On The Hill Gallery is located in historic Yorktown on Main Street.
I have been a member of Yorktown Arts Foundation (YAF) and a participating artist at On The Hill Gallery for more than six years. I don't remember the actual date. I've been so deeply involved in the organization that it feels as if it was always home.
On The Hill Gallery is YAF's retail arm, and run completely by volunteers. YAF promotes arts in and around York County, and sells the work of its juried artists in the Gallery, which is located in historic Yorktown. After I first joined, I started out selling my work and volunteering to staff the gallery once a month to get a better break on my commission. Then I got a call from the then-Chair of the Gallery Committee, asking me to join them. She was very persuasive so I said, "Yes."
We organized shows. We discussed how to get more volunteers to staff the Gallery (pretty much all the time). We shared stories and laughed a lot. People dropped off; others were recruited to join. I volunteered to be "acting" chair, and last year took the job officially.
It's a lot of work to keep the Gallery and Foundation going; sometimes it's a little messy. Everyone does their part as well as they can and most of the time it comes together in the end.
When I said "Yes" those years ago, I could not have imagined what I would get in return. I was welcomed into a community of artists. I felt the satisfaction of contributing to something greater than myself. I have made friends with wonderful people, who have helped me be a better person and artist.
I am grateful for everyone who I work with to keep everything going. I also invite other artists to join YAF and become part of our community. Now I'm off to a meeting...