Michigan Dahlia Society Volunteer Opportunities
Thank you for visiting the Michigan Dahlia Society Volunteer page. Running a successful non-profit organization takes a lot of work and dedication. We would love to have your help the weekend of the Dahlia Festival. We need a lot of hands for set up and clean up. If you can off a couple of hours during the set up and clean up periods, please sign up.
Dahlia Festival 2025 - September 12-14
Descriptions of Dahlia Festival Volunteer Opportunities.
Set Up:
Help set up display, event and honor's tables
Staging Support
Help Novice growers stage and label show tags
Photographer
Take pictures of the blooms that are brought to the Honor's Table. Pictures will be used to put together a presentation for the end of the year banquet.
Clerking - No Experience Required
Clerks are essential for the festival to run smoothly. Ideally there will be two clerks per judging team. Teams will be handed out at the judge and clerk meeting which starts at 10:30am sharp.
One clerk will be given a clip board with judging sheets to document number of blooms entered and the winners. A second clerk will place stickers on the winning show tags and take the vases and blooms to the honor's table. This is a great way for growers of all experience levels to learn from each other. Clerks will be able to listen and ask questions about what the judges are looking at based on the ADS standards.
Dahlia show blooms are judged against the blooms that make it to the show. They are not judged on perfection. (With the exception of a seedling bench. MDS is not hosting a seedling bench this year)
Greeting and Information Table
Help exhibitors sign in / Greet the public / Offer memberships, collect emails for information about the MDS tuber sale.
Clean Up
Any amount of time is appreciated. The more volunteers we have to help clean up, the earlier the show committee can go home.
Approximately 2:45pm MDS members will prepare for the public bloom giveaway.
Volunteers are needed dump the vases, dry them and put them away. We also will need some strong volunteers to dump large cans of water and hoist bags for wet flower foam into a garbage can.
Please reach out if you have a truck and can help transport the supplies once everything is packed up.
The show committee has been working hard to make this an amazing event. They are looking forward to seeing you at the show.
Descriptions of Dahlia Festival Volunteer Opportunities.
Set Up:
Help set up display, event and honor's tables
Staging Support
Help Novice growers stage and label show tags
Photographer
Take pictures of the blooms that are brought to the Honor's Table. Pictures will be used to put together a presentation for the end of the year banquet.
Clerking - No Experience Required
Clerks are essential for the festival to run smoothly. Ideally there will be two clerks per judging team. Teams will be handed out at the judge and clerk meeting which starts at 10:30am sharp.
One clerk will be given a clip board with judging sheets to document number of blooms entered and the winners. A second clerk will place stickers on the winning show tags and take the vases and blooms to the honor's table. This is a great way for growers of all experience levels to learn from each other. Clerks will be able to listen and ask questions about what the judges are looking at based on the ADS standards.
Dahlia show blooms are judged against the blooms that make it to the show. They are not judged on perfection. (With the exception of a seedling bench. MDS is not hosting a seedling bench this year)
Greeting and Information Table
Help exhibitors sign in / Greet the public / Offer memberships, collect emails for information about the MDS tuber sale.
Clean Up
Any amount of time is appreciated. The more volunteers we have to help clean up, the earlier the show committee can go home.
Approximately 2:45pm MDS members will prepare for the public bloom giveaway.
Volunteers are needed dump the vases, dry them and put them away. We also will need some strong volunteers to dump large cans of water and hoist bags for wet flower foam into a garbage can.
Please reach out if you have a truck and can help transport the supplies once everything is packed up.
The show committee has been working hard to make this an amazing event. They are looking forward to seeing you at the show.
Cut Dahlias a fundraiser for the club
The cut flower committee is hoping you will donate your extra blooms to Michigan Dahlia Society for the Dahlia Festival. Please bring your dahlia blooms to the show. MDS will be putting small bouquets together to sell during the festival. Appreciated, but not required, please remove all leaves and ideally the stems are 12" or longer. Thank you in advance for your support.
The cut flower committee is hoping you will donate your extra blooms to Michigan Dahlia Society for the Dahlia Festival. Please bring your dahlia blooms to the show. MDS will be putting small bouquets together to sell during the festival. Appreciated, but not required, please remove all leaves and ideally the stems are 12" or longer. Thank you in advance for your support.
Leadership Positions
Are you ready to step into a leadership role? If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for:
President
Secretary
Membership Chair
2026 Dahlia Festival Chair or Co-Chair
Nominations are due by October 17, 2025
Are you ready to step into a leadership role? If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else for:
President
Secretary
Membership Chair
2026 Dahlia Festival Chair or Co-Chair
Nominations are due by October 17, 2025
October 18, 2025 - Michigan Dahlia Society Board Meeting. Location and Time coming soon
