Volunteer T H G I L T O P S
ROBERT MARTENS
Mennonite Heritage Museum and the Mennonite Historical Society of BC, Abbotsford, B.C. Robert has been volunteering with the Mennonite Historical Society of BC (MHSBC) since the early 2000s. He was asked to join the board and to help edit and write for the MHSBC newsletter, Roots and Branches, which has since expanded to a periodical of sorts. Robert also accessions archival items donated to the MHSBC, keeping the database that extends back to the 1980s up-to-date. His interests lie more on the historical end of things, rather than the genealogical and his involvement with the Mennonite Heritage Museum (MHM) began much later, after the Museum opened several years ago. Robert writes all of the MHM and MHSBC press releases and also volunteers as a Gallery Attendant and in the Bookstore. As chair of the MHSBC library committee, Robert has been working with others to update the library system at the Society. Among other activities, he has also organized a rare books and songbooks collection and has been translating a Russian Mennonite newspaper dating to 1925-26, published in German. Robert notes:
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Mennonites living in Vancouver and the Fraser Valley have a most fascinating – and sometimes brutal – history, having fled the chaos of the civil war from which the totalitarian Soviet Union emerged. Many of their friends and relatives were left behind, often to suffer and die in the Soviet labour camps. The history of Mennonites in general, however, goes way back to 1525, when the first Anabaptists were rebaptized as consenting adults. Severe persecution followed. Robert shared that, “Volunteer work is one of the delights of my life. In the various volunteer organizations in which I participate, I’ve found a feeling of mutual resolve and commitment, as well as the sense of a new ‘family.’” He loves connecting with the wonderful volunteers and staff at MHSBC. “It’s always a joy.” In addition, Robert is a published poet and is engaged with many local arts organizations. He maintains contact with other local heritage and museum societies, noting that, “It’s vital that we work together to preserve our disparate stories.”
Photo credit: Jennifer Martens.
