Volunteers Wear Many Hats - Featuring Katelyn Hageman
May 5, 2020
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If you've ever served food in a soup kitchen, hosted a booth at a holiday fundraising event, or directed guests to the banquet hall of an appreciation dinner, then you know that volunteering can keep you busy with a multitude of tasks.
Part of running a nonprofit means depending on the generosity of donors, stakeholders, and volunteers to help with everyday operating work, events, and programs. Today we're spotlighting Kateyln Hageman, one of our passionate volunteers whose work may vary from day to day, but whose help is always appreciated.
Katelyn Hageman
Way back in the days of sixth grade, Katelyn Hageman took her first field trip to the Museum of World Treasures.
“Dr. Jon (Kardatzke, one of the founders of the Museum,) gave the tour. I remember him explaining the Aaron Burr-Alexander Hamilton duel with guns that were less than accurate,” Katelyn said, fondly. “I had so much fun hearing his stories and seeing the mummies.”
Katelyn began her journey into the world of history as an “Egyptology nerd” when she was first introduced to Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome in school, she said. She built sugar cube pyramids, drew pharaohs with chalk, and discovered fascinating Egyptian conceptions of life and the afterlife.
“I was reading more of the Old Testament while attending church activities, and I realized that the Egyptians and Hebrew people existed congruently,” Katelyn said. “I dove into several books and online articles, and once I discovered biblical archaeology, I was hooked.”
During her junior year of high school, Katelyn knew that if she was serious about pursuing an archeology or museum-related career, she should find an opportunity to gain experience. She sent an email, completed an interview, became a volunteer, and eventually started interning for the Museum of World Treasures.
“As a volunteer, I wore many hats,” she said.
She worked as a tour guide for student tours, wrote signage, handled and researched artifacts, helped develop some children’s activities in the education department, and assisted with Museum fundraisers and events, to name a few of her roles.
“As an intern, I researched and catalogued Egyptian artifacts for future redesign of the exhibit," she said. "I also researched and wrote signage for the Korean and Vietnam exhibit and worked with a fellow intern to create a traveling library exhibit and installed it into the first library location."
Katelyn’s most heartfelt memory while at the Museum took place as she was chatting with three men from the former Maajat Empire.
“A few of the Museum’s Buddhism/Hinduism artifacts in the Museum are from this area, and I was able to show the three men some artifacts from their motherland,” she said. “They were beyond ecstatic because they don't have museums of historical artifacts in their country back home. I told them a few facts about our collection and got to have a wonderful conversation with them about their country. They eagerly asked if we could take a photo together and happily, I did. It was so touching to reach out to someone with their own history.”
There are several lessons Katelyn has learned from being a Museum volunteer, she said. Her top three takeaways are:
- Don’t be afraid to ask questions in order to learn
- People are eager to learn from other people, not from text
- Take initiative — see a need and meet it
“I want people to be able to access history in a consumable manner with as much accuracy as possible,” Katelyn said. “I really love working alongside a team of eclectic people, learning from each other, and creating a space for the public to come, learn, and connect with history. 10/10, would recommend volunteering with the Museum of World Treasures.”
Do you share Katelyn's love for history? Curious to see how you can get involved as a volunteer at the Museum of World Treasures? Click here!
(Pictured: An Egyptian-themed table displays near the Ancient Egypt exhibit for Customer Appreciation Day in 2018.)
