In praise of volunteers

Evelyn C. McDonald
Arts & Culture Reporter
April 13, 2017 1:00 a.m.

In an earlier article, I said if you were looking for someone to lead an auction, you couldn’t do better than Aaron Bean. If you are looking for someone to be mistress of ceremonies, you couldn’t do better than Thea Seagraves. She led the awards ceremony at the Amelia Island Museum of History volunteer party last week. Thea is dramatic, funny and engaging – all traits we love in an emcee. She is the Volunteer Coordinator for the museum.

That night at the Amelia Musical Playhouse, the museum honored the many volunteers so essential to its programs. I was happy to be one of them, though very much a bit player. I had no idea that there were so many types of volunteers needed. There are greeters, those people who sit at the front desk to answer questions and introduce visitors to the museum. There are also greeters who sit at the desk in the Maritime museum on the waterfront.

There are docents who take visitor groups around the museum and explain the various artifacts and displays. There are tour guides who perform the same function walking the streets of Fernandina. Some volunteers act as dramatic interpreters taking on the role of various historical personages for the enjoyment and edification of their audiences.

There are volunteers who work in the museum’s library and archives, cataloguing the many artifacts – from paper to photos to pieces of pottery. Volunteer assistants in the office help keep things running smoothly. Some volunteers help organize the museum functions, some assist in fundraising, and others serve on the museum’s board of directors. Many of these volunteer positions require that the volunteers attend training. They also require a commitment to be there at every shift they are assigned to.

It may not sound like much but think of it this way. Looking at the hours the museum is open, greeters and docent tours add up to nearly 1450 hours. If the museum had to pay even minimum wage for those hours, over $10,000 would be taken away from museum programs. Volunteer support allows the museum to use that money for exhibits and programs to the benefit of us all. The museum staff, in turn, honors the volunteers with events such as last week’s party. Good food, wine and fellowship go a long way to making volunteers feel appreciated.
The next time you take friends on a tour of the museum or one of the town tours take time to express your appreciation to the volunteer who has made it possible. Better yet, consider becoming a member of the museum. Check www.ameliamuseum.org

Evelyn McDonald moved to Fernandina Beach from the Maryland suburbs of Washington, D.C. in 2006. She is a chair of Arts & Culture Nassau, a city commission charged with support of the arts in Nassau County. She serves on FSCJ’s Curriculum Committee for the Center for Lifelong Learning. She is also the chair of the Dean’s Council for the Carpenter Library at the UNF. Ms. McDonald has MS in Technology Management from the University of Maryland’s University College and a BA in Spanish from the University of Michigan.