Our first annual Gold Country Youth Business Fair at Columbia State Historic Park wasn’t just a place where kids sold cool stuff. It was a powerful showcase of courage, creativity, and the spirit of entrepreneurship. With 24 booths and many young minds in action, this event highlighted the real impact that programs for young entrepreneurs can make in local communities.

A Youth Business Fair With Purpose

Unlike traditional business fairs, the Gold Country Youth Business Fair was the culmination of a structured youth entrepreneurship program offered by KidBiz Hub—something any of my previous fairs in Morgan Hill didn’t have. This year, we paired real-world business experience with hands-on learning through our program. It became clear how valuable this approach is: kids who went through our program weren’t just guessing how to run a business—they came really prepared (super proud of them, btw!).

How KidBiz Hub Was Born

My personal journey as a mom, creative entrepreneur, and homeschooling parent sparked something unexpected. In 2019, I hosted a small summer class called Big Ideas Start Small. It was a basic business workshop for kids. I had no idea it would evolve into a community movement.

By 2021, I launched the first Morgan Hill Children’s Business Fair. Four years later, KidBiz Hub was born—offering structured programs for young entrepreneurs. Today, we’re proud to bring that vision to life through events like the Gold Country Youth Business Fair.

Mindset Over Money: The KidBiz Philosophy

At KidBiz Hub, we believe youth entrepreneurship is about mindset, not just money. Our mission is to help kids develop:

• Problem-solving skills
• Grit and resilience
• Financial literacy and smart money habits
• Confidence in public speaking
• Courage to fail and try again
• Independence and self-worth
• A love for real-life learning

These aren’t just business skills—they’re life skills.

Why Programs for Young Entrepreneurs Matter

These young vendors didn’t just show up. Some completed our full KidBiz Hub course, earning certificates for mastering business fundamentals. Our program takes students from idea to execution: developing a business plan, designing branding, creating websites, and even practicing public speaking and pitching. Unlike many simulation-based courses, we prioritize real-world experience.

Participants pitched to live judges, faced real-time feedback, and even competed in the open marketplace. Through it all, they learned one of the most powerful lessons: failing is part of learning—especially when done in a safe, supportive environment.

Celebrating Youth Entrepreneurship

With the help of three engaged judges and a supportive crowd, the fair became a fun, competitive learning arena. We offered cash prizes in two age brackets (8–12 and 13–16) and gave out special awards for creativity, innovation, and presentation. These young entrepreneurs truly rose to the occasion, proving that kids can thrive when given the right tools and platform.

Powered by Community

None of this would be possible without our community. From Mother Lode Job Training providing classroom space, Friends of Columbia helping us secure an amazing Columbia State Historic Park venue, to sponsors like Black Oak Casino Resort – our top tier sponsor. We received an amazing media support from Calaveras Enterprise, the Union Democrat and Sonora Living.
I also want to give a special shout out to the Calaveras Community TV – where we filmed our sponsors’ interviews – head over to our YouTube channel to watch them. This event was a true team effort. Every volunteer, donor, and shopper helped bring this vision to life. Together, we created something that uplifts youth and unites local families.

For the entire list of 2025 event’s sponsors head over to KidBiz Hub website.

Giving Back: Sierra Schole’s Big Win

One standout moment? We awarded a $500 donation to Sierra Schole in Murphys for sending the most student-run booths. This homeschooling co-op outperformed larger schools, proving that dedication, not size, determines impact. Giving back is part of our mission—and part of what sets KidBiz Hub apart from other programs for young entrepreneurs – we are leading the way in showing the youth what true community and networking within it is.

What’s Next for KidBiz Hub?

The Gold Country Youth Business Fair is only the beginning. We’re expanding with more programs for young entrepreneurs, including our StartUp Hub and Money Magic courses. Our long-term vision is to grow a generation of financially savvy, confident, and free young leaders—especially in underserved communities.

If you’re looking for meaningful programs for young entrepreneurs, KidBiz Hub is here to lead the way.

It’s a scorching, sunny day.. You’re wandering around Columbia State Historic Park when suddenly, you come across a small, wooden shack. A sign in front says ‘Portal Through Time!’ It doesn’t seem very impressive, and it probably doesn’t do anything.. You think, “What’s the worst that can happen?” So you step through and..
Everything has changed!! The streets are no longer deserted, and instead filled with crowds of people, hustling to and fro! But what’s this? These people.. what in the world are they wearing?? All of their clothes seem waaay outdated. You decide to look around and spot a wooden building, with a sign atop reading: “General Store.” All the produce are in odd wooden crates, and the person behind the counter greets you so strangely! “Good day to you! How may I assist you in our humble establishment?” She says merrily.
This certainly isn’t your normal Walmart! Nothing about this place is normal!! Where in the world are you!?!?!
More like WHEN in the world are you! You’re still in Columbia, only you’ve been transported to the Gold Rush days, almost 175 years ago!!

