Amélie Renouf joined Héritage Montréal 2007. She held several positions before becoming Director of Programs and Activities in 2019. Fresh off maternity leave, it's now her turn to answer a few questions.
1. What does your job involve? What is a "typical" day like at Héritage Montréal
My days are usually filled with discussions with all the people who contribute to our educational activities - our funding partners, our volunteers, my colleagues, the members of the Activities and Services Committee. In order to implement our various programs, I have to keep track of many programs simultaneously, so I often have my eyes glued to calendars and timelines! All this planning work allows us to present our activities and, in the end, the best part is meeting the participants on the ground.
2. When did you join Heritage Montreal?
My first term at Héritage Montréal was back in 2007! I was first hired as a logistics officer for the Renovation Lessons programfor a short three-month period. I was then fortunate enough to be selected as project manager for the development of phase 2 ofMontréal en quartiers, which was carried out in 2007-2008. Through this project, I was able to quickly get to know many of the organization's partners and immerse myself in the content. At the end of this project in the summer of 2008, I was offered the position of Activities Coordinator. Since then, I have been fortunate to be part of the permanent team!
After several years at Héritage Montréal, what continues to motivate me to take on numerous challenges is the passion and tenacity of everyone around me. Their energy is contagious! Not only can we count on a team of dedicated employees, but Héritage Montréal much more than these eight passionate individuals. It also includes board members who are actively involved in the organization's success, volunteers, and a multitude of partners who contribute in all kinds of ways to make our programming possible. In fact, what I like most about my job is being able to collaborate with our hundred or so volunteers who give their time and energy to support us in our projects.
3. What activities have made the biggest impression on you?
The Silo #5 guided tours are definitely memorable. Unprecedented in popularity, these tours offered between 2010 and 2012 were quite an adventure. With record levels of participation, we had to work hard to adapt and meet the demand. Initially, these tours were scheduled for one year only, but they were presented for three consecutive years and reached over 3,500 participants! From that point on, the tours became more and more popular and our team of volunteers has been growing ever since.
Realizing a growing appetite for our guided tours, we added a new program, Heart of the City tours in 2014 through a partnership with Ivanhoe Cambridge. These tours are now part of our regular programs. Since then, we have presented three series of three tours to discover the downtown area. I always find it fascinating to visit places that are regularly traveled to rediscover them through heritage and architecture. You learn so much from preparing your tours and following them with your audience. We look forward to finally presenting our4th edition this spring!
4. Do you have a favorite to share?
I would like to end this portrait with a special mention for the volunteers who join us at our activities or support us in our daily work at the office. Our team of volunteers is numerous and energetic! It's a pleasure to start a new collaboration as new volunteers join us, as well as to meet up with our faithful members, some of whom I've been lucky enough to work with since 2007! Thank you to all of you!
