Needless to say, interpreters need excellent communication skills.
They must be able to speak to groups of adults and children without note cards.
They need to speak clearly and they need to be able to write well.
Writing
good interpretative scripts, say experienced park interpreters, is one of
the most fun and challenging parts of the job. It requires research and the
ability to condense and synthesize large amounts of information into an upbeat
speech that holds the attention of the audience.
Using the information
below from the website of the Fort Garry Historic Site in Canada, prepare
a brief script that you could use to welcome visitors to the site.
Remember
this is the first interaction visitors will have at the park, so you'll want
to make a good impression. Hint: it's always a good idea to start by talking
about something that visitors can understand.
The
Hudson's Bay Co.'s Lower Fort Garry was a major business site for all in the
Red River settlement. It outfitted farmers and trappers with their yearly
supplies. The aboriginal communities in the surrounding areas also conducted
business with the Hudson's Bay Co.
Many aboriginal people would trade
their leather goods, farmed crops and dried fish with the company. Others
would work for the company by taking part in the yearly buffalo hunts.
This
continued well into the 1850s and 1860s. Many aboriginal women worked on the
company farms. The men worked the small fishery on the Red River.
Contrary
to many popular beliefs, Lower Fort Garry was not primarily a fur trading
post. While the Hudson's Bay Co. purchased some pelts at the lower fort, many
were transported to the post from neighboring districts. There, they were
re-packed for shipment to England via Norway House and York Factory.
In
fact, the bulk of the trade with the local settlers was with farm produce.
Everyone who lived in the settlement had a farm that they used to supply themselves
with food. Then they sold their surplus to the company.
The Hudson's
Bay Co. hoped that the farmers in the settlement would be able to supply a
large portion of the food needed to supply the company workers up north. Shipping
from Lower Fort Garry would lower the cost. That's because the food didn't
have to come from England. It would be fresher.
The journey for York
boats from Hudson's Bay to the Red River settlement was nearly 700 miles and
contained dozens of grueling portages. Each York boat would contain three
tons of supplies, all of which had to be portaged in 200-pound loads on tripmen's
backs.
Just up the pathway you will now come upon the fort itself.
As you enter the fort, stop to inspect the stone sides of the gate that still
bear the carved signatures of those who built them.
Beyond the gate,
accented by the Hudson's Bay Co. flag flapping high above you at the entrance,
the big house can be seen. Its flower gardens are in bloom and its picket
fence houses the croquet-ready manicured lawn.
A trip up the boardwalk
allows you to enter the most lavishly furnished home on the site. From the
English guests and the gentlemen's smoking room, to the chief trader's office
and the busy kitchen in the basement, the entire home awaits exploration.