Saturday, January 9, 2010

Meeting New People

One of the best things about being a docent at the museum is the opportunities it affords to meet new and interesting people. I just did a tally and noted that during 2009, I had the pleasure to give 34 adult tours and 17 educational programs to kids of all ages. During this same period, I also met visitors from 46 of the fifty states as well as individuals from Tanzania and Vietnam. It never ceases to amaze me that people come from so far and wide to visit Astoria!

Often at the conclusion of a tour, several adults will stay behind because they want to share something from their life experience. I have found these times of listening to very rewarding and always educational. During the past year, three individuals and their stories stand out. I offer a little of their stories for your reading pleasure.

In early June, I noticed a gentleman in bright yellow spandex clothing wandering the deck of the Lightship. Experience tells me that few middle age men will appear in public wearing spandex unless they are a serious bike rider. During our conversation he told me that it had been a life long goal to ride across the United States; at the time of our meeting he was in the second day of the journey. The story would have ended there except about a month later I stumbled across his blog on the Internet. I spent the rest of the summer following the progress of his journey. I am happy to report that his goal was met when he dipped the tires of his bike in the icy water off the Maine coast just after Labor Day. Congratulations on a job well done!

Another afternoon a gentleman approached me and told me how excited he was that the museum had a model of a LST, a Navy vessel capable of delivering tanks and personnel onto the unimproved shoreline. He went on to share that during the war, many of these vessels were made in his home town. With pride, he also told me that his father was one of the engineers who designed the vessel's front ramp/door. Now every time I pass the LST model, I remember that gentleman and his father's contribution to the second World War.

My final encounter occurred in the navel history gallery one morning in September. At the tour's conclusion, a woman pointed to the picture of the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri and told me that her father was in the picture. As she proudly pointed to him, I felt as if I was an eye witness to the historic event!

Maybe this summer I will offer a tour that will focus on past visitors and how their stories contribute to the life of the museum.

10 comments:

monstev said...

Way cool post. I like this idea of meeting people and interacting with them. We have a culture that has moved away from personal contact due to all the technology we have. Many of us spend several hours a day watching TV or working in a small cube and not interacting with people. We need more of that.

Earl said...

Steve, wonderful stories and memories of people from this past year. Those types of encounters are invaluable. Thanks for sharing some of them here.

Shelby said...

oh wow! I love hearing personal stories like these.

Steve Skinner said...

Monte, I agree. When I worked as a forester frequently my assignments were working solo; not many chances for interaction with the trees.

Steve Skinner said...

Thanks Earl. Isn't amazing what we can learn when we stop talking and just listen.

Steve Skinner said...

Shelby, when I was in college I attended a lecture given by Charles Kuralt and he commented that everyone has a story. How true that is!

Pamela said...

Old MO. I got to visit her when she was docked in Bremerton.

of course I was quite young and didn't really understand her significance.

I wrote a story some time ago about a little carved man that my husband bought when he was on a Navy tour in the late 60s.

I got an Email in September (on hubbys birthday!) from one of his commanding officers. A group were writing a web page about their good will tour and had used Google to search for others writing things.

Steve Skinner said...

I also visited the Mighty MO in Bremerton in the late 1970s, she is one big ship. Several years ago they towed her to Astoria before moving her to Hawaii for the final time. Thousands of people turned out to see her, the traffic backups were incredible.

Nancy Lewis said...

Thanks for these stories. It always makes things so much more engaging when you have a personal story attached to them. Your idea for a tour would be a great way to help people make connections.

Steve Skinner said...

I agree with you 100% Nancy! That is also why I enjoy your postings, you tell one heck of a story everytime!