Shalika Robinson’s love affair with photography began at the tender age of ten when she discovered the Bermuda National Gallery’s Youth Camera Action (YCA) programme.

What she did not know back then was that the photojournalism course would lead to a long-lasting relationship with the gallery, which has resulted in her being named Volunteer of the Year.

Not only has the 17-year-old schoolgirl given her spare time to help others through the YCA, she is a graduate of the Student Docent and Museum Studies programmes, and sits on the gallery’s Youth Council, helping to generate projects that give the Island’s young people a creative voice.

Ms Robinson said that she loved the YCA course so much that she continued to enrol every summer.

When she was 14 the course leader, Dany Pen, was so impressed by her enthusiasm that she asked her if she would be interested in helping her to teach the programme.

The Berkeley Institute student jumped at the chance but, when sponsorship ran out last year, the gallery found itself short of funds to pay instructors on top of the money it needed for supplies.

The budding photographer decided to offer her services for free — after all, it was what she loved doing best in her spare time.

“I said I would just come in and told them that they don’t really have to pay me,” Ms Robinson said. “I didn’t think of it that much because I love YCA, I love being there, so I came in every day and I did the hours.

“You help to teach the students the basics of photography and you also give them a little photojournalism.

“We give them a journal and get them to record what they feel, what they learn and what they do throughout the course.

“It’s a great programme; I loved it. I remember when I first started, I loved nature and all I did was take pictures of flowers and trees. Some of my favourite places to go were Tom Moore’s Jungle, the Botanical Gardens and Spittal Pond — I love that place.

“I also loved aperture — that was the main setting on my camera I used.”

As part of her work with the Student Docent programme, Ms Robinson interacts with gallery visitors, encouraging them to interpret the art around them while offering some interpretations of her own.

She is very active on the Youth Council and has worked on several projects in the community, including the Youth Film Festival, which features local filmmakers.

Regarding her work with the council, Ms Robinson said: “We want to make a change in the community that actually matters. Recently, we thought of doing a cultural fashion show to show all the different cultures in Bermuda.

“We took that a little bit further and said, ‘Instead of just doing a fashion show, we should do a panel discussion on the different cultures and also incorporate art into that’. So maybe a slide show of different cultures in Bermuda and give the youth a voice on how we feel about cultures.

“One aspect looks at the hostility between some of the cultures and people, like the PLP march [over Permanent Residents’ Certificate holders getting Bermudian status] in the summer. One of my kids got really upset in that march because her family are PRCs, but they have been in Bermuda for so long. She went inside and cried. It’s things like that that some of the adults don’t realise, that marches have an impact on the children. They do.”

Despite her keen involvement in the Bermuda National Gallery over the past few years, Ms Robinson was not expecting to receive recognition for her work.

“When I first got the e-mail that I had won the award, I thought it must be a joke,” she said. “I do community service but I didn’t know if anyone noticed me. When I saw that the e-mail came through to my personal e-mail, and it came from Dany [Pen], I realised it was true.

“I was really taken aback because I didn’t think those weeks I put in were much — it meant something to me to be with those kids, teaching them and showing them photography. I actually cried. I started crying it was such a thrill. I was surprised.

Asked how the experience of giving has affected her life, she said: “I made many friends and Dany is like a second mom to me.

“I have learned so many life lessons, I have seen myself mature. I look back and see how I was so much younger back then.

“I actually thank Dany every day for this opportunity because I don’t know where I would be without the programme.”