Dave West was interviewed by Joanne Gernstein on July 3, 1996. Born in Indiana in 1923, West served in the Army Air Corps in World War II. After the war, he worked for United Airlines in their Chicago offices and later for the Airline Trade Association in Washington, DC. He has been a Visitor Information & Associate Reception Center (VIARC) volunteer at the Smithsonian for the past ten years and works in the Castle and at the National Air and Space Museum. This interview discusses how and why West came to volunteer at the Smithsonian; his career in the airline industry; his first visit to the Smithsonian in the 1960s; his training and first day as a volunteer; changes in VIARC; his volunteerism compared to his career; stories about outstanding visitors; atypical day of work; his relationship with other volunteers, notably Irving Roth; challenges of volunteering; being a docent during the Enola Gay exhibit controversy; memories of Folklife Festivals; and Smithsonian staff Mary Grace Potter, Bill Blandy, and Roberta Buchanan.

Object Details

See more items in: Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews; Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews / Interviews

Collection Citation: Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 9594, Smithsonian Memories Project, Festival of American Folklife Oral History Interviews