Airlie Sinclair

Since April, I've been getting to know more of the volunteers who keep this place ticking. What gets me is how naturally everyone just pitches in – flexible, collaborative, zero drama.

We do a lot of talking around here and needed a creative outlet, so in October we agreed to make a playlist together. Here we are: 40 tracks that became the perfect seaside soundtrack. Julia Jacklin to Fela Kuti. Talking Heads to King Stingray. Eclectic as the crew who chose them.

This playlist is one more example of how volunteers will pitch in to create experiences. At our December catch-up, someone said what a gift it is to be invited to contribute to something meaningful. Someone else tallied up eight years here and simply said: "What a great bunch of people." More folks are around the station these days, and whilst no one's surprised by how warm everyone is, they're still delighted by it.

Volunteers receive a lot of love at the station, thanks to all the staff and the board. Dave Houchin rocks up to every meeting to keep us in the loop with station plans. Bec Hornsby helps grow broadcast skills. Kate Blanchfield matches people with opportunities to pitch in. Staff factor volunteers into everything they do. And the breadth of what volunteers do is staggering.

Archiving photos and audio, cleaning storerooms, sorting the CD library, working graveyards and summer fills, managing live-to-airs, working doors and bars at events, editing podcasts, photographing gigs, panelling, doing outside broadcasts, managing station tours, hosting shows. Community radio runs on the attention paid to lots of tiny moments. On everyone who shows up, week after week. As you learn new tasks, more opportunities open up – on and off air. It takes time and trust, but watching people and relationships grow is pretty special.

So as you listen to this summer playlist – whether you're at the beach, in the backyard, or just surviving another scorcher – know that it's creativity and community, and another of the countless small acts that make Triple R what it is.

Thanks to every volunteer. You are Triple R.

Here's to summer, and to another year of making radio together.

Vanessa
Volunteers' Representative