Volunteer Profile 2 - Richard Jose
Richard was secretary of the Friends of the Museum. He has helped out at the museum in a range of capacities for over 20 years. Originally
he helped occasionally fixing electrical faults. He was instrumental in forming
the charitable trust (in 1996/97) and he now carries out projects which are
more easily achieved from home which enables him to continue to be a valuable
volunteer despite his geographic location further from the museum.
How did you first get involved with the museum?
I first visited the museum to look at the wedding hire collection with my daughter to select wedding cars. At the time it was a small collection which I became interested in and did occasional repairs to electrical faults on the cars.
I got more involved when Mr Richard Atwell asked if I could examine the possibility of forming a charitable trust (in April 1996).
What sort of volunteer activities do you do?
The work to obtain charitable status for the original trust took much more time and effort than I imagined, but was eventually granted in June 1997. Since then I have been a trustee of the original trust, have researched and produced data sheets for the vehicles in the museum, produced a small number of exhibits and am currently the secretary of the Friends of the Museum.
How much time do you commit?
I attend the Friends meetings (monthly), and some of the museum and outside events, but because I reside some distance from Calne I commit a lot of time at home on projects than can be done away from the museum. My latest project is the history of the Friends in the form of an archive of meeting minutes, proceedings and newsletters.
What do you most enjoy about volunteering at the museum?
I have found the tasks I have taken on enjoyable and rewarding. I found the job of actually obtaining charitable status for the original trust very satisfying. I found the job of perfecting a design of a display at the museum very enjoyable. More recently I found enjoyment in collecting the data and producing the information panels for the vehicles and also gathering together the records which resulted in the completion to date of the archive project.
Which is your favourite vehicle in the Museum?
I think the Daimler EL24 is one of my favourites because it’s such a splendid vehicle for the year (1938) and because it was rescued from near scrap condition in a Bristol theatre and was restored to its present order.
Do you own a classic car?
Not any more, I used to own a Ford Cortina, which was housed in the museum as an exhibit, but because my time at the museum has always been occupied with other things, I decided not to keep it on.
How did you first get involved with the museum?
I first visited the museum to look at the wedding hire collection with my daughter to select wedding cars. At the time it was a small collection which I became interested in and did occasional repairs to electrical faults on the cars.
I got more involved when Mr Richard Atwell asked if I could examine the possibility of forming a charitable trust (in April 1996).
What sort of volunteer activities do you do?
The work to obtain charitable status for the original trust took much more time and effort than I imagined, but was eventually granted in June 1997. Since then I have been a trustee of the original trust, have researched and produced data sheets for the vehicles in the museum, produced a small number of exhibits and am currently the secretary of the Friends of the Museum.
How much time do you commit?
I attend the Friends meetings (monthly), and some of the museum and outside events, but because I reside some distance from Calne I commit a lot of time at home on projects than can be done away from the museum. My latest project is the history of the Friends in the form of an archive of meeting minutes, proceedings and newsletters.
What do you most enjoy about volunteering at the museum?
I have found the tasks I have taken on enjoyable and rewarding. I found the job of actually obtaining charitable status for the original trust very satisfying. I found the job of perfecting a design of a display at the museum very enjoyable. More recently I found enjoyment in collecting the data and producing the information panels for the vehicles and also gathering together the records which resulted in the completion to date of the archive project.
Which is your favourite vehicle in the Museum?
I think the Daimler EL24 is one of my favourites because it’s such a splendid vehicle for the year (1938) and because it was rescued from near scrap condition in a Bristol theatre and was restored to its present order.
Do you own a classic car?
Not any more, I used to own a Ford Cortina, which was housed in the museum as an exhibit, but because my time at the museum has always been occupied with other things, I decided not to keep it on.