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WI Volunteers at the Agricultural Museum By Lynn Campbell This year marks the seventh anniver- sary of the large, active Women’s in- stitute volunteer program at the Ontario Agricultural Museum in Milton, Ontario. This year volunteers from Haiton, Wel- lington, Wentworth, and as far away as Oxford County will help the Museum in a myriad of ways. From interpreting our Mount View Women’s Institute Hall to helping with school programs and special events, Women’s Institute members make an important contribution to the Museum. The Women’s Institute Hail officially opened in 1979, the first yearof operation at the Museum. The Hat] housed a small exhibit, including display panels and photographs on the history of the Women’s institute. New kitchen facilities were built at the rear of the Hall allowing visiting Branches to hold meetings. The Hall was very busy hosting groups from all over the province for the next few years. in 1986, however, at a meeting of the Museum staff and the Women’s Institute Hail Committee, it was decided to change the interpretation of the Hall. Instead of being an exhibit building, the Hall beâ€" came part of the Museum's Crossâ€"roads Community, featuring buildings restored to a specific time period between 1910 and 1928. The Hall was structurally sound, but in order to "freeze" it in time, many changes had to be done to the interior. The interior decoration and artifacts associated with a Women's institute Community Hall in 1928 replaced the exhibits The kind of furnishings used in community hails during this period was researched and then purchased for the Mount View Hall. The interpretation of the Hall now focused on the important role of the Women‘s institutes in the community at this time. In keeping with this theme, the Hall appears as if a Demonstration Lecture course in sewing hadjust finished for the day. Demonstration lectures were an imâ€" portant education program of the Women's institute at this time. in- augurated in 1911, these two-week lec- ture courses were held in many comâ€" munities across the province for a miniâ€" mal fee of 7.5 cents per person. instrucâ€" tors, hired by the Department of Agriculâ€" ture, taught courses in sewing, first aid, cooking or millinery. in 1928 alone over 5,000 rural Ontario women took these courses, a point stressed in the interpreta- tion of the Hall. in 1985 the Museum and the Women's institute Hail Committee decided to ex- periment with a volunteer program to staff the Hall on special event weekends. in the first year 20 volunteers worked over 180 hours on special event weekends. The program was a decided success and continued to expand. Last year over 60 volunteers worked almost 700 hours! Now volunteers not only staff the Hall, they work on special school programs, act as hostesses for special events, and offer our visitors a taste of Le pouvoir d’une rose Pictured above are just four of the many Wl volunteers at the Museum. homemade baking at some special events, the proceeds of which go to local in- stitutes. As well, Women's institute members have enthusiastically con- tributed to the Museum in other ways, such as participating in the "Country Quilt" Show. Today, Women’s institute volunteers play a vital role in the program at the Ontario Agricultural Museum by helping us educate visitors about rural life, agriculture and the Women’s in- stitute. if you would like to become a Women’s institute volunteer at the Museum, please contact your FWIO Board Director by April 15, or Dorene Collins at the Museum (PD. Box 38, Milton, Ontario, L9T 2Y3, (416)878- 8151). Each volunteer is required to at- tend a oneâ€"day training period in the spring scheduled for May 5, 1992, and to commit to working at specific times. We hope you willjoin us this spring season. Lynn Campbell is a Researcher at the Ontario Agricultural Museum in Milton. continue de la page I l vous puissiez faire est de feliciter quelqu‘un en public an moment oil ii s‘y attend to moins. Au cours d'une reunion d‘un groupe d’enseignants a la retraite ou j'avais éte invitée a titre de conférencier, des roses ont été données a quatre de ieurs fideies membres. Une rose était destinée a la dame qui envoie ies cartes de rétablissement, d’anniversaire et de condoiéances. Une rose a également été remise a la responabie du comité téiéphonique, une autre a celle qui par- ticipe a toutes les reunions, et enfin une derniere rose a été donnée a un membre qui semble toujours prét a aider dans des situations difficiies, [l ne fair aucun doute que ces personnes font preuve dc leader- ship dans ieur organisation. l] y a encore bien d’autres fagons cie remercier ies gens, par exempie, en décemant des cer- tificats humoristiques, en donnant un colâ€" lage-maison, une rosette crochetée ou des rubans fait de papier de bricolage. Ce sont la des moyens peu cofiteux de faire un compliment. ll existe de nombreuses fagons, a la fois simples et économiques, de motiver ies membres de votre organisation et de les encourager a dc’montrer des qualités de chef. N'oubiiez surtout pas que les compliments ont toujours ieur plaCE! Cora Whiltington est diplomas du Programme avancé de leadership agricale. Elieporséde d2 l'expérience en travail social 21‘ tile prt‘sente des exposés sur l 'amour- propre, sur la fag'nn d’élever des enfants positifs, sur les communications ainsi que sur le leadership organisational et personnel. Elle et son mari possédent uneferme bovine située dans le comlé de Peterborough. H dc C January. February. March 1992 ll