This is the magic of Diggins 1852, Columbia State Historic Park’s biggest event of the year!

How I learned about Diggins 1852

In May of 2023, I visited Columbia State Historic Park for the very first time, and I was blown away! 

My initial assumption as we stepped out of the car was that it’d just be some mediocre historical park with old buildings and some museums, nothing exciting. Boy was I in for a surprise 😉

Diggins was so much more than just some buildings and pictures from the old days; it was the old days. There were people of all ages walking about the streets, dressed as miners and merchants from the 1850’s. Tents and small buildings were set up where you could buy things like old-fashioned toys and games, baked goods, and sarsaparilla! There was even a theater, where you could watch a musical, and a post office were you could write letters with those fancy schmancy ink pens and stamp them with wax! THE LIST GOES ON!!

I was seriously impressed, and, seeing other kids my age, wondered if I could take part in the event as well!

And thus began the journey of how my mom, sister and I (I dragged those two along) became official Columbia Docents! 

Participating in Diggins of 2024!

Finally, In May of 2024, we stepped out of the car, fully dressed in our own fancy 1850’s dresses, ready to participate in Diggins! Not just as visitors, but as the people in costume! We made it!!

Eeeeeeeeeeee!!!! (I was super excited, but also somewhat nervous!)

The bakery was the first place we were going to work while volunteering at Diggins 1852. There, we were selling lemonade, sugar cookies, fresh bread, scones, and more!! I remember, when I was at Diggins as a visitor, I wanted to get something from the bakery so bad, but sadly we didn’t 🙁
Although the next year, when we participated as docents, I did end up getting to try some of the pastries! Win-win!

Kids in the old days may not have had water balloon fights, but who says we couldn’t have simple water fights? At the end of the Diggins days, my sister and I were throwing water at each other and some of our other friends. We all ended up soaked and muddy, but it was a nice refresher from the scorching weather!

Also, apparently my sister and I frown too much–some very melancholy gentleman selling apples told us to smile more. Thanks apple guy 🍎 👍

There were some other fun aspects of Diggins 1852 as well. On one day, around noon, the militia came marching out, raised the flag, and shot into the air. It was loud, but really awesome to witness. Additionally, there was a fight! If I remember correctly, someone had cheated while gambling and got caught! It was quite entertaining to watch!!

It’s impossible to put into words just how vibrant and immersive Diggins is. Thinking back to the water fights and Mr. Apple Guy always brings a smile to my face! Writing this blog post has made me remember just how much I loved being there 🙂

The next Diggins event will be this May, so if you want to experience just how lively and enjoyable this historical reenactment is in person, mark up your calendars and join the fun!

Now, I’m gonna let you in on a little secret.. 🤫 If you become a docent and participate in Diggins.. yougetdeliciousvanillaicecream!! SHHHH you didn’t hear it from me!!

Resources

1. Friends of Columbia State Historic Park Website
2. California Department of Parks and Recreation
3. Columbia State Historic Park Events
4. How to Become a Volunteer For CSHP

As you know, I’m a huge supporter of the Future Filmmakers Club and a co-founder of KidBiz Hub. Exciting things are happening with both.

Future Filmmakers Club 1st (and 2nd) Big Production

This was one of the biggest and most professional projects the Club got involved with so far. And they did awesome! Watch it yourself and let me know what you think. We are hoping for more of these video interviews in the future. The park was super excited about the opportunity to get in front of the homeschooling community and to work with our local youth, as they are very eager to bring more young people to their docent program

The group has also helped me to record a photography tutorial last week. I’ll be sharing the video with the KidBiz Hub group during a class about branding photography. Feel free to bring your budding photographer to that class on February 7th. 

It’s never too late to join the Club. It’s an ongoing project happening twice a week, Mondays and Thursdays! This year, the Club will be working on a special movie. They will have mentors coming to the Club and sharing their knowledge about filmmaking with the group. The goal for this moving is to be submitted to a variety of film festivals.

I’m super excited for them! 

Now let’s move on to the second BIG THING we have going on around Gold Country for our homeschoolers (and not only!).

