Okay, so we don’t actually “hire” volunteers – or pay them! – but if you’re looking to get involved in the community, have we got a role for you. Whether you have just a little time here and there, or have several hours every week, let us know what your passion is and we can find the right opportunity for you.

Serving as a docent in our Visitor Center is very rewarding and a great opportunity to meet tourists and new residents alike. Volunteering at a special event – like our upcoming 4^th of July parade – is a ton of fun. So is posting letters on the community reader board in front of city hall. And joining a standing or ad hoc committee to help plan events, raise funds, or serve as a community ambassador is a role most people relish.

Click the box to see many volunteer opportunities!

Speaking of volunteers, our neighbors who serve in elected positions on city councils and school boards are just that – volunteers. Elected this month in our area:

We appreciate the service of all our elected officials and the passion and willingness of all the candidates who volunteered to run. Thank you!

Bring your family out Saturday morning, May 27, at 9 am, to the cemetery at 3241 FM 89, Buffalo Gap, TX. No need for reservations: just show up and bond with your community and your history.

Soon you’ll have a chance to volunteer to help make Buffalo Gap even more beautiful than it already is. Donors during “Abilene Gives” contributed $2,800 for the specific purpose of staging a community-wide clean-up day this fall.

The funds will be used to rent equipment, purchase supplies, and provide the fuel needed to mow, weed-eat, trim, plant, paint, and otherwise work together on areas needing some tender loving care. To serve on a committee to help identify priorities or lead work crews, click the button below. Details and date to be announced soon!

The third annual Buffalo Run Adventure Challenge will wrap up on Saturday, June 3 starting at 1 pm, and you don’t have to enter the race to participate. The Finish Line Party & Street Dance will feature food trucks, bounce house, live music, raffles, and all kinds of fun – at no charge to attend. Shane Terrell & The Stumblers and Caleb Sutton Band will be joined by Della Rose to provide an all-star musical line up. Volunteer to bring your own chairs and coolers – and come support Camp Able and some crazy racers!

Visitors to our recent Tour of (Vacation) Homes gave a resounding YES! when asked if this event was worth repeating. Owners of 15 vacation rentals in our area volunteered to open their homes for area visitors to come look at them.

“We were thrilled to attend,” said one visitor. “Definitely worth our time meeting such delightful people who opened their cozy and charming homes to us with such hospitality. Many offered delicious goodies to eat and cold drinks.”

Another said, “The homes really showed the beauty of Buffalo Gap and all its nature.”

The only negative comment? “Not enough time to see them all!” Based on the overwhelmingly positive feedback, look for a similar tour next year.

The Chamber’s “Teach the Gap” program wrapped up this month with 140 eager 3^rd and 4^th graders from Buffalo Gap Elementary School taking a field trip to the Buffalo Gap Historic Village followed by a chuckwagon lunch at Perini Ranch Steakhouse. For some of the children, it was a first visit to both.

Grace Museum loaned special trunks full of cowboy and Indian artifacts. Volunteers taught seven different programs ranging from early communications to why cowboy hats have brims. Huge kudos to Scott Clowdus, Executive Director of the history center, for hosting the lessons and to Tom & Lisa Perini for hosting lunch.

The Chamber mission remains clear: to promote and develop the economy while preserving the quality of life in the Buffalo Gap area. While there is a plethora of thoughts on how best to accomplish any mission, I like to remember Henry Ford’s quote: “Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.”