Just out of college and back in my theater days I had the opportunity—or should I say "chance"—to portray Chance Wayne in the Tennessee Williams play Sweet Bird of Youth. I was too young for the role, but like Princess Kosmonopolis in the play, my director was also drawn to youth, and so I got the part. I even managed to give a decent, if not inspired, performance—even when costumed in a certain pair of pajama bottoms that stage lights managed to render all but invisible. My director loved them, of course—as did many in the audience, now that I think about it.

Sweet Bird of Youth is perhaps not the great playwright’s finest work but it does have its moments, and like all of his work, it contains some beautiful, larger than life, lyrical writing. The play is about the aging process, to oversimplify it somewhat. It’s about the loss of innocence and the swift passage of youth. Though I don’t act anymore, a part of me wishes I could do that role again—with all I know now—but now, of course, I’m too old—for the part, that is.

I will say, however, my 50s feel a lot younger than I perceived them to be when I was a teenager. Would I be twenty again if the great-fairy-in-the-sky "poofed" me back in time? No, I don’t think so—especially if I had to learn everything all over again. Life is about the process—it has a beginning, a middle, and an end and I’ve done the beginning and an undetermined amount of the middle. I don’t want to start all over again. Besides, like everything our "boomer" generation seems to do, we’re aging with energy and spirit—I know a whole lot of very hip 60/70-somethings.

The issue that actually got me started on the subject of youth, however, has to do with the nature of our resort community. A great many of the volunteers who serve, not only CAMP Rehoboth, but the many other organizations in the area, are over the age of 50 and have either retired to our area or are in the process of turning their lives in this direction. Finding ways to engage a younger crowd in volunteer work in a resort community is not always an easy thing to do—and my own experience tells me why.

The first time Steve and I came to Rehoboth (with our friend Joe McMahon, if anybody is keeping track of the details), I was 24 years old and I think I can emphatically state that community work was, at that time, the very last thing on my mind. We first came to this beach community for the same reason that most people do—"hot fun in the summertime," to quote the fabulous Sly and the Family Stone.

Back then—the time was 1980—there was, as yet, only a faint hint in the air of the devastation yet to come as the AIDS virus began its horrific sweep through our community. Back then, we came to the beach to escape, to play, to dance, and to relax. Not only were we young, but being gay was still exhilarating, outrageous, and, well…gay. Over the next decade life changed dramatically, and even though I think that we kept the fun going as long as we could, it took on a desperate edge and we crossed that invisible line when "Neverland" starts to be just that. In short, we grew up.

AIDS was the catalyst for us, but at some point in every life, a turning point is reached; a point when the "sweet bird of youth" is set free—or at least retired to a place of safety deep inside the heart and soul. Perhaps that turning point is the result of a particular life changing incident or event, or maybe it’s just the natural maturing cycle. Whatever the reason, there comes a time when each of us begins to see the world around us and not just ourselves.

Over the years that CAMP Rehoboth has been in existence, we’ve been blessed with amazing volunteers—volunteers who are the foundation of our success. Last spring when we invited volunteers to the Volunteer Appreciation Party at Cloud 9, over 400 invitations were issued. We have no shortage of volunteers but I have been thinking of late, how to go about engaging younger volunteers in community work.

Take my décor crew, for instance. The amazing structures and big decorations at Sundance and Love, the Black and White Ball, and even the smaller scale things we do for the Beebe Hospital Thanksgiving Ball have been accomplished under the direction of, in many cases, the same people—year after year. People like Harvey Sharpe, Joe Mirabella, Keith Neale, Authur Dochterman, Cathin Bishop, Laura Simon, Allen Jarmon and Ward Ellinger to name a few. I know I’ll get in trouble for this—but none of us are getting any younger, as the saying goes. The last few years, we’ve joked about each of us finding someone younger to work with us—someone to learn what we do, someone committed to taking over a little of the responsibility. When the conversations first started, we said "20-somethings"—now we say "under 40."

Joking aside, however, finding volunteers at any age who are passionate and committed to long-term goals is important to organizations like ours—and we’re always aware of the fine line that exists between dedication and burn-out.

Someday (probably sooner that I care to admit), I’ll reach a point when I can no longer race up and down ladders, or dangle from the ceilings of the convention center, the Atlantic Sands, or Epworth Church. Before that day comes, we’ll need volunteers willing to step into our shoes. Even harder, I suspect, will be the day we take off those shoes and hand them over to someone else—but that’s an issue for another time.

My experience in this resort community that has become such an important part of our lives helps me to trust that when the time comes for the "changing of the guard," there will be others ready and waiting in the wings. In all likelihood they too will have partied here in there younger days. They too will have a history with our town. And perhaps, unlike our generation, they will have come-out and grown up with organizations like CAMP Rehoboth making the road a little easier to see.

In my heart that "sweet bird of youth" is still beating its wings, even though my body doesn’t always agree—especially after big events like Love. Though I’d love to add some younger members to our design and décor teams, we welcome all ages. I promise—it will never be boring.

Thank you to all the CAMP Rehoboth Community Center Volunteers for the period of June 14—June 28.

Tony Burns
Coca de Silveira
Robert Delanoce
Chuck Flanagan
Joan Glass
Jackie Goff
John Hammett
Spencer Kingswell
Myra Kramer
Charlie Lee
Chris Ligato
Jon McDonough
Stan Mills
Jeff Moore
Michael Muller
Chuck Oakes
Judy Roberts
Chris Sampson
Guillermo Silveira
Evie Simmons
Rich Snell
Jeff Stone
Barb Thompson

Rainbow Thumb Club (CAMP Court-yard volunteers)

Matt Carey
Rob Freeman
Tony Ghigi
Steve Hoult
Scott McHugh
Shawn Noel
Bud Palmer
Ken Reilly
Tom White