Gold Country Youth Business Fair got an AWESOME venue! 

Behind the scenes at KidBiz Hub, we’ve been working tirelessly on a major inaugural event: the Gold Country Youth Business Fair.

This one-day event will provide young entrepreneurs with a safe and encouraging environment to showcase their businesses. During the fair participating kids will sell their products and services to the community.

After months of anticipation we’re thrilled to announce that we’ve been accepted to host the event at the Columbia State Historic Park! This victory may have come with a few more silver hairs, but it’s absolutely worth it.

We’ll be opening the registrations soon, so stay tuned if you have a young entrepreneur in your family! This event is for them!

Meantime make sure to visit our website: www.kidbizhub.com and follow us on FB and Instagram.

And just like that the vision for 2025 became a very productive one. I can’t wait to see the fruits of it. So many awesome events. So many awesome plans. So many awesome people!

Thank you for reading!

Or maybe, you’re the one operating the cameras, or the director.

You could even be the editor, putting the whole film together, adding music, sound effects, and everything needed to complete an award-winning masterpiece.

Well, I’m part of a club that provides filmmaking classes for youth where they get a chance to do all of that. The Future Filmmaker Club was established to nurture and grow the creativity and growth mindsets of the next generation. At Future Filmmakers, we write scripts, work with professional equipment to film and act out scenes, and edit them all together with editing software that was used to make famous classics like Avatar, Deadpool, and even one of the Terminator movies. You can do all of that too, for FREE.

Free filmmaking classes for youth!

Future Filmmakers Club is a youth club where kids can come in, work with professional equipment, and make friends! We’ve had kids from ages 9 to 14 come into the studio!
At FF Club, we’ve written scripts and learned about different shots and camera angles, mood, the hero’s journey, working with cameras, editing, and more! 

Future Filmmakers is in San Andreas and operates from a small studio called CCTV or Paul Moeller Public Access TV Studio. The club takes place two times a week, on Mondays from 4pm-6pm and on Thursdays from 2pm-4pm

One day, we even stood in front of the City Council Board Members during the monthly meeting and spoke about our experiences with the Future Filmmakers Club and how it is really a valuable resource to the community.

What do we do at the Future Filmmaker Club?

During almost every meeting at Future Filmmakers, we get to work in front of or behind cameras. Sometimes, we film talk show episodes where we talk about local events and news, hobbies, and whatnot. On other occasions, we’ll cook up a quick script, grab the field cameras, film a 1-5 minute skit, and then we edit it on the same day! It’s extremely fun to think of scenes, script, and especially edit the blooper-reel! 

That brings us to editing… At the Filmmaker Club, we’ve learned how to use Adobe Premiere Pro to edit and put together our creations! We also learn to use sound effects, add voice overs, and music. We are getting familiar with Canva to make logos and slideshows for our projects.

UpNext – Youth Talkshow

During one of our meetings, me and my sister were the only ones to show up. So, we decided we’d try something new. We wanted to make a talk show, so we spent the meeting coming up with a name and a logo, and eventually, we did! Our idea was called ‘UpNext,’ and we made multiple versions of possible logos on Canva. Since then, as well as making little skits, we’ve made lots of episodes of UpNext, but we’ve yet to post them. We’re hoping to start recording them live soon.

Join Us!

The Future Filmmaker Club is an amazing free resource for our community, and I absolutely love going there every week. Right now, our group is small, with around 6 kids on Mondays and 5 on Thursdays. We’re always looking for more members!

Do you remember when I said we stood in front of the City Council and spoke about the Club? Well, thanks to that the studio also received a grant in September from the city, and with that money, we’ll be working on a project to enter into the 2025 summer festival video contest! We’ll be buying props, costumes, and all the things needed to start creating our OWN award-winning masterpiece!

Since my mom is the one who helped to initiate the whole program, here on Mom Photographer we have a page dedicated to the Future Filmmaker Club where you can sign up your child and she will send you more details about it. Or you can contact the studio directly.

And here is a short “promo” video we made during one of our meetings. Hope watching it will inspire you to bring your child to the next FF Club, so I can make more friends!

Other blogs by Momphotographer & Co…
1. https://momphotographer.org/zombelina/intro-to-the-money-smart-teen-serie
2. https://momphotographer.org/uncategorized/2-week-trip-around-poland
3. https://momphotographer.org/family-stories/welcome-to-mom-photographer-2-0

If you’ve read some of my earlier posts, you know I am a docent at the Columbia State Historic Park, and this post will be about another special event organized by the park.

