Jour De Fete Committee Seeks New Members For Key Spots

The Jour de Fete Committee is looking for volunteers to replace three members in the coming year, and finding successors to key members could determine the future of the event.

Joan Noll, Brenda Hayden and Tim Conley are “retiring” from the board.

Noll has served as treasurer for many years, and Hayden has been both the secretary and crafts chairman.

Conley joined the board earlier this decade and helped establish a relationship with a St. Louis television station to promote the event. That relationship is expected to continue, board president Jami Inman said.

“We have a good rapport with Channel 5 [KSDK-TV],” Inman said. “They’re really good to us.”

Inman is seeking three new board members who can handle the responsibilities of treasurer, secretary and — perhaps most importantly — craft vendors chairman. Hayden, a crafts vendor herself, has been the primary liaison to the dozens of craft vendors who attend the show and make Jour de Fete what it is. while Noll also has assisted her in that role.

“We will not be able to function without three people, and they have to be committed to the board and take those positions,” Inman said. “We’re going to do this Jour de Fete coming up [in August 2020] no matter what, but if no one steps up, this will be the last Jour de Fete, because Carrie [Noll] and I cannot do it [without help].”

Joan Noll and Hayden plan to assist those volunteers who take on those roles this year.

A special Jour de Fete meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, September 17, at Cafe Genevieve.

“It’s going to be specifically for people to come to find out what we need and for finding people interested in the positions,” Inman said. “We’re wanting peple to learn about what jour de Fete is and see if this going to be a good fit for them.”

She encouraged anyone interested to attend, and said people are welcome to ask questions to learn more about Jour de Fete.

See complete story in the September 4 edition of the Herald.