Gini Reineke has volunteered at the Shawano County Historical Society for seven years.
She was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana, the daughter in a military family that traveled extensively. Reineke graduated from Beaver Dam High School, and then earned a degree in history from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. She worked for the State Historical Society for a short time and then traveled to schools around Wisconsin in the History Mobile for two years with her husband of 43 years, David.
She stayed home with her children and until they were in school, then went back to school and got a degree in teaching learning disabilities from UW-Oshkosh. She taught six years in Gillett and then 22 years in Shawano before retiring.
The couple lives in Shawano and have two children and one grandchild whom she watches two nights a week in Green Bay. Reineke also volunteers for the Shawano Literacy Council.
Q How long have you volunteered with the Shawano County Historical Society?
A “It’s been seven years. I was recruited. My name was given to Darlene Heller and I just plowed ahead. Effective the 31st of August, I’m retiring.”
Q What do you do?
A “I’m the museum director. I did a lot of archive work. I was in charge of every artifact in every building. I also closed up the buildings at the end of the season. I would clean them in the spring and then open them. There are six buildings. I make a point of being here on the day the archives are open. I painted, shoveled snow, planted flowers, scrubbed toilets, washed dishes, made garment bags, organized files, wrote guide scripts, researched and wrote short story articles for newsletters, researched items to catalog, and gave tours. ”
Q How has Heritage Park changed since you’ve been here?
A “We’ve added the depot, the church, and acquired the archive building. As for my part in it, except for a few items, every artifact has been inventoried or catalogued. In all the buildings I am restricted by size. I like to change things every year just to keep it fresh. The dairy building I left for last. It was almost like a clean slate. Jesse Borlen and I completely redid the interior. I couldn’t have done it without him. The hard part of the job is done. I think attendance has improved considerably since I started, but there is always room for improvement. The depot has put us on the map. It’s been featured nationally in magazines. Dean Proper has asked me to take care of the depot so I will be depot manager.”
Q Why do you volunteer?
A “I love history. I love these old things. It was a great learning experience for me. I had to learn how to date clothing and un-mildew books and how to operate on a shoestring budget.”
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