GLADSTONE — During the final weekend in January, the Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum staff were able to celebrate the hard work of the many volunteers who help operate the Big Shoal Heritage Area at the annual volunteer luncheon.

The volunteers can be found giving tours, working in the heirloom garden or the Big Shoal Farm, helping with education programs, planning and working at special events and more.

Marye Newman, museum manager, said there are more than 50 volunteers who give around 4,000 hours annually.

“We are so lucky to have so many dedicated volunteers, and their hours add up quickly,” she said. “Truly, we could not do what we do at the museum without them.”

Volunteer Rita Miller received the Freedom Frontier National Heritage Area’s Volunteer Appreciation Certification at the luncheon.

Freedom’s Frontier National Heritage Area is one of the 62 national heritage areas, which are designated areas of historic, cultural, and national significance by Congress. The FFNHA, which the museum is a partner site for, partners with cultural sites across 41 counties on the Missouri-Kansas border.

“This year, Rita Miller was the volunteer chosen for the Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum due to her many years of hard work volunteering with the museum,” Newman said.

Miller serves on multiple committees for the Friends of the Atkins-Johnson Farm and Museum and is the secretary of the board, manages the volunteer schedule at the museum, assists with the museum’s collection care, volunteers her time in the museum and at events onsite, helps with field trips, has organized multiple cleanups of the property with local geo-cachers and more.

“She is also one of the first ones to jump in if I or anyone else at the museum needs assistance. She is a true asset for both us and the community, as Rita is an active volunteer beyond our walls,” Newman said.