NOW more than fifty years old, and housing seventeen trams as well as thousands of documents on the city\u2019s formerly-used mode of public transport, the Ballarat Tramway Museum is a place run solely by volunteers.<\/p>\n
With about 70 helpers, some of whom are active anywhere between once a month to just twice a year, volunteer coordinator Chris Phillips said the museum is always in need of new people.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got 19 qualified drivers, a number of conductors and museum and maintenance staff. Some are only here a few times a year so at times we struggle to keep the museum running,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIdeally, we\u2019d like to have two or three people here every time we open but sometimes we run on skeleton staff. Since we opened the museum in May 2022 we\u2019ve attracted about a dozen people.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like to see about 10 to 20 new people. A majority of our volunteers are in their 70s so we\u2019d really like to attract younger volunteers, particularly drivers.\u201d<\/p>\n
BTM staff have held three volunteer introductory morning teas since June last year as a way of reaching out to potential new recruits, with their most recent one having taken place on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Mr Phillips estimated there\u2019s about a 50\/50 split with their volunteers between those based in Melbourne and those living locally.<\/p>\n
He said donating their time to the place can lead to career opportunities for volunteers.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur youngest driver is 23 and he\u2019s hoping to use the experience to get into the railway industry,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is that prospect for younger volunteers and it provides good work experience in general. We have a number of people with disabilities who\u2019ve learned new skills from this.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have two people who come into the workshop on the weekends who are looking to build their employability.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve also got our restaurant tram relaunching in September so we\u2019re looking for people who want to train as waitstaff or baristas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Greg Allingham has been volunteer as an office clerk with BTM for the past 18 months following his retirement, selling tickets and souvenirs, as well as performing general cleaning, maintenance, and IT duties.<\/p>\n
With no prior knowledge of trams and being a self-proclaimed \u201carmchair history buff,\u201d he said his role has been an opportunity to learn more about Ballarat\u2019s history while meeting new people.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really enjoy hearing the stories from the old-timers here and a lot of customers who come in will tell you how they rode the original trams,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most rewarding part is definitely meeting people from interstate to overseas. I just enjoy talking to them and hearing their stories.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is giving me an occupation and a reason to get out of bed in the morning and an interest to keep involved with people and life.\u201d<\/p>\n
Peter Waugh joined the organisation about a decade ago when he was researching the history of Geelong\u2019s trams, two of which were housed at the museum at the time.<\/p>\n
With his role ever-shifting from managerial positions in marketing and facilities, he said the freedom in exploring different interests has kept him involved with BTM.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a music teacher and with a degree in educational administration, I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d be using those skills when I retired,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we got given the restaurant tram, my wife and I had experience running a motel so we got that on its feet. When the museum started we got in on the ground floor with displays and interpretive signage.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s not like a job. If you\u2019re sick of doing one thing, you can move onto another. I\u2019ll often be down in the kitchen just making coffee for people coming in and they\u2019re always happy to have a chat.<\/p>\n
The Ballarat Tramway Museum is Australia\u2019s first volunteer-run accredited museum.<\/p>\n
The site is currently open on Tuesdays between 10am to 3pm, and weekends from 11am to 4pm.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NOW more than fifty years old, and housing seventeen trams as well as thousands of documents on the city\u2019s formerly-used mode of public transport, the Ballarat Tramway Museum is a place run solely by volunteers. With about 70 helpers, some of whom are active anywhere between once a month to just twice a year, volunteer […]<\/p>\n