APO Midwest Alumni Association members volunteers at the forefront
The Chicago Marathon is back after a year’s pandemic-caused hiatus. There were 35,000 runners this year which is about 10,000 fewer runners than the last marathon. Despite the specter of the pandemic, the enthusiasm among the runners, the volunteers, and the spectators remained as high as in previous years.
Certainly, the enthusiasm among the Filipino volunteers from Alpha Phi Omega Midwest Alumni Association Inc. (APO Midwest) was very high. This year marked the first time in a long time that APO Midwest was assigned back at the finish line. This was the usual assignment detail of APO Midwest for many years. This is where they belong. They did not disappoint.
The brothers, sisters, and friends of APO Midwest who volunteered for this event had a great time. They all arrived pretty early in the morning to set up tables, placing empty water cups on top of the tables, mixing Gatorade powder with water, and pouring them on the empty cups. Seventy percent (70%) of the water bottles that were stacked on other tables for the runners were set up by the APO Midwest volunteers as well.
The red placard that identified the APO Midwest volunteers was in full display. Unlike in years past, the association’s name was not abbreviated. It was written in full. “Alpha Phi Omega Midwest Alumni Association Inc.” A proud moment.
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
