What started as a Facebook page with a few followers to help people during the pandemic, HelpSLO is going off-the-web and in-person to host a volunteer fair to do what was intended of the webpage: give community members a place to offer and seek resources.
Grab a cider and connect.
“Just come and talk face-to-face with somebody and see, ‘What can I do? How can I help?’ Young or old, everybody just come and learn about the community,” said Leah Wood, founder of the HelpSLO Facebook page and a professor at Cal Poly.
During the pandemic, Wood created HelpSLO, a Facebook page meant to connect struggling community members to others who could offer help. The page blew up and now has nearly 8,500 followers.
“It felt like a really good opportunity to take this off the internet and give everybody a chance to come together and do some of the helping and the learning in-person, instead of behind a screen,” said Wood.
The SLOcal Volunteer Fair is happening Sunday, October 22 from 1-4 p.m. at SLO Cider off Broad St. in San Luis Obispo. Organizations like Transitions Mental Health, the Central Coast Autism Center, Lumina Alliance, among others, will have booths at the SLOcal Volunteer Fair.
“It's a variety on purpose, so that we can learn a lot together and give people more of a sense of what is in their community and all of the ways they can help,” said Wood.
“I've been here for a long time. I moved here in 2009 and didn't know a lot of these organizations existed,” said Shawn Marchant, the marketing and events coordinator for SLO Cider. “So when I found out this was an opportunity to really give back and show people what's out there, I thought it was a no-brainer.”
Wood tells KSBY that many of the organizations at the SLOcal Volunteer Fair are looking to cross-collaborate to find out how to more effectively assist the community they serve.
“Typical Sunday” will be performing live music during the fair.
