My experience as a docent
For a high school senior interested in history, the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation was an ideal place to learn more about the preservation of our shared heritage. I had always been unsure about what a preservation/history oriented career would involve outside of teaching. By the time my tenure as a volunteer had finished, not only did I learn about my subject matter, but I had gained professional experience in a real world environment. I met and spoke with community organizers, preservationists, historians, and history professors who all shared their viewpoints and experiences with me. As a result, I’ve become more confident about what I can look forward to in a career in historical studies and preservation.
As a volunteer, my role was docent and presenter at Historic Hawai‘i Foundation’s public event, “Stroll Back in Time”, a historic open house held at Dillingham Ranch in Waialua, O‘ahu on May 11. My duties prior to the event involved performing research about the Dillingham family, and creating a script derived from my research. On the day of the event I presented that information to the guests.
The extensive planning, collaboration, and research was made easy by the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation leadership. Every step of the way they provided advice, resources, and guidelines for me to ponder. I never once felt lost or overwhelmed by my docent duties. The culmination of this work at the Dillingham Ranch event was an experience akin to taking a trip back through time with great food, scenery, and people to accompany me.
It goes without saying that the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation is run by proactive and capable organizers who are volunteer-friendly and supportive. The workplace environment is professional, cooperative, and always open to new ideas. I don’t recall a single time during my experience when I felt marginalized or ignored for being the youngest/most-inexperienced member of the team. Everyone involved with the organization shared the same passion for history and preservation as I did. It was an incredible experience to meet and interact with Historic Hawai‘i Foundation staff, committee members, other volunteers and HHF members over the course of my volunteer work and I highly recommend it to anyone interested in historical preservation.
Cole Okuno, a senior at Punahou School in Honolulu, chose historic preservation for his Senior Capstone Project and volunteered with Historic Hawai‘i Foundation in April and May of 2019. During this time he experienced a full range of activities meeting with staff, attending a Programs Committee meeting, conducting research in the HHF library and working independently culminating in his presentation as a volunteer docent at our May 11th event at Dillingham Ranch.