Village News

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are in the process of hosting tryouts for their team. The rookies arrived last week and the veterans joined them on Sunday. There are a lot more players trying out for the team than will be selected to stay. The team will play two preseason games to complete their tryouts and training. Then the real season begins.

At Mennonite Heritage Village (MHV) we don’t have a preseason or training camp where all prospective staff and volunteers are assessed “in action” and then only some are invited to stay. However we usually do have a lot of applicants vying for the few paid jobs we have to offer.

For our 2017 season, we have invited three rookies to join our staff, who will become well acquainted with many of our volunteers over the summer. Kayla Berg will be our Education Program Coordinator. She and Alanna Donohoe, our Education Program Assistant, will organize and administer our Education Program during the summer months. They will host thousands of students coming to MHV on school field trips, recruit and resource the volunteers who faithfully come to deliver this program, host daycare groups, and run the Pioneer Day Camps in July and August.

The third team member to join us is Tamara Unrau, who will serve as our Program Assistant. As the “right hand” for our Program Director, Anne Toews, she will assist with preparing for festival events and calling volunteers to invite participation at various levels. Our volunteers can expect to hear pleasant and enthusiastic approaches from all three of these rookies at some point this summer.

While many people typically apply for our paid jobs, there are even more people who happily volunteer in many and various roles we have at MHV. Two areas require the largest number of volunteers. The Education Program has already been mentioned. This is a great opportunity for anyone who enjoys interacting with children. We need volunteers to explain what life was like in a one-room school, help with a craft or schnetje-baking, assist with horse-drawn or tractor-drawn wagon rides, tell a story of what is was like to spend a winter living in a Semlin, and other similar roles. This is normally a two to three-hour shift and usually ends around noon.

The other major volunteer opportunity is for our festival days, including Canada Day, Pioneer Days, and Fall on the Farm. Each day has about 100 volunteer shifts that need to be filled, so the opportunities (and the needs) are significant.

Additionally we need volunteers to work on carpentry projects, operate the old printing press, do demonstrations in the Blacksmith Shop, cut grass, and restore old vehicles.

There is no need to wait for one of our pleasant staff to invite you. Anyone looking for a volunteer opportunity should feel free to let us know by calling 204-326-9661. Our volunteers have the joy of a fulfilling role in an important community initiative and are also eligible to receive a 50% discount coupon for lunch in the Livery Barn Restaurant on the day they are volunteering. MHV is a great place to volunteer.