CAO 2019 Fall Work Party
As the lazy days of summer fly past, planning is in full swing for our fall events. One of those events is the fall work party at the CAO. This year’s fall work party takes place a little earlier in the season on the weekend of September 13-15.
What is a work party you may ask? Well, it is a weekend where volunteers gather at the Carr Astronomical Observatory, or CAO as we call it, to prepare the house and grounds for the coming winter. Yes, I know, hard to think about cold and snow when it is so warm out! Members register on line, all fees are waived for the entire weekend, and participate in completing the jobs that are necessary to ready the property for winter. Jobs such as putting up the storm windows, preparing the lawn mowers, fixing any damaged items, preparing the observatories and telescopes for the cold weather to come etc.
Now you may say, I don’t have any useful skills, well, we can help you learn how to do the jobs required and there is always something you should be able to handle. One of our sons credits another member with teaching him how to ready a motor for the winter. So why not register, learn something new and lend a hand.
You will note these events are labelled as “party” and that is because while the work may be hard, you do have fun working along side your fellow members. It is a wonderful way to increase your skills and make new friends or reconnect with old friends. If we are lucky, you can even observe the dark skies at the CAO weather permitting. But don’t worry, if the skies don’t cooperate, we will be watching a movie projected on the wall on what we call our monoplex!
All food and non-alcoholic drinks from Saturday breakfast to Sunday lunch are cooked and provided for you as a way of thanks and for those of you who stay to finish any loose ends on Sunday morning and help with the final house clean up, you will be treated to a smorgasbord of leftovers for lunch. The food is always well received and plentiful.
So why not consider being one of the 20 volunteers the weekend of September 13-15 and book on line, even if you are not staying overnight, at https://rascto.ca/content/cao-bookings-form (you will need your RASC ID and password) and indicate in the comments section that you are volunteering at the fall work party. I know you won’t be disappointed you came!
Grace
CAO committee member