Take volunteers seriously

Outside the Grutterswinkel in Leeuwarden, the beautiful wooden facade with wavy single-pane glass takes you back in time. Inside, hops, raspberry sweets, cinnamon sticks, foam blocks and all sorts of other old Dutch sweets colour the shelves of the over 100-year-old Grutterswinkel in Leeuwarden. The sweets from the glass jars are weighed on the enamel scales. Here, they are still sold by the piece. The only thing that gives away that we live in the twenty-first century is the cash machine. The shop and museum have been run by volunteers for over 30 years. How that goes and what is involved, Peter explains.

"Some volunteers have been here for 25 years," he begins. Peter is a volunteer director at the foundation. "That does show how much fun it is here." How it is possible for volunteers to stay at Museum the Grutter Shop for so long? "We take them seriously. It may sound like an open door, but that doesn't happen nearly everywhere. We include them in board decisions. We have three meetings every year where they are all welcome. Today, for instance, we discussed where we want to work towards in the next five years. Everyone has a say. We clearly tell them what we are working on and why we are not doing certain things."

"We get no subsidies or support from funds. So we have to get all our income from the shop and museum. Keeping our volunteers informed of our expenses and income keeps them involved."

"Most people who volunteer here do so for the fun and social contact," Peter explains. "A lot of tourists come here. From Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, among others, but also from America. They often find it very special that this still exists." The building comes from 1596 and has had various functions. Once it was even the mayor's residence. "He probably had the beautiful facade put in," says Peter. Almost nothing has changed since 1901. Back then it belonged to the Feenstra family. They had a shop selling colonial and grocery goods. They lived next to the shop, where the coffee shop now sits. In the 1990s, the foundation was set up to preserve the shop in its original state.

"It is important to be visible as a director," he continues. "You can think, 'I'm a director, I'll run this place remotely', but if you're not involved and don't show up regularly on the shop floor, you won't bond with the other volunteers. I came here regularly as a customer before I started volunteering."

Are you thinking about recruiting volunteers for your organisation? "Make sure they know clearly what you expect from them," tips Peter. "That way you avoid disappointment for either party. Volunteering may be voluntary, but it is not without obligation. Say someone is behind the till, they have to come when they are scheduled. You have to be able to count on that. That does ask something of the volunteer."

The Grutter Shop is always looking for more volunteers. "Especially housekeepers who can do small jobs. Think changing light bulbs, fixing small things or just cleaning something. We are also always looking for drivers and people for the shop." Prefer to take a look first? You are always welcome to visit the shop, the museum or the coffee room.