Meet YPC Member Jessica Provencher
What is your occupation?
I am part of the convention team with PDAC, which is the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada. Our Association puts on an annual convention and trade show, which is regarded as the premier international event for the mineral industry. It’s an exciting thing to be a part of.
What was the last book you read?
Plato at the Googleplex: Why Philosophy Won’t Go Away by Rebecca Goldstein. It is a very creative and imaginative book that shows how relevant philosophy still is. I would recommend it to anyone with a general interest in philosophy.
If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
I would have to say Love Shack by the B-52’s. It’s a silly, fun song. I am always in a much better mood after listening to it.
Where is your favourite place in the world?
My grandparent’s house on Manitoulin Island. The house is on a large plot of land surrounded by the forest. It’s a serene place and I have a lot of great memories there.
Why did you join YPC?
I joined the YPC because I have always loved the ROM and it’s a great way to help support it!
What do you like best about being a Young Patron of the ROM?
There are so many great things but the best thing is the annual behind-the-scenes tours with experts. I learn so much and it’s neat to see the places where ROM research is being done. I also like how the experts hang out after the tours so we can ask them questions, which is pretty cool.
Describe the ROM in one word.
Joy. The ROM provides so much joy to so many people.
Tell us one of your favourite ROM memories.
My favourite ROM memory just occurred last weekend at the YPC Dino Prep Workshop. We went on a tour of the Palaeontology Lab in the Louise Hawley Stone Curatorial Centre and helped to prepare a real dinosaur fossil. It was an amazing, once-in-a-lifetime experience and I really enjoyed it! I will be sharing this with everyone I meet for years to come, my poor husband will probably get pretty tired of hearing this story, lol.
What do you love most about the ROM?
I love how it brings people together. I really started to notice this more once I started volunteering as a Gallery Interpreter. I meet all different groups visiting the ROM and they all have that sense of wonderment and amazement the ROM instills in people. It definitely transcends.
If you could have anything from the ROM’s collections, what would you choose?
I would have to go with the Greek head of Aphrodite. It is really beautiful and I am absolutely amazed that someone can take a chunk of marble and create such an intricately detailed face and to be able to give the hair that kind of detail too. It’s astounding to me.