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ARATOI VOICES Aratoi’s essential volunteers

The old rhyme about the kingdom being lost for want of a nail rings true even now: attention to detail is so important for anything to run well.

It’s volunteers who so often today are the ones ensuring that the fi gurative nails are fi rmly hammered in. Aratoi has its share of talented behind-the-scenes people doing just that.

Donna Burkhart is one of many rostered volunteers who helps on the front desk, greeting and helping visitors. However, her latest task at Aratoi was to spend hours putting barcode stickers on the hundreds of items in the Aratoi retail store so that they can be read with the new computer pricing system.

“It was such a fi ddly job,” Donna said, “but it meant that the staff could get on with the other work necessary to get the new online system in place.”

Exhibition openings are a feature of the Aratoi year. Janet Avery has for years organised the food for these events.

“We often use Aratoi’s “In my profession, small things tell big stories,” Wellington archaeologist Mary O’Keeff e said.

O’Keeff e is coming to Wairarapa next week to explain what New Zealand archaeologists do and why, and to talk about some of her work in the Wellington area.

She said, “One project was on the remains of the ship Inconstant, the largest wooden vessel built in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. When she was only three years old she foundered in Wellington Harbour.”

Mary said the Inconstant became central to the early history of Wellington after John Plimmer re-purposed her into ‘Plimmer’s Ark’, a Lambton Quay warehouse.

“The ship was used as an auction house, a customs

Aratoi volunteers, from left, Mike Burkhart, Aaron Slight, Peter Debney repairing chairs. friend and neighbour, Entice Café, for the food we serve, and I call on our friends to help out on the night. We try to make the occasion special and the presentation smart.”

Gretel Dick, who holds the necessary licence, supervises the bar at the openings and clearly is looking forward to doing this in the future: “I resat my licence last week so I’m all good to go for

Mary O’Keeffe mapping the piles of a wharf built in the 1890s for torpedo boats at Mahanga

Bay, Wellington.

PHOTO/SUPPLIED offi ce and a lighthouse; and then she was buried beneath the fi rst Bank of New Zealand building for more than 100 years. I was lucky to be one of the archaeologists who excavated her in the 1990s.” the next three years,” she said. Alongside her, Steve Davis tends the bar with an air of experience born of many years of doing this for Aratoi.

Another group that assists Aratoi are the partners of regular volunteers who are roped in to help out with tasks such as bar duty, welcoming guests, checking concert tickets, or guarding the door to

O’Keeff e is a consultant archaeologist with a well-established business. Previously she worked with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust Pouhere Taonga and the Department of the gallery so that no one catches a sneak preview of an exhibition before it is offi cially launched.

Aaron Slight, Mike Burkhart and Peter Debney are three of these supportive volunteers. They have donated their time to do many small jobs for Aratoi, including fi xing new rubber stoppers to the legs of stacks of chairs.

WELLINGTON’S ARCHAEOLOGY

Finally, Aratoi taps Conservation.

She has undertaken archaeological assessment for large and small urban and rural developments in Wellington and the Kapiti Coast, including the MacKays to Peka Peka

PHOTO/SUPPLIED into the wide range of skills and abilities of a few people, mostly retired, who willingly give their time to do the occasional handyman jobs needed to keep Aratoi and its exhibitions and programmes running smoothly.

If you have number 8 wire ingenuity or any other skills or talents Aratoi could use, do think about volunteering.

Expressway, Transmission Gully, the Wellington Regional Hospital, the refurbishment of Government House, the Telecom building site, the proposed Hilton Hotel on Queen’s Wharf, the ferry wharf, the Interislander and Glasgow wharves and the railway yards.

She has specialist knowledge of the development of the Wellington waterfront and its reclamations.

She will present her talk, ‘Wellington’s stories seen through archaeology’, to a meeting of Science Wairarapa at 7.30pm on Monday, September 14, at the Education Centre, 22 Dixon St. Masterton. All are welcome; a door charge of $4 will apply.

A HOME FOR A PET

Hi, I’m Oreo, a medium-sized Staffy boy, almost two years old.

I’m a cool dude, full of energy with a lust for life. I like sleeping on the bed with my humans and having lots of company. I will need a fully-fenced, secure area with loads of toys to keep me occupied. I can’t wait to get out for loads of walks.

I’m now on the lookout for a loving new family, so if you think you could be my new forever home, please drop by and talk to the team at the Masterton SPCA during their opening hours, or call them on 0800 467 732.