Making Ourselves Useful – historical societies in the community

We all would like to think we are valued by our communities, in one way or another.

Representatives from local history groups including Shepparton, Kilmore, Daylesford, Benalla, Jeparit, and Bendigo will present how they define being useful in their community.

Speakers will discuss how being useful is important, and what they have done to win the ‘useful’ tag. The discussion will be illustrated with examples of successes… or failures.

Featuring keynote speaker Fiona Kinsey, Senior Curator, History & Technology Department, Museums Victoria. Fiona has worked with community collection custodians and is familiar with the rich collections held in historical societies.

The seminar will be followed by an afternoon forum led by Simone Ewenson, Heritage Collections Officer, City of Greater Bendigo. Simone will open the discussion up to everyone and provide the opportunity to share usefulness stories with other volunteers.

The seminar is kindly supported by the City of Greater Bendigo who are subsidising the registration cost for volunteers and refreshments during the day.

For those in Bendigo on the afternoon of Saturday 6 September, a city centre walk of Quirky Pall Mall will be offered by Bendigo Historical Society.

Morning tea and lunch provided in registration fee.

Agenda

9.00: Registration

9.30: Welcome and introduction
Euan McGillivray, President Bendigo Historical Society

9.45: Keynote speaker: Fiona Kinsey, Senior Curator, Images & Image Making, Museums Victoria
Fiona has 25 years of experience at Museums Victoria. She currently collects, researches and interprets material culture relating to the history of the Australian photographic industry, the practice of commercial and amateur photography, and the role of the camera in documenting our working lives. Fiona is also researching goldfields history, lives outside Melbourne and is passionate about engaging with the community, especially in regional areas.

10.30: Kym Lovett & Pam Keown, Bendigo Military Museum
Ensuring Bendigo’s rich military past and collections are accessible to both local and global audiences through meaningful education and thorough research.

11.00: Morning tea

11.30: Kristy Rudd, Shepparton Heritage Centre.
Empowering volunteers through community connections — where passion meets purpose by preserving our shared history to inform and inspire future generations in Shepparton.

12.00: Craige Proctor, Wimmera Mallee Pioneer Museum & Jeparit Historical Society
Working within the Jeparit community to resurrect a defunct historical society as well as take a much revered but ‘safe’ museum into uncharted waters.

12.30 Lunch

1.00: Alan Monger, Benalla Historical Society
Heroes and outlaws, clothing and culture – informing Benalla’s citizens of their heritage and history.

1.30: Garry Lawrence, Daylesford Historical Society
Looking sideways – growing confidence and building resilience through community connections and support. Our ongoing journey of transformation in Daylesford.

2.00: Barbara Wilson & Liz Dillon-Hensby, Kilmore Historical Society
Preserving the memories of WWI volunteers of Kilmore and conserving the fabric of our society through the precious textile collections.

2.30 Break to set up for Open Forum Discussion

3.00: Open Forum: Led by Simone Ewenson, Heritage Collections Officer, Bendigo Council.
While Simone manages the City’s Heritage Collection, she also supports a wide range of volunteer history and heritage groups in the wide area of the City of Greater Bendigo. She provides advice and organises specialist workshops for volunteer groups on collection issues such as preservation, storage and disaster preparedness.

4.00 Close

About the Presenters:

Keynote speaker: Fiona Kinsey, Senior Curator, Images & Image Making, Museums Victoria
Fiona has 25 years of experience at Museums Victoria. She currently collects, researches and interprets material culture relating to the history of the Australian photographic industry, the practice of commercial and amateur photography, and the role of the camera in documenting our working lives. Fiona lives outside Melbourne and is passionate about engaging with the community, especially in regional areas.

Panel leader: Simone Ewenson, Heritage Collections Officer, Bendigo Council
While Simone manages the City’s Heritage Collection, she also supports a wide range of volunteer history and heritage groups in the wide area of the City of Greater Bendigo. She organises specialist workshops for volunteer groups on collection issues such as preservation, storage and disaster preparedness – to name few. She is always only a phone call away for advice.