Pamela Blalock recorded 578 hours last year, more than any other volunteer at the Beaches Museum in 2023. We are excited to honor her with our first-ever Volunteer Spotlight! We took a minute to sit down with Pam and ask her some questions about her time with the museum. Read on for the full interview!

Interviewer: You’ve got the most volunteer hours. Congratulations on getting all of those hours!

Pam: Thank you.

What did you spend your time doing before committing so much time to volunteering here at the Beaches Museum?

I was working before I retired.

What did you do for work?

I was the HR Manager for the National Air and Space Museum at the Smithsonian.

Do you have a favorite collections item, and if so, what is it?

Ooh… I think I like the Foreman’s House the best.

What do you like most about it?

I find the kitchen fascinating, and, um, I don’t know–the adult potty chair. [laughs]

My next question was, do you have a favorite place in the History Park, but I guess–

Oh, well that answers that one, yes.

Do you have a favorite… plant? In the garden?

Oh, I don’t know one plant from another. If it’s not a rose, I don’t know what it is. [laughs]

What has been the most rewarding aspect of volunteering here for you?

Just meeting new people. Getting to make friends and meet people from all over.

Is there a moment or memory that stands out about your time here?

Other than Kate? [laughs]

Do you have any advice for new volunteers?

Just enjoy your time. I mean, I enjoy it. The reason I keep doing it is because I enjoy it–and it gets me out of the house. It gives me something to do as a way to make friends. That’s why I started here.

You have made lots of friends here!

Well, and I started out at the Smithsonian as a docent doing dinosaur tours! So I was kind of–that gave me something to do. It was just a natural flow once I retired and moved down here.

Did you have a favorite dinosaur at the Smithsonian?

Yeah, the parasaurolophus.

I’ll have to look up how to spell that one.

I just love the name!

If you opened your own museum, what would it be the museum of?

Probably dinosaurs. [laughs]

Interested in volunteering? Simply fill out our the form below or ask for an application at the front desk!