300+ members of Team Fairchild needed to support Wheelchair Games Published June 8, 2009 By Senior Airman Emerald Ralston 92nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. -- The largest annual wheelchair sports event in the world is coming to Spokane July 13 to 18 and your help is needed. More than 500 wheelchair athletes will be gathering in Spokane, from the "Greatest Generation" to the latest generation, competing in 17 events over six days and around 350 Airmen from Fairchild are needed to volunteer for three events. "It is important to support this kind of event to ensure we continue to support our veterans, especially those critically wounded, and improve their quality of life," said Master Sgt. William Richardson, base point of contact for the 2009 Wheelchair Games. "We should all show support for our injured veterans, being active duty it could have just as easily been one of us on the receiving end of their injuries. The field events will be a fun filled day assisting the athletes in various competitions and an inspiring event for all." The first event that needs volunteer assistance will take place July 12 and 18. 50 volunteers are needed to assist athlete's arrival and departure from the Spokane International Airport. Master Sgt. Janet Bouffard is the POC for this event and can be reached at 247-5829. Volunteers are also needed to participate in the Opening Ceremonies on July 13 at the Spokane Veterans Arena. 150 uniformed volunteers are needed to carry state flags, state plaques and help assist the athletes around the track during opening ceremonies. Senior Master Sgt. Crystal White is the POC for this event and can be reached at 247-5665. The final event volunteers from Fairchild are needed for takes place July 17 at Spokane Falls Community College. This is the Track and Field event and the entire day is a military themed event hosted by Team Fairchild. The Army will also be represented and will display a Hummer and a few other heavy vehicles. Lunch will be provided for volunteers, and everyone is welcome to attend, including children. Sergeant Richardson is the POC for this event and can be reached at 247-9418. "The VA needs a total of 3,000 volunteers to make this event successful, so far they have only approximately 1,000!" Sergeant Richardson said. "Please help get the word out to all of Team Fairchild. This is a great opportunity to get involved with the community and support our own! To date we have about 85 volunteers signed up to support Team Fairchild events. All volunteers must inform the POC's that they would like to participate, and complete the VA volunteer application ASAP which can be found at the following link http://www1.va.gov/vetevent/nvwg/2009/default.cfm." For more information visit https://eim.amc.af.mil/org/92cco/wheelchair/default.aspx. There you can find more helpful information including descriptions of various jobs for the track and field events as well as a fact sheet with step by step instructions on how to complete the online volunteer application. Contact Sergeant Richardson at 247-9418 with any questions.