Anne Hawkins and Karen Thorp - Visitor Reception Assistant Volunteers
Our new Visitor Reception Assistant Volunteers Anne and Karen have been volunteering together for ten years. They met at Osterley Park, and after some changes to the volunteer programme last year, they decided to resign their positions and look for a new place where they could use their experience and skills. They knew Sian from their time at Osterley, and when they discovered Fulham Palace provided the volunteering roles they were looking for they decided to apply.
In September, they started as Visitor Reception Assistant Volunteers. Anne is a former civil servant who started volunteering when she retired, and Karen is a qualified infant teacher, although these days she is looking after her mum and has just undertaken a part time course in hand embroidery at The Royal School of Needlework.
How often do you volunteer at Fulham Palace?
Anne: We come once a fortnight.
Karen: On a Sunday morning.
And what are your tasks as visitor reception volunteers?
Karen: We’re directing people. Welcoming people. I think it’s just giving them that nice welcome and answering the questions they do have. If we can! At the moment we haven’t done too many shifts, but basically it’s directing them to the café or the doors to the toilet. Or answering the phone.
Anne: And we were here for the Country Life Fair.
Karen: We are happy to do anything. Within reason!
What are your favourite things about Fulham Palace?
Anne: I love that Tudor Courtyard. I think that’s gorgeous.
Karen: I like the Tudor Courtyard. I think that’s a really nice entrance. But I quite like the fact that you’ve got history. If you look for it, if you know what you’re looking at, you can see how this place has developed.
Anne: History has evolved here. And the grounds are lovely.
Karen: And I quite like the fact that it is not overrun with people.
And what do you enjoy most about volunteering?
Anne: I just like it.
Karen: I think it’s the passing on knowledge and…
Anne: …talking to people. It’s just something nice to do.
Karen: And the variety. Like I said, we’ve done all sorts of things, it’s not just one thing. You get to meet different people. You never really know what is going to happen. It is always a surprise.