The Hill Aerospace Museum volunteer staff presently boasts more than 150 active, personable, experienced, dedicated individuals from all walks of life, including active duty Air Force personnel. They range in age from the teens to 80+ years young.
Volunteering at the museum offers many rewarding and challenging areas in which diverse talents and expertise may be utilized. The various job descriptions for our volunteers are as follows:
Our volunteers have received many individual awards, including the State of Utah Director of Volunteers Outstanding Volunteer Award, the Utah Volunteer of the Year Award, three Air Force Angel Awards, the Utah Governor’s Silver Bowl Award, Volunteer Excellence Award, and Utah Museum Volunteer of the Year Award.
The volunteer staff has also won numerous other awards as a group. Among these are the Air Force Group Angel Award, the Utah Chapter of Valley Forge Outstanding Award, the Utah Governor’s Helping Hands Award, and the national J.C. Penney Golden Rule Award, along with a $1,000 grant for the Volunteer Staff. These awards are not given lightly, as they entailed state-wide or nation-wide competition.
This unusual conglomerate of volunteers staff the museum six days a week, a different team for each day. They work weekends and holidays and give up many hours of their time, often sacrificing their personal plans to accommodate the requirements of the museum. Their extreme dedication goes far beyond the expectations for “normal” volunteers. The visiting public is always giving them accolades for their warmth, friendliness, and hospitality, as well as voicing heartfelt thanks for the many long hours of restoration work performed on our aircraft and other artifacts.
The people who choose to volunteer at Hill Aerospace Museum find it a very rewarding experience. Consequently, our turn-over rate is very low. Many of our people have volunteered for the past ten years or more. Many have logged more than 5,000 hours, while a few have given upwards of 16,000 hours. Collectively, the volunteers at the museum have donated over 300,000 hours and the total is rising all the time. This donated time has saved the American taxpayer an estimated $2,500,000 in operating expenses for the museum.
Interested in volunteering at Hill Aerospace Museum? Please call our Volunteer Coordinator, Phil Butler at 801-777-2468 or CLICK HERE. We’d love to have your help!
Each quarter the Hill Aerospace Museum selects a “Volunteer of the Quarter.” Each quarter the current Volunteer of the Quarter will be listed right here on our Web page.
Mr. Dan Norgail enthusiastically serves as a volunteer on both the Gallery and Facilities Teams. Dan has been volunteering and assisting Hill Aerospace Museum guests for more than 30 years! Dan’s latest contribution is performing custom woodworking for our Mazer Chapel restoration. Dan has spent many hours repairing and rebuilding wooden pews to original condition while maintaining the highest safety standards for our guests. He also continues to serve on our Gallery Team to educate and inspire Museum visitors by imparting Hill Air Force Base history with a cheerful attitude as well as providing guided tours and assisting museum staff with other educational offerings. Thank you, Dan, for your dedicated efforts to make our museum a truly remarkable guest experience.
Museum volunteer Amel “Bud” McGill graduated from Bloomington High School in 1970 and shortly thereafter joined the United States Air Force in January 1971. Bud trained as a reciprocating engine mechanic at Sheppard AFB, Texas. After completing his technical training, he received his first assignment Clark AFB, Philippines, where he worked on C-124 and C-118 aircraft. His next assignment was to Yokota AFB, Japan, maintaining C-118, C-54, T-29, and C-123 aircraft. Bud later changed careers as he cross trained in 1974 to Command and Control (Command Post). With his new skillset, Bud went on to serve with the 84th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and their F-106s at Castle AFB, California. His next assignment would send Bud back to the Pacific, where served in the U.S.S.A.G. Command Center, NKP, Thailand, in May 1975. Following that assignment, Bud went to the 388 Tactical Fighter Wing, Korat AB, Thailand. There, he maintained F-4 and A-7 aircraft through the end of the Vietnam War. After he left the area of operations, Bud then went to the 10th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing, R.A.F. Alconbury, United Kingdom, working on RF-4 and F-5 aggressor aircraft through 1978.
Bud moved to Hill AFB, Utah, in January 1979 to work on the first F-16 Fighting Falcons. Following his Hill AFB assignment, he went to Kaiser AFB, Missouri, in March 1984 to teach Command and Control. Amel finally retired from the USAF in September 1981.
Following his USAF retirement, Bud worked for the Job Corps and Carpenter Paper Company. Amel has enjoyed his stint as a Hill Aerospace Museum volunteer.
