Celebrating Our Amazing Volunteers
As we celebrate National Volunteer Week and Volunteer Appreciation Week, we are excited to shine a spotlight on some of our rock start volunteers.
Louise Hindal Acer
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2006/2007
Volunteer Area: Packet Pickup
Louise and her dad, Mark Hindal, are the ubiquitous faces of and masterminds behind Packet Pickup at 24 Hours of Booty. Louise first got involved in 24 Hours of Booty in 2006/2007 back when she was in high school. Her cross country coach’s wife, Patti Weiss (the first executive director of 24 Foundation) needed some extra hands, so her coach recruited the school’s cross country team to help stuff packets.
One of Louise’s favorite parts about volunteering at Booty is “Seeing how the community lifts each other up to reach extraordinary goals. The people at the event are always so supportive, helpful, and kind; experienced riders help new riders, people who have experienced cancer or caregiving share their experiences with those who are newly touched by the disease, and there is always someone, no matter the heat or time of day, there to cheer you on up the hills physically and metaphorically.”
Melinda Arthur
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2013
Volunteer Areas: Packet Pick-up, Hospitality Tent, and Booty Store
Vaughn Arthur
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2015
Volunteer Areas: Gear Drop, Booty Store, Hospitality (food tent), and photography
Vaughn and Melinda were both 24 Hours of Booty riders first. But after a few years they realized that they wanted to do more. Melinda volunteered for the first time in 2013 as a course monitor while Vaughn was riding the Grand Tour. This inspired Vaughn to follow suit. And since then they have volunteered every year, even when they are riding.
Vaughn is a 35-year cancer survivor who was just 26 years old when he was diagnosed with Rhabdomyosarcoma. Vaughn says that one of the most rewarding parts of volunteering is “Being able to give back to the cancer community. I’ve seen how much it means to so many people. And the concentration on survivorship programs makes it even more important to me. It’s also like seeing family every time we show up in Bootyville. I love working the Gear Drop because it’s a line of old friends saying hello and meeting new friends.”
Melinda is also a cancer survivor and was diagnosed with Stage 2 breast cancer in fall 2019. Says Melinda of her volunteer experience, “I love working packet pickup the afternoon before the event begins. I am so happy and excited to see numerous friends old and new, and the thrill is contagious as I help participants as they arrive. I usually work the hospitality tent when the awards are handed out. You can’t have a frown when you are having ice cream with a few hundred of your closest friends.”
Why they volunteer: “We’ve lost many family members and friends including Vaughn’s mother and Aunt. The inspiration for our 24 Hour of Booty Team ‘Team Collin’ was Collin Marsh who was taken by cancer at the age of two. We’ve seen so many friends and family affected by cancer that it is staggering.” ~Vaughn & Melinda
Sonia I.
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2021
Volunteer Areas: 24 Hours of Booty (Ran the Wind River Cancer Wellness Retreats tent and is working on art booth for this year’s event), Superhero Stomp and Bourbon for Booty
Diagnosed with Stage 4 ROS1+ Metastatic Lung Cancer in August 2020, Sonia gets treated at Atrium Health Levine Cancer Institute and will be on a lifelong treatment journey for her cancer.
Sonia is such a dedicated volunteer that she her return flight from a business trip to Argentina to be at Superhero Stomp. One of her favorite aspects of volunteering is to give back monetarily and to the community. “It feels great to feel part of an organization that is homegrown,” says Sonia. “24 Foundation is small enough but big enough that we can make an impact on the cancer community. I personally benefited from 24 Foundation’s support to Levine Cancer Institute. This is my way to give back and make difference.”
She adds, “The commitment that I see among the among the 24 community (people, sponsors, donors, etc.) involved inspires me to do what I do. I am so thankful for Spencer and what he started. It comes down to the vision he started.”
Devin Mills
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2023
Volunteer Areas: 24 Hours of Booty, Superhero Stomp and Bourbon for Booty
Devin started volunteering with 24 Foundation during last year’s 24 Hours of Booty event and fell in love with the mission, people, and team behind it.
“One of my favorite parts about volunteering with 24 Foundation is hearing the stories from those who are involved in and/or have benefited from the foundation,” says Devin. “Having lost multiple family members to cancer as well as multiple friends and family being survivors, the stories, both good and bad, connect us all as a community. They remind us of the care we need to take for ourselves, our friends, and our family. They also encourage me to do everything I can to help in any way possible.”
Michelle Shrum
24 Foundation Volunteer Since: 2008
Volunteer Area: 24 Hours of Booty Mission Tent
Michelle is a 15+ year survivor of gynecologic cancer and a 24 Hours of Booty participant and volunteer. She first got involved as a 24 Foundation through work and then fell in love with the event and continued to grow into a lead volunteer and participant.
“Telling people about the mission of 24 Foundation and the programs and beneficiaries,” is one of Michelle’s favorite parts of being a lead volunteer and helping run our Mission Tent at 24 Hours of Booty.
We also want to thank all of our amazing volunteers from the bottom of our hearts. We love having you as part of our 24 Foundation family and appreciate you lending your time, talents, expertise and service to our events, mission and cancer community throughout the year.
Interested in being a volunteer? Check out the opportunities that we have throughout the year. Thanks for making a difference and helping change the course of cancer!