Part of the iVolunteer flipbook for Leeds City Council. This is the contribution of staffer Karen Chiverall. bit.ly/ivolunteerleeds

1. i Volunteer Leeds
Karen
Chiverall
Various
From ‘The Biggest
Strawberry Nose’
to Health for All
It was 1995 and I was in my 2nd year of a History of Art degree, as a
mature student back then, I loved the subject matter so much I felt I
couldn’t get enough of it.
So vast felt the void, I had to do more, I had to volunteer. Imagine
my joy when my local museum and gallery (Oldham) said yes, you
can come and help us catalogue the 19th & 20th Century paper
collections – cotton gloves provided.

2. For almost a year I went when I could, sometimes even with my then
baby son in tow (well he was in a papoose, I think ‘towing’ babies is a
bit wrong). I carefully and painstakingly unravelled and smoothed out
the creases in posters announcing: searches for murderers; Chartist
meetings; The Co-operative movement; Election hustings for Winston
Churchill and … a poster for a competition at the local Wakes Fair c.
1904, for the man with ‘The Biggest Strawberry Nose’ – do you know
how many men (and maybe some women) there must have been in
Oldham back then with huge strawberry noses !
I’ve carried on volunteering in various guises and for various reasons
ever since, for museums and galleries here in Leeds, to a range of youth
and community work – which then led to paid work and ultimately
gave me the stepping stones to more than a decade of working on some
really great projects here for Leeds (for the Council and the City). In my
spare time now I have a role with the Y&H Branch of the Institute of
Economic Development and I’m vice–chair on the Board of Trustees at
Health for All.
10 hours, what can you do with yours? Karen
i Volunteer Leeds
Chiverall
Various