"This shows the community spirit we've got here and it saves the club a lot of money."
That was the verdict of work weekend organiser Paul Sparks after a total of 64 Wimbledon supporters chipped in to help spruce up the Cherry Red Records Stadium on Saturday and Sunday.
A wide variety of jobs were completed, including painting the turnstiles blue, cutting the grass outside the stadium and tidying up the car parks. The club thanks all of those volunteers for their efforts at the weekend, people of all ages combining for a great team effort during two scorching days at AFC Wimbledon.
Paul, who has been a part of the organising team for nine years, added: "We have a hardcore of 30 or so volunteers that come along every year, but 15-20 extra names have been added to the database this time around and it's great to see new faces. Whether people come along for an hour to pull up some weeds or turn up for all four days over the two work weekends, we appreciate it. This weekend shows what a great volunteer base we have at this club. Volunteers do a variety of different jobs for free throughout the year to help out and it means that more funds can go towards the playing budget."
Since 2004 when a Stadium Management Group was set-up to maintain facilities, volunteers have completed a variety of jobs inside and outside the ground with the aim of getting it ready for pre-season.
The second work weekend of the summer will be held on 30 June/1 July. If you are able to help, whether for a few hours or for a full day, please e-mail the club or ring the office on 020 8547 3528.
Look out tomorrow for a more in-depth article about the work weekend, plus extra pictures.