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By Debbie Young, Director of Volunteer Services
Did you know that you can volunteer at the museum? We have adult and family volunteers who share their time and talent with us in almost every department in myriad ways. We have volunteers who run the Carousel, help to clean and prepare bones in the Paleo Lab, interpret and facilitate activities in our galleries, help with special events like our free First Thursdays, work outside with our landscaping, work inside in our Facilities department, assist with the Preschool classes, carry trays for harried parents in our food court, help third grade students understand more about Science in our CSI program, and the list goes on.
In 2009 (numbers are not yet available for 2011) adults, families, corporate employee volunteers, interns, the museum’s Women’s Guild and Board of Trustees members contributed 73,197 hours with a contributed value of $1,482, 239.00. In 2010, we celebrated a volunteer’s lifetime achievement of 25 years volunteering with the museum and over 5,000 hours. We also celebrated the Guild’s most successful Haunted House in which the Guild members volunteered all of their time to make this yearly event the best ever.
Our volunteers are a diverse representation of generations, ethnicities, backgrounds and skills. We have family volunteer members who are only 8 years old. We also have the nation’s longest continuous serving Boy Scout, Richard Ross, who has been a scout for 80 years and still volunteers for the museum at the age of 92.
What we don’t have is you! Consider contributing your time and talent to the world’s largest and best Children’s Museum.
