By Don Kirkland and Joyce Coronel
One of Tempe’s signature events that has raised big money for the Sister Cities program is undergoing substantial changes this year.
For the last 40 years, Oktoberfest has brought the community together for food, beer and fun through the hard work of volunteers. While the event will still require volunteers, the city has hired an event producer for the Oct. 7-9 festival at Tempe Town Lake.
In an email to volunteers, Paul Sheard, the longtime beer chair for Oktoberfest, stated that in addition to the hiring of an event producer, the city would also employ professional, paid bartenders for Oktoberfest.
Sheard expressed gratitude for the many hours volunteers have labored over the years to make the event a success. He also stated that there would still be a need for volunteers to serve in the areas of food, trash, kinderfest and money handling/cashiers.
David Birdsell, chair of the oversight committee for Oktoberfest, cited concerns over liability, accountability and security as the primary reasons for the change. The world has changed in the 40 years since Oktoberfest began in Tempe and that’s reflected in the way cities, schools, businesses and even places of worship conduct their affairs.
“We can’t keep doing the same things over and over,” Birdsell said. “We have to be protected more and more.”
In the past, there was no real control over the crowd, Birsdsell said. This year, those who attend Oktoberfest will pay admission and the beer will be poured by bartenders who have liability insurance. With volunteer bartenders, there was always a risk of a patron being over-served and thus a potential risk for the city.
“The whole idea is to have a good time but to also raise money,” Birdsell said. “Change is always difficult, especially when you have done something for 15 or 20 years.”
One of the perks Oktoberfest volunteers have enjoyed through the years has been the opportunity to earn points toward a trip to one of Tempe’s Sister Cities. Some volunteers, upon hearing the news of the upcoming changes, fretted that they had lost the chance to make such a trip.
“The association has kept records and actually has an amount on their financials,” Birdsell said. “They’re covered.” The point system, however, is being discontinued, he said.
Angie Thorton, volunteer coordinator for Oktoberfest, concurred. “People who have earned their trips are still going to get those trips,” Thorton said.
The Tempe Sister Cities around the globe include Skopje, Macedonia; Regensburg, Germany; Lower Hutt, New Zealand; Zhenjiang, China; Timbuktu, Mali; Beaulieu sur Mer, France; Carlow, Ireland; Cuenca, Ecuador; Cusco, Peru; and Trollhatten, Sweden.
Sheard noted in his email that the work of volunteers through the years not only allowed more than 800 high school juniors to travel to the city’s Sister Cities, it’s also enabled the program to offer humanitarian aid in places like Africa and South America.
Thorton sent an email thanking volunteers for their service and letting them know the city would be using InItLive, an online volunteer website to help coordinate efforts.
“Please be patient and know we are working as hard as we can to get the program open so you can begin signing up for the many volunteer opportunities available,” Thorton said. “We are so grateful for your dedication and enthusiasm for Oktoberfest 2016.”
Birdsell told Wrangler News that Dick Neuheisel, the longtime president of Sister Cities, agrees with the changes in Oktoberfest. Tempe hired a professional fundraiser, Evan Schaefer, to lead this year’s Oktoberfest.
