Volunteer Opportunities

Since 1965 when the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum opened its doors, it has boasted a large and respected corps of volunteers. Today, as in the past, volunteers remain active as a community resource, provide continuity and play an important part in maintaining this museum as a valuable community resource.

Support and Administrative Volunteers
Support volunteers work behind-the-scenes providing much needed support to various departments within the Museum. Projects and activities require direct contact with staff and can involve some type of office administrative support such as data entry, phones, filing and answering inquires. Other duties may include research, writing/editing, retail support or other activities.

Volunteers who choose to participate in this program should enjoy working in an office or retail environment, should demonstrate an interest in serving as a resource person, and must be able to commit to volunteering on a regular basis.

Special Events Volunteers
Special events volunteers assist with activities, conferences or special events hosted by the Museum. Volunteers work on an on-call basis depending on event location and time frame. Volunteers who choose to participate in this program should enjoy working with a variety of people and ages. Commitment and duties vary depending on the location of events and activities. Special events volunteers enjoy the museums special events first-hand; Antique & Classic Boat Festival, Crab Days, Big Band nights and OysterFest are examples of these fun events.

Curatorial Volunteers
The museum's library has volunteers who process donated or acquired books with the Library of Congress system, process the manuscript collection, and maintain the vertical file. Volunteers also work with the photograph collection by entering image information into a database, and support the artifact collection by processing objects into our cataloging system.

Those interested should have a strong background in database management and Word software as well as be highly organized and detail oriented.

Education Volunteers
The Education Department volunteers, known as docents, have an important role to play. Docents enhance the Museum visitors' experience by interpreting exhibits and giving guided tours. All docents participate in an ongoing training program designed to familiarize them with the Museum, its collections and exhibitions, and Chesapeake Bay history.

Interested applicants should enjoy public speaking, working with people of all ages and from various backgrounds, and should physically be able to lead a guided tour of the exhibits and grounds.

Buildings & Grounds Facilities Management Volunteers
There is an ever present need for Buildings & Grounds Facilities Management volunteers. Grounds Volunteers help to maintain the Museum's beautiful gardens through the Adopt-A-Plot program for volunteers interested in gardening. Buildings Maintenance volunteers assist staff with general maintenance items such as painting and minor repairs.

Buildings and Grounds Facilities Management require volunteers who are physically up to the chorecapable. Please be mindful of your physical condition for these volunteer positions. While we will work to make your volunteer time as pleasant as possible, please note that these positions will require outdoor work.

Model Boat Volunteers
The Model Guild supports the curatorial needs of the Museum with display models and other exhibition items, in addition to assembling model kits to sell in the Museum Store. Annual sales of these kits have generated thousands of dollars for the Museum in recent years.

Currently, approximately forty volunteers make up the organization. Every Monday and Wednesday morning several members meet to work on their many projects. In addition, a monthly gathering presents an occasion to review current and future endeavors. The group is not all business though: the social atmosphere has been another draw for the Guild. Members enjoy not only the group dynamic, but also the chance to share their love of model building with the public through classes and open houses during the Museum's festivals.

New members of any experience level are always welcome.

Boat Yard Volunteers
The Museum's Boat Yard creates anew the tradition of a working waterfront. From the restoration of the commercial skipjacks, to the preservation and maintenance of the Museum's own floating fleet of Bay boats, to the presence and preservation of visiting traditional wooden vessels, the Museum's shipwrights and apprentices are a tangible connection to the Chesapeake's rich story of boat building.

Boat Yard volunteers interact with our visitors, explaining their work and the boats for which the Bay is known. Volunteers work under the guidance of a Museum shipwright to learn the art of Boatbuilding.

This is a labor intensive program. Boat Yard volunteers must have some carpentry skills and a keen commitment to the program. Training will be provided for selected volunteers.

Student / Service Learning Volunteers
Students can complete needed community service requirements by participating in CBMM's volunteer program. Students must provide school contact information to receive recognition for their service hours. Project durations can vary depending on the number of hours the student is required to complete. All student volunteers must be approved by the Volunteer Administrator and have parent/guardian approval before the individual's start date.

Please note that students are responsible for their own transportation.

For more information on volunteering at the museum please contact:

Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum
Attn: Melissa Spielman, Volunteer Administrator
P.O. Box 636 St. Michaels, MD 21663
410-745-2916 x 252
mspielman@cbmm.org

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