How did you come to volunteer at the AGO?  Volunteering has always played an important part in my life as my mother was a very active volunteer during the 1950’s, 1960’s and 1970’s. Her dedication to the various community groups provided a strong direction for me to follow. Consequently, when my children were young, I enjoyed the camaraderie of volunteering for a number of groups in my neighbourhood.  After I retired, I began searching for rewarding opportunities in volunteering, different from my background in nursing, banking and school libraries. This brought me to a favourite organization, the AGO! Lesley North, an Information Guide encouraged me to join the team and I did in 2015.  

Is there a staff who mentored your path?

I was mentored by both fellow volunteers and staff. Volunteers, Lesley North, Jane Eastwood and Chloe Wittes were key in ensuring that I found my feet and Paul Ayers, former Information Guide co-ordinator, provided a superlative ongoing training program. He prepared clever and innovative newsletters and a provided a training programs that kept us all informed and excited about welcoming our visitors.

What was your most memorable experience?  

Every Friday is a memorable experience! The ambience here in the Gallery, the chance to interact with a constantly changing stream of visitors and working together with a special group of volunteers provides a treasure of experiences. One never knows how the shift is going to play out! The opportunity to be exposed to the wonderful art collection is the bonus. A win/win situation!

Thank you Carole, for your continued dedication to the AGO and our visitors 

Carole’s story concludes our 2020 Ontario Volunteer Service Award profiles. We have loved learning more about these wonderful folks in our community. And we’d like to learn more about YOU, too! Everyone has an interesting story to tell; if you’d like to share some of yours, contact Shelagh Barrington, who graciously volunteered to write these posts, and many of the other profiles you see on the blog. You can reach Shelagh at [email protected]