With 119 days left until an estimated 30,000 people descend on Palo Alto for the 2009 Summer National Senior Games, organizers are looking for volunteers. A lot of them.

At least one local company and the City of Palo Alto have committed to providing one quarter of the 4,000 volunteers the Games organizers say they'll need to keep the games running smoothly.

Intel Corporation has committed to providing 1,000 people, and the Palo Alto Parks and Recreation Commission will help find another 250, according to Anne Cribbs, president and CEO of the local organizing committee for Games, arguably the largest senior multi-sport event in the country and perhaps in the world, she said.

Also known as the Senior Olympics, the event will take place Aug. 1 to 15, with the ceremonial lighting of the cauldron taking place at Palo Alto City Hall. More than 12,500 athletes will compete, with many expected to set new records, she said.

"We need 4,000 volunteers for 9,000 shifts and want each volunteer to take two shifts if not more, if they can. They are all really cool jobs," she added.

Volunteers have the opportunity to see and help in any number of sports. They can time a swimming meet, rake a high-jump pit, shag a tennis ball, pour wine at a wine tasting, network computers, escort Olympians, monitor the torch-relay course, distribute goodie bags -- and even get a special seat in the grandstand as a fan — cheering for athletes, she said.

Cribbs doesn't know yet if the economy will put a crimp in the number of athletes who attend, but so far the numbers seem at par with the previous event in Louisville, Ky., she said.

"I'm a little surprised that hotel registration, which we track very closely, is running on par with two and four years ago," she said. She doesn't anticipate fewer spectators, since all events are free. "That's one thing we want to stress. In this economy, free is good," Cribbs said.

But the sagging economy could be a boon for the volunteer effort.

"We have had great success with interns. Many can't find jobs in PR, media and communications," she said.

She anticipates more people might also volunteer. "People are looking for fun, meaningful things to do," she said.

Intel's volunteer program, Intel Involve, provided technical assistance at the Olympic-track and field trials in Sacramento, including help with electronic score pads and radio-frequency-identification technology, said Mark Pettinger, Intel spokesman.

Exactly what role volunteers will play at the Senior Games hasn't yet been determined, he said. But the company's volunteer program offers a website and database. Last year, employees exceeded a company goal to provide a million volunteer hours, he said.

The Senior Games could benefit from a volunteer-matching-grant program as well. For every 20 hours of volunteering an employee does, the Intel Foundation pledges $200 to the benefiting nonprofit or another organization of the volunteer's choice, he said.

Palo Alto Parks and Recreation commissioners took up a challenge from Cribbs in February to recruit 250 volunteers, Commissioner Pat Markevitch said.

"We're excited. I've been speaking at PTA meetings and with any group I'm associated with — even the West Bay Opera," she said.

The games offer the community a good venue for reaching out to the seniors and to get old and young people interacting with each other, she said.

Bonnie Luftig, volunteer director for the Games' local organizing committee, said she's been reaching out to colleges and schools, hoping to engage students at the Palo Alto Unified School District before the school year is out.

"We have a list of opportunities for minors," she said.

To engage youth, Senior Games has even set up a Facebook page, and Luftig sent out postcards to San Francisco State and San Jose State universities, she said.

Rob De Geus, division manager of recreation and golf for the city, said he has been trying to get youth involved through the Palo Alto Youth Council, Youth Community Services and the YMCA.

"We're really reaching out to every group. One of my goals is to get the community motivated to be healthy. As people volunteer and see how athletic these people over 50 and older are, I hope it will inspire them," he said.

Avenidas Senior Center plans to help recruit volunteers for an exhibit booth and for the games, according to spokeswoman Kari Martell. "I think it will be a perfect fit with our (programs) of aging positively," she said.

Markevitch agreed.

"It's a huge opportunity for showing positive role models," she said.

Markevitch said she still needs to go on the Games website, www.2009SeniorGames.org, to sign up herself. But she laughed when asked about her own athletic activities.

"I like to walk. My best sport was football, and since I'm a girl, I can't play. I tried to play with the boys, but when they saw how I threw I don't think they wanted to play with me," she said.