Drumroll, please… BOO BOULEVARD – an awesome Halloween event for the entire family!

What is Boo Boulevard?

Boo Boulevard is an excitingly spppooooky Trick or Treating event that takes place every year in October. 

This spooktastic event offers an exciting opportunity for families and friends to come together and have a good time with candy, music, and fun, all completely free of charge! As you walk along the street, you’ll find fun Halloween-themed activities (pssst, some of them give you CANDY), as well as face painting and craft making!

A few more additions to Boo Boulevard are the Zombie Dance, Jack-O-Lantern contest, Halloween Parade, and don’t forget to come dressed up in your costume so you can participate in the Costume Contest!!

Lots of CANNNDYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!

Candy!!! Let’s be honest, candy is one of the trademark qualities of Halloween, so how could you put on a good Halloween event without it? And lemme tell ya, at Boo Boulevard, there is candy EVERYWHERE. And a lot of it too. Last year, we arrived early to help set up, and they had TUBS full of BAGS of candy. And, guess what, by the end, they had nothing left. CRAZY!!!

Last year, my sister worked at one of the activities, where you could FISH for CANDY. Imagine just going to a lake to do some fishing and you end up with a bag full of candy. That’s almost as awesome as catching a wishes-granting fish 🤪

The contests!!

I mentioned the Jack-O-Lantern contest and Costume Contest earlier, right? Well, let me tell you more about them.

Jack-O-Lantern – For this event, you have to carve and create your very own Pumpkin Masterpiece! And it doesn’t just have to be a pumpkin with cool carvings.. Last year, someone carved it out to look like a carriage. They put wheels on it, they even had horses and dolls with it! That one was one of my favorites. You can enter the contest for free, and there is no sign-up required. You just design your pumpkin, and bring it to Boo Boulevard!

Costume Contest – Absolutely anyone can participate in this one. All you have to do is show up to the event in costume, and be there when the Costume Contest begins at 5pm! They have different categories people can vote on.  

We Hope to See You There!!

This year, Boo Boulevard will take place on October 26th, so mark your calendars! Don’t forget to bring your costumes and candy bags and get ready to have a great time!! We can’t wait to see you there, as my mom and I will be there this year, too! 😉

More Information About Columbia SHP:

1. Friends of Columbia State Historic Park Website

2. California Department of Parks and Recreation

3. Columbia State Historic Park Events

Click here if you’d like to become a docent at CSHP yourself!

To check out my previous posts about Columbia, click these links:

1. The 2023 Sonora Christmas Parade From a Bear Perspective

2. Visiting the incredible Columbia State Historic Park

3. What’s a Gold Trek and how I got involved

Well, a bunch of 4th graders got to experience that all through March in Columbia Historical State Park. My mom, my sister, and I got to be the ones selling them supplies!

A little while ago, probably in February, one of our docent friends at Columbia State Historical Park told us about an event called Gold Trek. She asked us if we wanted to volunteer this year, and we said yes! And here the story begins…

What is Gold Trek All About?

Gold Trek is an event where 4th graders from local schools and schools from the Bay Area come to Columbia State Historical Park and act as if they were miners heading for the gold mines. 

Each class is divided into groups with about 5 students each, and each group starts off with 30 Eagles, which are little gold coins that the students use as currency.

Everyone starts at the beginning, where:

• A doctor is selling a First aid kit,
• a Map Maker selling maps (who would’ve guessed?),
• a Bakery selling jerky, dried fruit, beans, and hardtack, and
• a Merchant selling rope, blankets, pickaxes, shovels, shotguns, gold pans, wheelbarrows, and wagons.

After the students bought what they needed, they would continue down the road until they reached River Crossing. The volunteers at the River Crossing station would roll a dice to decide whether or not the travelers made it safely across the river.

The next station is Letters & Lemons, where the volunteers will try and sell the students… letters and lemons!

In the 1850’s many miners caught a disease called scurvy along their journey, and the lemons helped fight scurvy. The letters contained a message from the traveler’s “family”, and I can’t really tell what was inside of it.

Further down the road, there was the Gold Grease station, which was just a scam. They would also try and convince the travelers to take the shortcut, but if they only read the letter… Oh well.

After that, a volunteer with a ‘broken ankle’ needed help, and the students could decide whether or not to help him. 

Then came the end, where the students would be ‘graded’ on how well they did. And if they wanted to, they could go pan for gold, too.

In a way, this event tested the students’ teamwork and gave them a chance to buy and trade for necessities.

