July is a team-building month for Main Street Vineland and we’re looking at good people like you to join us at the table to help make our downtown—The Ave—the best it can be. You read this column because you’re interested in what’s going on downtown, so this is your chance to help make a difference.
July is a month when our four teams—Organization, Design, Promotions, and Economic Vitality—have their quarterly meetings. So, this presents an opportunity to pick where you feel strongest and join us.
Our teams will be meeting live at our office at 603 E. Landis Avenue, at 12 noon the first four Thursdays this month. The Organization Team already met, but you can still sign up and/or jump in with the other teams. They will meet in the order given here. Now, what do the teams do?
The Organization Team, headed by Donata Dalesandro, is responsible for volunteer recruitment and fundraising. Like other Main Street districts across the country, ours is a volunteer-driven organization. It’s the volunteers who do the work—who are the “worker bees” who combine with staff to get our good work done. Our initiatives couldn’t be done without money and the Organization Team is responsible for fundraising—through seeking sponsors, proceeds from events, and other means. A good example of an Organization Team event is our A Taste of Vineland & Volunteer Recognition Event—our main fundraiser for the year. The team is also responsible for communications—such as press releases and columns like this one.
The Design Team, chaired by Vanessa Sosa, is responsible for the physical appearance of The Ave—everything from the plants at the mini-parks, to the hanging baskets, to Christmas trees in store windows, to other projects. The military mural at the mini-parks and the soon-to-be completed food mural on the 600 block are also Design Team initiatives. You’ll be reading shortly about the kick-off of our Walk The Ave initiative.
The Promotions Team, headed by Andre Rivera, puts on the fun events on The Ave. The recent Running The Ave 5K is a Promotions Team event, as well as the upcoming Christmas in July, Food Truck Festival on The Ave, Cruise Down Memory Lane, Pumpkin Patch Party, Weddings on The Ave, Christmas Parade, and An Olde-Fashioned Christmas.
The Economic Vitality Team, chaired by Sarah Bradway Johnson, is responsible for helping our downtown businesses stay successful. This has been so important during the hard times this past year from the COVID situation. This includes letting businesses known about workshops, trainings, grants, and other such tools; putting out a business newsletter; having ribbon-cuttings for new businesses; and helping to fill available downtown properties through initiatives like Work on The Ave.
Come to any of our meetings—either live or let us send you a Zoom link. Just call our office at 856-794-8653 and take that first step.
