a VoNCon volunteer spotlight
Every community has people who make it what it is. Chris Rees is one of ours. A dedicated volunteer and passionate gamer, Chris has been a familiar face at VoNCon's monthly events - and we think it's time to celebrate that!
Meet Chris: bringing laughter and fun to our sessions
Chris Rees has been with the VoNCon team since the beginning. She is a familiar and much loved presence at our monthly events, bringing laughter and fun into every game played.
She has organised and hosted regular fundraising events that encourage everyone to have fun outside of our regular gaming sessions. She has had everyone singing in musical bingo to realising just how much we don't know in pub quizzes.
We're incredibly proud to shine a spotlight on her contributions to VoNCon!
Chris' volunteering journey
We asked Chris a few questions about her time volunteering with VoNCon:
What have you enjoyed most about your time volunteering?
"My personal enjoyment comes from seeing others have fun. I'd like to think I'm good company, and bringing my obviously sparkling personality (insert eye roll here) to the table seems to help make others feel that little bit brighter."
Why did you decide to volunteer?
"I came on board to help out a fellow gamer as I believe the social aspect of board gaming to be increasingly important in the modern days of disconnection."
What keeps Chris coming back?
"I know what loneliness feels like, so working in some small way to alleviate that for others is what I get out of helping. In addition, I get to hang out with a cool gang of players who really know their games and have the patience to teach new ones I've not yet come across."
Spreading the spirit of VoNCon
Chris' impact on the board gaming community has spread further than any of us anticipated at the start.
Do you have any stories you could share about your time volunteering?
"VoNCon inspired me to set up my own Swansea-based board games club. Without them, I wouldn't have had the confidence or experience to even try."
What does Chris say to anyone thinking about volunteering?
"Volunteering takes a lot of patience, empathy and understanding but in return it provides a sense of purpose and belonging. There is no 'right way' to help out, you just do what you can and learn what you're capable of as you go. You make the difference, even if it's not always immediately apparent"