Lots of decision-making. Team building. Leadership skills practicing opportunities. Great event for all of us!

Preparing For Gold Trek

As the docents helping to organize this event, we needed to have period costumes to wear. A few weeks after we found out about the event, we went to the Costume Resource Center the park has for its volunteers. Each of us got a dress and a SUPER cool coat. These clothes were made to fit the 1850 time period and would be very expensive if we were to lose them or destroy them. For example, my costume had a total value of 775$!

I’m pretty sure all three of us accidentally put the dresses on backward when we were first trying them on. 😂

Our Experiences Volunteering In Gold Trek

Our first time going to Gold Trek was March 7. When we arrived, we put on our costumes and walked around, finding where our stations would be. My sister and I got to be at the station Letters & Lemons, while our mom was at the very beginning. 

Since it was our first time, and our mom wasn’t there with us, my sister and I were slightly nervous. But when the first group of 4th graders arrived, and we did our little speech about the letters and lemons we were selling, we realized it wasn’t really that bad, and actually quite fun!

On the second week, I got too sick to go, but my mom and sister went and worked at the Letters & Lemons stations again. On the third week, however, all three of us went and worked at the Bakery, where we were selling jerky, dried fruit, beans, and hardtack to the 4th graders!

Me and my sister had a competition where whoever had the most eagles in their cup by the end of the event would win. My sister ended up winning by like, 20 eagles, so oh well…

One of the things I noticed was that some of the groups of 4th graders would come back to the Bakery, after they had bought everything else they needed for their journey, and spend the rest of their eagles on food. What they didn’t know, was they would need those eagles later on.

Conclusion

All in all, this event was one of the funniest we’ve participated in since becoming a docent at the Columbia State Historic Park.

The event that I’ve been most excited about is… Diggins!! 

In May of 2023, our mom brought us to Columbia after learning that there was an exciting historic event going on in this old town. What I saw wasn’t just some old buildings from the 1800s, but a living town. A portal to the past.

People were panning for gold, baking bread in a furnace, ironing clothing, casually walking around the town, and so much more

I can’t wait to be able to participate in the very event that started our journey of volunteering at Columbia. That event is coming up again in 4 weeks! Mark the calendar and make a day trip to Columbia on one of these dates.

I felt so inspired by the event and was left wondering if I could participate as an actor, and here we are! Can’t wait to write another blog about my experience at Diggins from the perspective of a volunteer and not a visitor.

If you haven’t already, go check out my first posts about our lovely state park:

1. The 2023 Sonora Christmas Parade From a Bear Perspective

2. Visiting the incredible Columbia State Historic Park

If you’d like to learn more about the Columbia State Historic Park, click these:

1. Friends of Columbia State Historic Park Website

2. California Department of Parks and Recreation

3. Columbia State Historic Park Events

Click here is you’d like to become a docent at CSHP yourself!

In my last post, I talked about my adventures visiting Columbia State Historic Park. In the future, I will talk more in detail about how after visiting the Diggins we got involved with the park and already volunteered in a few of their events. For now, I’ll talk about the Sonora Christmas Parade from my bear perspective and let you in on the behind-the-scenes of being a State Park docent. 

How We Became THE BEARS!!

As a docent of the Columbia State Park, you can help the park to prepare for, organize, or even be a part of all their events – and they do a lot!!! 

Somewhere in November, after we graduated from the docent training, we went to Columbia to help decorate the float that would be representing the Columbia State Historic Park in the annual Sonora Christmas Parade. While decorating, I found out that a bear was wanted for hire!

– What?!?! 

Yep, the park ranger, Caleb, told me they are looking for someone to be an inflatable bear and walk next to the float in the parade. 

Now THAT sounded like my kinda fun. 

When my sister saw me in the costume she was like, 

-“OMG I want to be one, too!”

-“Well, as a matter of fact,” – said Caleb, park ranger – “we have one more costume! You want it?”

And that’s how my sister and I got hired to bear represent California State Parks in the Sonora Christmas Parade. 

When we were all dressed up in the costumes we ended up racing each other! @Zombelina ended up falling, and as I looked back to see what was happening, she was up and running again. We ended up tying. ANyWAY! Let’s talk about the actual parade.

The BEAR-TASTIC Parade!!

The parade is located in Sonora and is an annual event that takes place the day after Thanksgiving. This year there were a total of 108 entries. That is the most entries the Sonora Christmas Parade has ever received!

