Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

“2012 ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES VOLUNTEER”

Date

2012

Materials

POLYESTER

No. Pieces

1

Height

0.1

Length

72

Width

43

Description

PURPLE T-SHIRT MADE OF TIGHTLY WOVEN POLYESTER MESH, WITH BLACK STITCHING AT SEAMS. LOGO ON CHEST IN WHITE, BLACK AND GREEN DEPICTING TWO STYLIZED FIGURES AND TEXT READING “2012 LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES”. WHITE TEXT ALONG THE BACK READS “VOLUNTEER”. VERY GOOD CONDITION – NO VISIBLE WEAR.

Subjects

CLOTHING-OUTERWEAR

Historical Association

SPORTS

ASSOCIATIONS

History

THIS ARTIFACT WAS PART OF A DONATION FROM KNUD PETERSEN OF OBJECTS THAT RELATED TO HIS EXPERIENCE AS A VOLUNTEER OF THE 2012 ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES THAT WERE HOSTED IN LETHBRIDGE. IN NOVEMBER 2012, COLLECTIONS TECHNICIAN KEVIN MACLEAN INTERVIEWED PETERSEN ABOUT HIS EXPERIENCE AT THE 2012 GAMES AND HIS HISTORY WITH ATHLETICS IN SOUTHERN ALBERTA. PETERSEN SAID: “I’VE BEEN VOLUNTEERING A LOT WITH THE SOUTHERN ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES OVER THE YEARS… I WAS ACTUALLY THE SPORT CHAIRMAN FOR THE SOUTHERN ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES IN COALDALE IN 1997 [SO] IT WAS NOT NEW TO ME TO BE PART OF SOMETHING LIKE THAT… I RETIRED WHEN I WAS 50 IN 1994, AND I BECAME INVOLVED WITH THE SPORTS PRETTY EXTENSIVELY AT THAT TIME, AND WITH THE UNIVERSITY AND THE COLLEGE PROGRAMS, AND ACTUALLY COACHED AT THE COLLEGE IN THE WOMEN’S SOCCER PROGRAM THERE. AND, YEAH, SPORTS HAS ALWAYS BEEN CLOSE TO MY HEART BUT I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN MANY OTHER VOLUNTEER ACTIVITIES AS WELL [INCLUDING BEING] THE CHAIRMAN OF THE SOUTHERN ALBERTA COUNCIL OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS… I’VE ALWAYS SAID THAT IT’S GOOD TO RETIRE EARLY, AS LONG AS YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING ELSE. TO RETIRE TO DO NOTHING IS THE WORST THING ANYBODY CAN DO. TO KEEP YOUR MIND OCCUPIED AND TRY AND STAY YOUNG, YOU HAD BETTER BE INVOLVED WITH A LOT OF THINGS. THERE’S ALWAYS ROOM FOR VOLUNTEERS, AS LONG AS YOU ARE NOT LOOKING FOR PAY, THERE’S ALL KINDS OF JOBS AVAILABLE. YOU GET TO WORK WITH GREAT PEOPLE, THAT’S ONE OF THE BEST PARTS AND CERTAINLY, ESPECIALLY YOUNGER PEOPLE, IT’S GREAT TO WORK WITH THEM… [FOR THE 2012 ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES] I WAS ABLE TO GET THE KIND OF JOB THAT I WAS KIND OF INTERESTED IN DOING; IT WAS AVAILABLE. SO, YEAH, I JUST, I ENDED UP BEING A SUPERVISOR AT ONE OF THE SCHOOLS, IN THE AFTERNOON SHIFT, AND ABLE TO VOLUNTEER FOR THE TRACK AND FIELD EVENT IN THE MORNING SHIFT… THE MORNING SHIFT WAS AT THE TRACK AND FIELD AND I DID THAT FROM 8 TILL 3, AND THEN FROM 3 TILL MIDNIGHT, I WAS AT THE SCHOOL… IT WAS WONDERFUL TO BE PART OF IT… THE YOUNG GENERATION HAS GOT AN AMAZING AMOUNT OF ENERGY AND ENTHUSIASM AND, GENERALLY SPEAKING, PRETTY RESPECTFUL, I HAVE TO SAY. AND SPORTS IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT BRINGS RESPECT TO YOUNG PEOPLE; THEY RESPECT EACH OTHER, AND RESPECT THE OFFICIALS, GENERALLY SPEAKING… WE HAD GREAT WEATHER… THAT IS ALWAYS IMPORTANT, AND FROM WHAT I HEARD, BEING SUPERVISOR AT THE SCHOOL, THE MEALS WERE SECOND TO NONE. THEY WERE GREAT MEALS AND THOSE TWO INGREDIENTS GOES A LONG WAYS TO A SUCCESSFUL GAMES, AND GENERALLY SPEAKING, I THINK PEOPLE WERE EXTREMELY HAPPY WITH THE FACILITIES, AND THAT, AND THE VOLUNTEERISM WAS, YOU KNOW, IN THE END , THEY HAD ENOUGH VOLUNTEERS… IF ANYBODY EVER IS THINKING ABOUT VOLUNTEERING FOR THESE KIND OF EVENTS, YOU KNOW, IT’S A GREAT EXPERIENCE. IT’S SOMETHING I WOULD RECOMMEND ANYBODY TO DO AT LEAST ONCE IN THEIR LIFE.” THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION ABOUT THIS SPECIFIC ARTIFACT WAS EXTRACTED FROM THE NOVEMBER 2012 INTERVIEW WITH THE DONOR. PETERSEN WORE THE SHIRT FOR THE THREE DAYS OF THE EVENT, AND SAID: “THEY GAVE ME A SHIRT, AND MOST VOLUNTEERS DIDN’T GET A BAG, BUT I JUST SOMEHOW HAPPENED TO GET A BAG AS WELL. AND THEY GIVE YOU HAND BOOKS AND WE GOT FED DURING THE EVENTS, OF COURSE, JUST LIKE THE ATHLETES DID.” SEE PERMANENT FILE FOR A FULL TRANSCRIPT OF THE INTERVIEW, AND FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE 2012 ALBERTA SUMMER GAMES.

Catalogue Number

P20120040002

Acquisition Date

2012-11

Collection

Museum

Less detail