Selfridge Air Show in need of volunteers

The skies over Selfridge Air National Guard Base will be filled with impressive acts plus an appearance by the Blue Angels on the first weekend in September.

The biannual show may be months away, but volunteer coordinator Michelle Parker of Chesterfield Township is busy sending out applications trying to line up help for the Sept. 6-7 Selfridge Open House and Air Show.

Parking and admission are free to the public.

“This is the first time I’ve done the air show, and we need 700 volunteers for it and the Blue Angels will be coming in, too,” Parker said.

The theme for the 2014 show is Women in Aviation and a majority of the performers will be women, including a skydiving team from Michigan.

Volunteer opportunities are along the lines of security for the VIP areas, the welcome section, lost and found, kid zone, plus the veteran and handicap areas. Parker said volunteers will keep track of who is entering the areas, making sure they have the proper wrist bands and perhaps keeping things picked up in the section where they are working.

Volunteers will all have matching shirts for identification, and a huge group will make up the parking crew, which will require 200 to 300 people.

The working hours will depend on the position, the gates will open at 8 a.m. and the show will conclude at 5 p.m. Parker would prefer to have volunteers commit to a full day but will work with those who may have only half a day to give.

“It’s a great view of the show for anybody that’s a fan of the planes,” Parker said.

An estimated 150,000 to 200,000 people will attend the show over the two-day period.

There will be concessions, and the base will provide a shuttle bus to the nearby air museum for people who want to check that out, Parker added.

For the first time, the air show will be offering some premier seating and tickets for those paid seats will be on sale in mid-June. The unique opportunity will give air show enthusiasts a close up view from tents setup right along the flight line.

Thomas Frosh, of native of Fraser, is the current commander of the Blue Angels, and Parker said he is very excited to bring the show to his hometown.

“He said he wants this to be the best show ever in the U.S. and he’ll have lots of family and friends watching him perform that weekend,” she said.

For those who can’t volunteer for the show, Parker encourages them to come out and support it anyway while seeing lots of things on the base.

“This is just a great event to have people come out and see the base because there are a lot of local people who have never been on it,” Parker said.

To find out more about volunteering for the air show visit their website at selfridgeopenhouse.com or on Facebook at the 2014 Open House and Air Show Volunteers page. For an application to volunteer, contact Parker at michelle@selfridgeopenhouse.com.

Source:  http://www.macombdaily.com