By Theresa Parker Pierce @rowanhistory

When I am giving a tour or other presenting to groups, people often ask how I got started. They say, “I would love doing this.” So, here is my short answer. Walk into your local museum and ask, “Do you take volunteers?”

Twenty-three years ago, I did in fact, do just that. My children were growing up, busy with their lives and I needed a hobby. I’ve always loved history so a trip to our local museum seemed logical. When I asked the director of the Rowan Museum that question, she led me to a closet and outfitted me in my first of what would become a closet full of costumes.

That fall the director handed me notes to use for a tour of our local 1766 Old Stone House. After rereading the notes to guests, I gradually committed them to memory. Then I started watching and listening to others. One story became many and my knowledge grew. Then I began to apply what I knew in my classroom. Teaching and presenting became reciprocal.

Then the director invited me to teach summer history camp for kids and I was hooked. We dipped candles, punched tin and took walking tours. I learned alongside the children. Each camp had new and exciting activities. I met local historians, a basket weaver, a doll maker and reenactors. I thought the only kind of reenactor was one who portrayed battles. I am glad I was mistaken.

My experience grew and I began to search for opportunities to grow. The National Endowment for the Humanities offered a summer course on Asian Immigration in Seattle.

The North Carolina Humanities led me to Wilmington, N.C. to learn about Civil Rights. And when I had a chance to take a summer workshop at NCCAT (The North Carolina Center for the Advancement of Teaching) they offered me a free class. The only one that fit my schedule was on the Civil War. I hesitated but I am so glad I did because the stories hooked me. Now I use them when we teach Freedom Camp.

An opportunity to become the History Specialist at our school system’s innovative center for field trips was a dream come true. That is when one costume, also called period attire, grew from one to four. I was in my element teaching history full time. An award as the North Carolina History Teacher of the Year netted me a trip to Mount Vernon. Walking tours for children downtown and all over our county was more than I could have imagined. I was trained by other local historians but it all came to halt. The year was 2008 and an economic downturn meant budget cuts. STEM was on the rise. Science was up and history was down so my programming began to shrink.

I went back to the classroom, not bitter but happy for the new innovative approaches I had learned for teaching history. All the while, I was still volunteering at two museums. Somewhere along the way, I had a conversation with a staff member at the NC Transportation Museum. A replica of the Wright Flyer was coming. She said, “We think there was a sister, would you be willing to study and teach about her?” A new character presentation was born.

As Teacher of the Year, I was nervous about speaking to large groups so I took a Toastmasters class. I highly recommend it. They taught me, “Everyone gets butterflies, even the president. The key is to get your butterflies to fly in formation.” One became more. More became even more. During Covid, we got creative and made videos. Camps gradually came back, first in masks and now sold out. Rather than ask someone to come out from the paper, I wrote my own articles and the newspaper has graciously printed them.

Speaking opportunities during virtual school were delivered via zoom where students could interact with us. As things gradually improved, we took our shows on the road and taught history in schools. Teachers were so appreciative, students too. My museum friends went out of their way to make the traveling shows extra special with prepackaged snacks and interactive lessons.

One of my favorite groups to speak to are senior citizens. They are a wealth of life’s lessons. After I share, they come to me with the most wonderful stories. They remember the locations I talk about and share fun trivia. Word of mouth is my favorite resource. Fact checking leads to more learning.

Research is key. I tell my students, “In the age of information, ignorance is a choice.” Whether you are presenting or writing, be aware there are pitfalls on the internet. Libraries are a wonderful resource, especially the history rooms where you will find maps, letters and archived material. Attend conferences to learn from experts in their field. I have learned a great deal from books and non-fiction texts.

Author visits became part of my speaking. You may say, I don’t have a stand-alone book that I have written. The thing is teachers invited me because they saw local articles. Their goal is to inspire their students. Contributing to a “Room at the Table” led to keynote speech about special need students. Most recently, an invitation to be a graduation speaker came out of being seen in the community as a public speaker. It was a full circle moment because these were my virtual students taught during Covid. Since then, I retired so I had not seen them since March of 2020 when the pandemic started. They were taller with facial hair. It was a wonderful reunion.

At the beginning of this, I gave you the short answer but the long answer is to sharpen your skill, listen the experts, and keep it fresh. The stories are new for each person you teach. Community involvement benefitted my students and audiences. One becomes many.

Theresa Parker Pierce lives in Historic Salisbury, North Carolina, where she enjoys spending time with family and friends. She has 35 years of experience teaching reading and history. Theresa has a Master’s degree in education and is National Board-certified. Two-time Rowan Salisbury Teacher of the Year, Theresa enjoys storytelling about her childhood in eastern North Carolina and giving tours in Rowan County.

Her manuscript, Up Dunn’s Mountain won first place for Young Adult Literature at Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writers Conference. She is a member of Word Weavers International and 540.

A historic docent, she shares her volunteer time between the North Carolina Transportation Museum in Spencer and the Rowan Museum in Salisbury. With what started as one is now a closet full of costumes, Theresa dresses in period attire.

A Toastmaster, Theresa speaks to historic groups, senior citizens and of course, her favorite children.