-2pm
Shift Three: 2-4pm
Shift Four: 4-6pm

Tear down/clean up volunteers. We only have one hour to close up shop! Tasks include breaking down tables and chairs, removing any zine fest signs posted on the walls (including adhesive), and general clean up of waste materials (again, recycling is key!). This shift is from 6-7pm.

(Please note that all venues are wheelchair accessible.)