Something new for me

Last year, I put in 100+ hours volunteering at our local nature center: Fenner Nature Center. (I spent more hours than that if you include all the time I spent with Nathan counting migrating birds, driving him to and from Fenner, and taking care of the new whiteboard for data collection.)  Nearly all of that work was done in the outdoors and I had a glorious time doing it.  Work days were on Sunday.  When we left in August to go camping in the U.P., I actually missed my volunteer time at Fenner (more than I ever missed going to church when we quit, ironically).


But, it's winter and since there aren't as many work days scheduled in the winter and since I'm unsure I want to be out in such cold temps, I decided to sign up to volunteer inside.

The Programs Manager, Katie, said she thought I'd be a good fit in the office. So, office it is for me.  I'm scheduled from 10-2 each Friday.

This past Friday was my first shift.  I'll be answering phones, greeting visitors, answering questions, and scheduling.  This past Friday I actually got to shovel snow and organize file folders.  I feel unqualified for most of this (not the shoveling!), but over time, I'll become qualified.

Nathan and I are signed up to take a Conservation Stewards class starting on February 23rd.  This class involves 40 hours of class time, including days in the field.  We will also be designing and carrying out 40 hours of service work that is conservation-minded.

It's going to be busy, but I'm pretty excited about these new developments!