While the elite athletes will be in the limelight this weekend, behind the scenes, making sure everything runs smoothly, are scores of volunteers putting in hundreds of volunteer hours, including a number of students from the Berkeley Institute's chapter of the Future Business Leaders of Bermuda, Inc.For several years now, the students have saved international Race Weekend organisers many hours of labour by stuffing the goodie bags handed out to participants during race registration at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess.The number of bags averages 800, though one year, students stuffed about 1,200 bags in an evening. Work which would have carried race organisers into the wee hours of the morning, enthusiastic student volunteers complete in three hours after school.So impressed were the organisers the first year the students helped out, they begged advisor Joann Adams to ensure the students would be back again the following year.Race Secretary Pam Shailer noted: “Berkeley Institute students have been doing this for the last four or five years, and the Bermuda Track and Field Association and the Organising Committee is extremely grateful for their help.”Sarina Correia, a Senior 3 student who will be back again to help this year, explained that about ten students from Berkeley turn up at the Fairmont Hamilton Princess on the Thursday before the race.“We put health and nutrition bars and other goodies in bags for race participants,” she said. “We go right after school for about three hours.”Her assessment of the effort was positive: “It was really nice talking to the other helpers. Helping out just felt good because the organisers appreciated us helping.”FBLB president Nathan Simmons, a Senior 4 student, explained the students' enthusiasm for the task: “When you're with people you get along well with, and people you know from school, it's fun. We'll be cracking jokes, so it doesn't seem so much like work.”The task becomes competitive, Nathan noted: “We race each other to see who can fill the most bags the quickest and come up with innovative ways to carry the bags [in order to fill them quickly].”Though most of their efforts are behind the scenes, with little opportunity to interact with the international stars, Jahkhari Woods did one year also help to hand out the bags to the runners during the Friday night registration.Another Senior 4 student who has been helping out for three years now, Paul Dyer noted that the rewards for his effort, beyond the Community Service credits required by the school, included “seeing people's faces getting gifts is a reward. It's a good feeling participating in extra curricular credits”.It is a learning experience too. Pam Shailer said: “The BTFA for its part appreciates the opportunity to show these students the work involved in staging what is effectively an international sporting event.”Shanaki Gunasinghe, who is also in the graduating class of 2011, noted that International Race Weekend is “a big event and Bermuda is being exposed to good tourism”.She added: “I am happy to serve as a helper for this event by preparing gift bags for the participants.”The Berkeley Institute has had a chapter of the Future Business Leaders of Bermuda since 1999 and has been involved in a number of volunteer initiatives, including the Dollars for Hours programme painting trash barrels for Keep Bermuda Beautiful and building blue bird boxes for the Bermuda Audubon Society.It is open to any student, “preferably someone who wants to make a difference,” noted Nathan Simmons.“It's mostly run by students,” he explained. “Mrs Adams does the organising and facilitates the programme and the students get the work done. The students suggest what community service initiatives they might like to do and then decide which ones they want to adopt.”Summing up his motives for continuing with the club, Nathan said: “I like what we do. I like Mrs Adams. It makes a better school and community, is good for resumes when applying for college, and there are events that we made happen.”