The Art Gallery very nearly collapsed when its annual general meeting couldn’t be held because too few people turned up. A rescheduled meeting was quorate after an intense lobbying effort.

And the Glen Innes Show’s Ladies Auxiliary is now seeking people.

Some theories are mooted: an ageing population means that a generation who expect to volunteer is passing. One  charity shop in the town, for example, has volunteers who are in their 80s and 90s.

To have a  strong volunteer economy, a town needs enough people with free time but not so many who are getting too old to do demanding unpaid work.

Are times changing so women don’t assume they’ll volunteer for special committees?

It’s not a problem unique to Glen Innes. Recently, the Uralla Show was cancelled after 143 years. The show president said: “The reason for cancelling the show rests entirely on the dwindling number of key volunteers needed to make the show happen.”

Those who do volunteer say it’s well worthwhile. Helen Grant helps the Red Cross in Deepwater. She said: “A little bit of volunteering helps when you are new to an area.”

She felt it helped you get to know the people around you in a community.