Every year, 1 – 7 June is Volunteers’ Week – a celebration of the contribution that volunteers make across the UK. At Aberdeen Archives, Gallery & Museums (AAGM), we want to give our volunteers more than just a week so over the month of June we will be regularly sharing blogs written by some of our volunteers highlighting some of the incredible work that they do!
Our next blog is by Amy Thomson, our Volunteer Liaison Officer. Believe it or not, Amy first joined AAGM as a volunteer!
My name is Amy Thomson and I am the Volunteer Liaison Officer with Aberdeen Archives, Gallery & Museums. My job is to coordinate and support our volunteers as and when required.
I began my volunteering journey in 2014 with Aberdeen Women’s Alliance (AWA) – a small local charity whose aim is to enable Aberdeen women’s voices to be better heard. Since 2013 they’ve ran a local women’s history project that focuses on researching incredible women from Aberdeen who’ve changed the world. This is something I was eager to be a part of as I have always loved learning about history and sharing my knowledge and passion. The AWA encouraged me to do this by delivering walking tours focused on local women in history, which then led me to take part in a team researching for ‘Aberdeen’s Pioneering Women’ - a booklet published in collaboration with Aberdeen Central Library focusing on some of the incredible women from Aberdeen. I also managed to secure funding for a plaque to commemorate the local women Egyptologist, Nora Griffith, and an article I wrote about her was published in The Biographical Scottish Dictionary of Women.
Amy and Dr Rebecca Cozier with Nora Griffith plaque
In January 2021, I joined the MGS Upskilling and Celebrating Volunteering Scheme and started working towards an SVQ in Museum and Galleries Practice. The first unit I covered was ‘Plan and Implement your Professional Development in the Creative and Cultural Sector’ which involved sitting down with my colleagues and discussing what I hoped to achieve from my placement and how I might do this. I had always wanted to work in a historical environment and this unit helped me get to the root as to why that is. Through this process, I realised that I love working with people and would be best suited to a public facing role, ideally as part of the Public Programmes team.
Some highlights from my placement with AAGM include delivering a Crochet Craft workshop, giving a talk as part of WayWORD Festival 2021 and writing a piece for the Evening Express in AAGM’s weekly Our Aberdeen column. I also spent time in our museums stores to help move, assess, and prepare objects for display in Provost Skene’s House. To be able to see historical items first hand, ask questions and look them up on The Museum System or the collections website was an eye-opening experience.
Amy enjoying live music in the Cowdray Hall from Nigel Clayton and Imma Setiadi
In 2022, a role became available for a Volunteer Liaison Officer within AAGM. I felt that I had a lot to offer within this role as a volunteer myself, so I applied and was successful! The role allowed me to continue my studies and I officially gained my SVQ 3 in Museums and Galleries Practice later on that year.
In the past year, I have been involved in organising volunteers for events and exhibitions, supporting student placement opportunities, and bigger projects such as the McBey Library project. The McBey Library is a specialist reference resource at Aberdeen Art Gallery, containing roughly 15,000 titles including books, catalogues, journals and magazines donated by James McBey’s wife, Marguerite. The McBey Library volunteers are currently in the process of reviewing, sorting and re-organising the library holdings. This is a long process but our team of volunteers are making fantastic progress.
The best part of my job is being with people and that I get to work with departments across AAGM. First hand I get to see our volunteers developing their skills, indulging in their passion, and growing. I feel very privileged.
I’d recommend volunteering to everyone! It’s wonderful for you and for the community. If you enjoy art, history or culture then apply to volunteer with AAGM.
Are you interested in getting involved? Check out our Volunteering and Placements page, or contact us to be kept up to date with our latest volunteer opportunities.
