One dreary afternoon in Butte, I was working at the front desk on the ground floor of my service site, the Clark Chateau. It was sprinkling outside and something about the dampness had kept the usual trickle of tourists away. Still, working in a historical building is rather enchanting. On quiet days like that day, it often feels as though I’m a resident of some ancient castle. In fact, the Clark Chateau is likely modeled after the Château de Vizille, in Southwestern France. This Chateau, though, is a comparatively modest four-story mansion built in 1898 by a mining baron and is somewhat of a beloved oddity in Butte.

On this particular afternoon, my service tasks were interrupted by a quiet knock at the second glass door of three that historically separated the richly paneled foyer and parlor from the harsh conditions of Butte’s industrial streets. The doors are unlocked now on days that the Chateau is open to the public. When I went to see who it was, I didn’t see anyone at first. Suddenly two young boys appeared from behind the outermost heavy iron wrought door. They asked if they could come in to see the house because they live in an apartment across the street, and I let them in. They explored, and when they were leaving they had a very pressing question for me: whether or not this “castle” is haunted.

Throughout my service thus far, the same question has occurred to me. Butte, as a whole, feels haunted. Stories of the past are abundant here, and Butte is continually trying to repair environmental damage that lingers from the sometimes-ugly history of mining here, like a ghost. And when it comes to my service, I feel as though I work with ghosts of a different kind. I am working to preserve and continue another kind of history, or rather legacy. Before the Chateau was operated by the Butte-Silver Bow Public Archives, it was known as the Arts Chateau and hosts a long history of music and art. So, my efforts to build the Chateau’s capacity is in order to ensure that the Chateau remains as a vibrant part of Butte’s art scene. This fall, I have been working on different forms of fundraising, as well as doing outreach to get more people and especially children involved with Chateau programming. Specifically, the Chateau hosts a weekly after-school art program that provides kids with a space to express themselves and learn about art. It has operated on donations as a way to remain accessible for any Butte families that would like to participate. My fundraising work, through passive online fundraising as well as organizing a community pint night and a larger upcoming art auction fundraiser has been in an effort to keep programming accessible and to welcome more and more people into the Chateau, like these two neighborhood boys.

Although I feel surrounded by history here, service has also introduced me to so many new experiences. For one, this is my first job out of college. At first, I felt intimidated by an office job. I had only ever studied or worked in kitchens and hardware stores before coming to Butte for AmeriCorps. A “big girl job” felt like a huge jump. That sort of new experience sometimes feels really uncomfortable.

I am doing well now, and have continued challenging myself with new things, like a live drawing class at the Chateau. Through trial and error and little moments of apprehension, I have learned to make a rough figural sketch of the models, and to specify and correct the course from there until my drawing faithfully represents a model’s pose, until they change it for another one. I think drawing is a good analogy for how I have learned to take the new challenges that service brings me. I was first learning the history of the Chateau and the nonprofit’s shape, and now I feel myself continually editing my direction and work and correcting course until it hopefully resembles impactful work.

On some quiet weekday mornings, I feel something at the Chateau. It could be a ghost, or it could be the history around the third-floor staff bedroom-turned-office that I work in. Either way, I have come to learn that I have a responsibility to keep the legacy of the Chateau going, and to welcome living souls in past the intimidating doors.

While the boys were still standing there that afternoon and playing with the grand wooden spiraling banister, I reassured them that if there’s a ghost here, they’re a kind ghost. And for myself, if the Chateau is haunted, I hope that whatever haunts it appreciates the music that I play in my office every morning, and the work that I am trying to do.