Keeping up with modern day safety regulations while maintaining the look and feel of the 18th-century at Colonial Williamsburg can pose challenges, but Karen Stone is up to the task.
Stone has been the environmental health and safety director for the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation for the past two years. She works with employees in all departments to ensure the safety of all employees and guests.
“My job is quite interesting,” she said. “No day is the same.”
Stone consults often with employees who work in costume design to assist with making safety shoes, safety glasses, hearing apparatuses, hats and other safety equipment that meets requirements set forth by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The catch: Interpreters’ clothing must appear as though they were made for the colonial era.
“It’s a huge challenge,” Stone said. “The costume designers are helpful in providing what we need to meet the level of protection for today’s standards while keeping with tradition.”
More recently, Stone had to address safety concerns related to the new axe-throwing range at Colonial Williamsburg as well as the new Patriots at Play summer program for children.
“With the axe-throwing range, I am not only concerned about employee safety, but also guest safety,” she said. “What would happen if someone slipped on the grass or if one of the heads of the axes fell off? With the Patriots at Play, for example, I had to think about how they would make clay marbles that were big enough so that a child couldn’t put one in his or her mouth. We want all our employees and guests to be safe during their time here.”
Stone was a nurse at Williamsburg Community Hospital downtown for years. Seeking a change, she joined Colonial Williamsburg as an occupational health specialist in 2005.
“I just felt it was a great opportunity for me to concentrate more on health and wellness,” Stone said.
Now, as the environmental health and safety director, Stone’s main duty is to ensure OSHA’s standards are met in all areas, along with regulations set forth by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Virginia Department of Transportation. Colonial Williamsburg employees go through rigorous safety training, which is different for each person depending on their profession.
“There is a lot of safety and awareness training, and it starts young,” Stone said. “The children in the fifes and drums, for example, must learn about safety related to their hearing.”
In addition, Stone works with first responders and those in the public safety department for first aid and safety and emergency preparedness plans related to visitors to the Historic Area.
She also instructs employees in hospitality and housekeeping on kitchen safety, including proper knife handling, and constantly reviews basic safety procedures with landscapers, tradespeople, and all other Colonial Williamsburg employees.
“Because there are so many people here with so many different talents, there are all sorts of things I have to think about on a daily basis,” Stone said. “What is unique about the safety department is that I work with all positions. I work with the brickmakers, the printers, the archeologists, the wheelwrights, the conservationists. I work with the people who work in the taverns on food safety and cross-contamination with people who have allergies. I work with the coach and livestock on safety related to working with animals. It’s all quite fascinating.”
Stone and the rest of the environmental health and safety department also focus on safety issues related to programming, lighting, stairwells, and walkways as well as handle accident investigations.
“Some of our buildings have unique stairwells,” she said. “Someone is out walking the grounds on a daily basis to make sure everything is okay and in working order.”
There seems to be no rest for Stone, who also assists the public safety department on large-scale events like Grand Illumination and Colonial Williamsburg’s Independence Day celebrations, but that suits her just fine, she said.
“We are very involved in those events when we know there will be a huge number of people in town,” she said. “It’s important to me that everyone is safe and goes home at the end of each day the same way they did when they arrived.”
