Lynne Mowbray |
The Port of Yamba Historical Society (Yamba Museum) is seeking new volunteers to assist at the front desk.
The popular museum is looking for keen volunteers to assist in meeting and greeting visitors, at the museum.
President of the Port of Yamba Historical Society Marea Buist said that they currently have 122 members at the moment, however only 60 are active members.
“Because we do so much here (at the museum) and are so active, generally speaking 60 is probably enough, but the problem happens when people want to travel; and we are all travellers,” Ms Buist said.
“Also when illness takes over and when family situations change for people, that means that they aren’t able to do that job and someone has to replace them and that’s the hard part at the moment, replacing them.
“Apart from the role of ‘meet and greet’ we have 25 different roles which takes in the roles of research, collection management, small maintenance jobs, gardener, doing exhibitions, catering and tour guides etc.
“We also have people who come in and talk to our community (groups) about our history as well.
“It’s also important to remember that you don’t have to know the history.
“If there are people new to the area and they think that they would like to come (and help out) here, they may be put of by thinking ‘oh gosh, I don’t know anything about the area’.
“It’s really irrelevant at first, because that’s something that you learn as you go along and even if you’ve been here for 20 years, you still don’t know everything.
“Something else that I’ve found is that people who have been working and then retire, they really are looking for something to fill that space in their lives.
“So when they come here, this is treated as a work place and so for them it’s like coming to work again – but it’s something that they can enjoy doing – it’s not like a job where you are under pressure.
“At the end of the day you can walk away with a really good feeling inside that you have actually given back and contributed to the community in which you live,” she said.
For more information contact the Yamba Museum, River Street, Yamba (beside the Yamba Golf Course). Ph: 6646 1399 or email: yambamuseumnsw@gmail.com
Long time Yamba Museum volunteer Keith Redman said that he has been volunteering for the last 18 years.
“I enjoy volunteering,” Keith said.
“It’s a feeling of doing something within the community; a sense of giving back to the community.
“My wife Yvonne helps out with the catering when we have bus tours coming through and I work on the front desk greeting people as they arrive, as well as working as a (museum) guide.
“I was born in Maclean and moved here when I was three – so I’m almost a fixture.
“I moved away in the middle of my life to work, but my mother and sister lived here all the time.
“My grandfather was the second policeman and the first sergeant here (in Yamba) and my father and uncle were founding members of the surf club.
“So I have a far bit of family history here.
“There are always people joining and leaving and volunteering gives you an opportunity to meet new people.
“I’d like to encourage anyone thinking of volunteering, to come in and join up and really learn behind the scenes, of what Yamba is all about,” he said.