Thank you to all who replied to my query.   The advice from Ellen was
particularly useful as were the perspectives of others who have dealt with
similar situations. Thank you Indigo for the information on the charity
channel  that looks very helpful.

I still would try to avoid "firing" a volunteer, especially one who was
involved in the founding of the museum!    In a small Southern town, the
repercussions can reverberate for a very long time.

Training the new volunteers is the easy part.   At the museum in my example,
the staff seems to be doing an admirable job.    The "situation" with the few
volunteers who are so unhappy seems more to be about the fact that they are
not in charge completely and totally anymore.    They just don't want to let
go.

I think if they are given new jobs, perhaps that will challenge them and
change their focus a bit.    I always try to find what people like to do and
what they do best, then match those skills and interests with the needs of
the museum.    That way, everyone is happy.     Also, I've good luck with
using "shift captains" -- special volunteers who are highly skilled at
volunteering and human relations who are put in charge of teams of the other
volunteers during a specific time period.    These captains are often very
effective and take a lot of pressure off of the paid staff.  They handle the
small questions that frequently arise with the volunteers and the staff are
free to do their jobs!

Thanks again for your helpful advice,  Museum - Listers!

pamela sezgin

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