Pam Currie, who volunteered on GWL’s Board of Directors in 2004, shares with us what she gained from that experience:
“I first encountered Glasgow Women’s Library as a student in the mid 1990s and I’ve been a supporter of the library for a number of years. I work in Further Education and in 2004, was asked to join the Library’s very first Board of Directors. I agreed with some trepidation, as I knew very little about the role, and learned a huge amount in the two years that I was on the Board – it gave me a real insight into how the voluntary sector works and into the issues, dilemmas, frustrations and – above all – rewards of being involved in organisations such as GWL which provide such a vital service for women.
I still work in the same role in Further Education but certainly draw on my experience with GWL in my wider work in the trade union movement and as an activist; I also went on after volunteering with GWL to study an MA Women’s Studies with Ruskin College, Oxford, which further developed my knowledge of the history and theoretical debates within the women’s movement.
I’d encourage any woman thinking of volunteering with GWL to go for it – you’ll learn a lot!”
