Congratulations to The Blanco Family - winner of the 2020 Governor's Volunteerism and Community Service Award for Outstanding Volunteer Family! Located in Fairfax Station, the Workhouse Arts Center is a vibrant and thriving visual and performing arts center which operates a multitude of programs for the community. The center relies on a strong team of dedicated volunteers to ensure their arts, education, history, and community programs run smoothly. Enter the Blanco Family! For the past 10 years, the entire family serves as an integral part of making the center a huge success in connecting the community with the arts.
The family has gone well above and beyond the average volunteer -- contributing countless hours to the organization. Everywhere you turn you can see signs of the Blancos – from mom, Caroline, serving on the board; dad, Andrew, providing his operations expertise throughout the 55-acre campus; and their children, David and Meredith, volunteering for the organization's annual haunted trail for years.
Earlier this year, the Workhouse Arts Center learned that their annual haunted attraction – which scares up 7,500 attendees annually and has become an important source of revenue for the organization – was in jeopardy. With very limited notice and resources, the Blanco Family jumped in to make sure that the event was able to continue. Caroline led the charge, chairing the event committee and marshaled resources to recruit and coordinate the approximately 125 young people who serve as scare actors on the trail. Andrew was boots on the ground to get the build done and everything in place. Caroline and Andrew together contributed a minimum of 30 hours each week, all while maintaining their day jobs! Both David and Meredith came home frequently from college to help prepare and serve during the event. As soon as the event was over and a huge success, the Blancos were scheduling a planning meeting for 2020. They are completely unstoppable!