We are Seeking an Intern!

The Truro Historical Society is seeking an intern for our summer season, June 1^st through Oct 1, 2016. Candidates are required to be available through the entire season. This is a position of responsibility that requires excellent interpersonal and social skills as well as computer proficiency. This internship provides the opportunity to learn good museum practice including historic and archival documentation, develop communication skills and interact with professional and volunteer workers in a non-profit setting.
Responsibilities:

Assist the Director (and exhibitions committee) in setting up displays and exhibitions and other tasks as required
Support the Collections Committee with accessions and inventory documentation
Support the events committee with promoting events
Attending and supporting activities associated with special events, evening speaker programs or exhibition openings, if requested by the Director
Meet and greet visitors to the Museum
Support the Docents by assisting with cash register and receipts, visitor registration, inquiries, and event ticket sales
Support gift shop activities including sales, inventory control and shipping of web sales
Share responsibility with the director in opening and/or closing the museum

Ideal Candidate will have the following:

Excellent verbal communication skills to meet/greet Museum visitors of all ages and provide direction and information
Ability to interact with and support the Volunteer Coordinator and work with the volunteer staff
Good computer skills are a requirement
Museum or education experience is a plus but not a requirement

Our Support for Racial Justice

The Truro Historical Society (THS) supports the peaceful Black Lives Matter movement for racial justice that is taking place in the United States and around the world. “Liberty and justice for all” means justice for Black and Indigenous populations, and for all people of color.

Museums and archives are not neutral spaces. Because we interpret history, we have the responsibility of presenting the past as fully and accurately as possible, including painful and uncomfortable aspects. The past feeds into the present, and when a community actively engages with its past, it can use its understanding to make a better society.

Truro was founded on land that had been inhabited by Native People for thousands of years, but these people were displaced by English settlers. There were enslaved people and indentured laborers enduring near-slavery conditions in Truro. In 1754, the town’s first minister, Reverend John Avery, bequeathed to his children three African-American enslaved men and “my Indian Girl Sarah.”

After reflecting on the “settler privilege” that most of us enjoy, the THS decided in late 2019 to mark the 400^thanniversary of the Pilgrims’ arrival with a decolonial exhibition celebrating Truro’s first inhabitants, the Wampanoag Nation, from its origins to today. During the postponement caused by the coronavirus, the THS will continue to consult with Indigenous scholars and community members. We will increase our commitment to diversity and inclusion. As a token of our commitment, the THS wishes to share the Land Acknowledgment we have prepared in consultation with members of the Wampanoag Nation. This statement will stand at the entrance to the Highland House Museum’s permanent exhibition about the Paomet and the Wampanoag peoples.

Land Acknowledgment

The Highland House Museum stands on the traditional homeland of the Paomet Tribe, members of the Wampanoag Nation, who have inhabited Cape Cod for more than 12,000 years and who knew this part of Truro as Tashmuit. The Truro Historical Society acknowledges the displacement, suffering, and forced assimilation of the Wampanoag and other Native Peoples caused by European contact and colonization. We honor the struggles of the Wampanoag, People of the First Light, and support their resilience, and we ask museum visitors to reflect on our shared responsibility to maintain social justice.

Our Membership Drive is Ongoing

Thanks to everyone who has joined the THS or renewed your membership! We are so grateful for your generosity, which sustains our organization through this challenging time. There’s still time to join or renew, and it’s easy to do. You may mail a check to the Truro Historical Society at PO Box 486, Truro, MA 02666 or CLICK HERE TO JOIN NOW

In light of the challenges created by the pandemic, we will donate one-tenth of all membership donations to the Dexter Keezer Fund that provides emergency financial assistance to Truro families in need. For more information, visit their website, www.keezerfund.org.

Thank you for your support and generosity!

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