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NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK: Air Force Museum volunteers carry out multitude of tasks

April 24-30 is National Volunteer Week in Canada. The Comox Valley Record will be featuring articles on volunteers from throughout the community all week long.

April 24-30 is National Volunteer Week in Canada. The Comox Valley Record will be featuring articles on volunteers from throughout the community all week long.

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Founded in 1982, the Comox Air Force Museum and Heritage Air Park commemorates the role and history of 19 Wing, documenting significant moments in West Coast military aviation history.

More than 30 volunteers essentially make the service happen, donating time to welcome visitors in the gift shop, assist with research in the library or catalogue artifact collections. Others may prefer to involve themselves with restoring and working on heritage aircraft and vehicles, or to lend a hand at offsite displays or community events.

“There’s a vast amount of work that happens, as well as running the front desk and greeting the guests,” said Carol Popkin, program manager and volunteer co-ordinator of the Comox Valley Air Force Museum Association.

She said the museum contains about 10,000 items, not including documents. At the moment, about a third of the photo collection — about 12,000 pictures — has been accounted for.

Some of the volunteers have been with the museum for a couple of decades while others are new. They tend to be older adults, but the demographic has been changing. Popkin figures she brings in six new people each year. She is trying to bring in cadets and middle-age volunteers, perhaps part-timers on the base, or people who are married to a serving member.

Some volunteers work one four-hour shift a month, while others come in three days a week. Some choose to donate time at community events.

“There’s so many different reasons people volunteer,” Popkin said, noting some might be passionate about the military while others could be motivated by the social aspect. “There’s so many different interests, and so many types of people that volunteer here. It’s a really neat place to come to.

“We’re always looking for volunteers,” she added.

For more information, visit comoxairforcemuseum.ca