Vesterheim Blog

Three Cheers for Vesterheim Youth Volunteers

Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah! In recent years, students from second grade into high school have provided over 100 hours of volunteer time! The younger volunteers greeted guests and provided water and snacks to demonstrators during Nordic Fest. They scared off harmful spirits as julebukker and played pranks as junior nisser during Norwegian Christmas. Older students hosted in Heritage Park buildings during Nordic Fest, led crafts during Norwegian Christmas, helped with children’s group visits in the summer months, assisted with administrative tasks, and were back-of-group guides during Viking Cruise visits.

Volunteering can help youth build skills, like communication, problem-solving, and making connections. Most of all, it’s a fun way to do something positive in the community. For high school students, it’s also a great opportunity to earn hours toward a Silver Cord honor during graduation.

Check out the volunteer experiences of the wonderful guides below! Vesterheim enjoys having them on campus and appreciates their hard work!

If you know of youth of any age who would like to volunteer at Vesterheim, please have their parent or guardian contact Chivonne Marlow at cmarlow@ vesterheim.org or 563-387-6995.

Mady Lippe

Madysen Lippe, who goes by Mady, is starting her junior year at Decorah High School. She just finished her second summer volunteering for Vesterheim where she particularly enjoys learning while she works. She also enjoys engaging with the staff and visitors who, she says, are all very welcoming and friendly. During her time at Vesterheim, Mady helps with organizational tasks and tours. She has supported both the Viking Mississippi River tours and Vesterheim tours of Heritage Park. This summer, she studied and practiced to become a tour guide herself and was happy to begin leading tours on her own for Vesterheim! Mady receives high school Silver Cord hours from Vesterheim volunteering.

In addition to volunteering at Vesterheim, she’s been a volunteer at the Special Olympics at the University of Northern Iowa where she helped with track and field events. All of this volunteering has been helping her decide the direction of the career she wants to pursue – either in teaching Special Education or Museum Studies. She’s passionate about both because they allow her to work with and help people.

Mady has two favorite pieces in the Vesterheim collection – the schoolhouse and the Valdres House. Because she really enjoys learning, Mady said the schoolhouse gives her perspective on how life has changed. She’s also amazed by how much can be learned from just one building and its materials, particularly the beaver tail slates in the Valdres house. (You’ll have to check those out on your next tour!)

Charlotte Yu and Sofia Hageman

Charlotte Yu, who is 10 years old, and her sister, Sofia Hageman, who is 13, are both youth volunteers at Vesterheim. They started two years ago as “naughty” nisse at the Vesterheim Norwegian Christmas celebration, pranking visitors and making them laugh. They were nisse again in 2023 and look forward to it again this year! They also volunteered at Nordic Fest to bring water and snacks to the demonstrators during the hot weather.

Charlotte said the best part of volunteering is helping people and her sister agreed. They feel like they get to support their community while having fun. Charlotte’s favorite part of Vesterheim is the Tradewind ship, and Sofia’s favorite part is the new Commons building because it also represents a boat through the shape of the front awning. Charlotte also likes being able to see all of the art that is made in the Folk Art School.

Even though Charlotte and Sofia have no Norwegian ancestry, they appreciate that the stories and objects at Vesterheim help them make connections with their own family immigration story. They feel the two immigration stories are parallel rather than at odds with each other. Their father, Andy, added that the history they learn at Vesterheim is another way to resonate with family. Charlotte added that it is cool to learn the history of Decorah, the place where they live.

Both are interested in doing more guide work and volunteering with Vesterheim as they get older.