When we arrived in Sonora, we helped add the finishing touches to our float and tried on our bear costumes again. While we were waiting to start moving, we got to enjoy some DELICIOUS hot chocolate and apple cider. Which was really nice because it was so cold out, and the drinks were soooo warm.

When we started moving, I realized how difficult it would be to keep track of where I was. Since I was in the bear costume, my sight was limited and I could only see straight ahead of me. As we reached the crowds, I would wave at everyone, and then turn back to see if I was still by the Columba State Park banner. 

It was quite a fun experience, although my arms were very sore from continuously waving.. But hey! I got a hive five AND a hug!!

By the end of the event, I was sweaty, cold, and sore. Honestly, though, it was totally worth it to have participated in that event. My sister made a cool video about our experience in the parade.

And here are more pictures my mom took.

The Joy of Being a Docent

Joining events like the Sonora Christmas Parade isn’t the only awesome thing about being a docent at Columbia, you also make FRIENDS!!

Through Columbia, another docent invited us to a book club, where we were introduced to kids our age. And we actually made friends! I’M SO HAPPY WE DECIDED TO BECOME DOCENTS!! I am so looking forward to participating in more events.

Come Join Other Events Columbia Hosts!!

The Sonora Christmas Parade isn’t organized by Columbia State Park, we just participated in an event that has been Sonor’s tradition for the last 40 years. The State Park itself hosts many fun events throughout the year. I included some links at the bottom of this post for you to explore what is on their calendar. They are super interactive and engaging, like the Diggins. I highly encourage you to visit Columbia for one of the events! Make it a fun family weekend out to the historical Gold Rush County. Let me know when you’re in town. We would love to meet and show you around! 

Here are a few links to a list of all of Columbia’s events, and more!!

1. Friends of Columbia State Historic Park Website
2. California Department of Parks and Recreation
3. Columbia State Historic Park Events

Hope to see you there!

Click this to get to the page where you can sign up to be a docent yourself!

Momphotographer & Co. wishes you a Merry Christmas!!

Do you ever crave a break from the modern hustle and bustle, longing for a taste of history and adventure? If you share a fasciation for the days when prospectors roamed the hills in search of glittering gold, then let me take you on a journey to Columbia State Historic Park—a town that time forgot but history remembers.

Discovering the Diggins 1852

When I was in public school, the only history I ever learned about was the California Gold Rush… Little did I know that one day, I would find myself immersed in the very heart of that historic era. On May 21, 2023, my family and I went to the Diggins event at Columbia State Historic Park, expecting a typical glimpse into the past. What awaited me was beyond my wildest expectations.

So much more than I thought

Columbia wasn’t just a collection of preserved buildings and dusty artifacts; it was a living, breathing testament to the 1850s. As I wandered through the town, I passed by many individuals dressed in authentic 1850s attire, their speech and actions transporting me back in time. It wasn’t merely a reenactment; it was a full-blown immersion into the Gold Rush era.

Up close demonstration of the tools of the era

One striking scene involved a lady wielding an ollldd iron from the 1800s. Crafted entirely from iron, she explained how it functioned—placed over an open flame to heat up, much like our modern irons. Witnessing this live demonstration amidst a crowd, I couldn’t help but marvel at the resilience and resourcefulness of those who lived during the Gold Rush.

Becoming a park helper

Enchanted by the experience, a question lingered in my mind: Could I be a part of this living history? Seeking an answer, I turned to my mother, who shared the possibility of becoming a docent—a volunteer role within state parks. The concept of donning period clothing and immersing myself in the Gold Rush lifestyle instantly captivated me.

For months, the idea of becoming a docent lingered in the back of my mind. It wasn’t until one unexpected morning that my mom enthusiastically revealed, “SO YEA I SIGNED YOU UP FOR THAT DOCENT THINGY :-)” My initial hesitation melted away when I learned that both my sister and mom would join me on this adventure. Suddenly, the prospect of volunteering as a docent in Columbia seemed like a family affair.

As the days unfolded, excitement bubbled within me, anticipating the events and activities that awaited me as a member, not just a visitor. In my next post, I’ll share the details of my docent training process, recounting the steps that led me to earn the coveted title of a Columbia docent.

Stay tuned for my adventures as a docent!

Join me on this journey through time, and who knows, you might be inspired to embark on your own adventure to Columbia State Historic Park, where history comes to life in the most enchanting way possible. Don’t miss out—it’s a trip you won’t regret.

Resources

1. Friends of Columbia State Historic Park Website
2. California Department of Parks and Recreation
3. Columbia State Historic Park Events
4. How to Become a Volunteer For CSHP

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