Volunteers have the opportunity to lead tours through Fuller Lodge and tell visitors all about Los Alamos history. Courtesy photoLAHS News:
Have you ever wanted to know the story behind the log cabin near the Memorial Rose Garden? Or have you thought it would be interesting and fun to interact with some of the visitors who come to Los Alamos from all over the world? It is! And now is your opportunity.
The Los Alamos Historical Society is offering free training in Los Alamos history for those interested in volunteering with the organization or who are curious about the
community’s history and would like to know more.
Training will begin with an introductory session at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 4, in the Community Classroom in Fuller Lodge (upstairs, west wing). Subsequent classes will occur each Wednesday at 3:30 through Nov. 8 and will include engaging discussions on Los Alamos that cover the Ancestral Pueblo people, the homestead era on the Pajarito Plateau, the Los Alamos Ranch School, the Manhattan Project, and postwar Los Alamos. There is also an emphasis on visitor engagement and customer service throughout.
Training is open to the public, registration is not required, and anyone high school age and above is encouraged to attend.
The training sessions are part of the Historical Society’s volunteer certification program in which volunteers are trained to work in the Museum Shop and the historic Hans Bethe House, become tour guides, or act as docents in the homestead-era Romero Cabin. More information on how to become a fully certified volunteer will be available at the Oct. 4 meeting.
Docents in the Los Alamos History Museum work one to four shifts a month; shifts are two or four hours. Tasks include greeting and orienting visitors, answering questions about Los Alamos history and the community, and making sales in the Museum Shop.
Hans Bethe House docents help visitors understand the community’s post-war history through the Harold Agnew Cold War Gallery. Romero Cabin docents share the
community’s homestead history with visitors. Tour guides lead visitors on 1.5-hour tours featuring a stop inside the homestead-era Romero Cabin, a visit to an Ancestral Pueblo site, and stories about the giants of 20 th century physics who were here during the Manhattan Project as well as postwar Los Alamos.
Volunteers are needed for all positions.
For more information, please call Volunteer Coordinator and Museum Shop Manager Todd Nickols at 505.695.5250 or e-mail museumshop@losalamoshistory.org.
