My name is Emily, and I serve as the Habitat Stewardship AmeriCorps Member with the Nisqually Land Trust. My responsibilities include leading habitat restoration volunteer work parties once or twice a week and coordinating the site steward program, through which volunteers “adopt” a site to periodically monitor for human impacts, invasive plants, and other issues. I also spend over half my time in the field, serving with other staff and my fellow AmeriCorps member on environmental stewardship projects across the nearly 6,000 acres that Nisqually Land Trust owns.
In the past, I’ve volunteered for local community organizations many times, from attending one-off events at an animal shelter to helping out every week at a pollinator garden. I had great experiences with other volunteer coordinators who were enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and great at making me feel part of the group. When I started this position, I was excited to step into that role, to be the one recruiting volunteers and welcoming them into the Land Trust community, to be the one sharing what I know about the land we work on and the importance of protecting it. I hoped I would enjoy this part of my service, but I was nervous, too—I had never served as a volunteer coordinator before.
These past few months, my hope was validated. I discovered that volunteer coordination is something I would be happy to continue doing beyond my term in AmeriCorps. Each week I advertise events, recruit volunteers, and lead work parties—welcoming volunteers, introducing them to the task of the day, checking in and answering questions, and of course, handing out snacks.
Over these past few months, the volunteers I coordinate have contributed over five hundred hours of their time. They planted over two thousand trees and shrubs and removed dozens of garbage bags worth of invasive species and old plant protector tubes. The volunteers have a shared passion for the environment that is genuinely inspiring to be around, and each individual brings their own knowledge and experiences to the work we’re doing.
This November in particular, groups of volunteers came out to a field along the Nisqually River multiple days a week to plant native trees, shrubs, and wildflowers. It’s great to see familiar faces each time—from folks who’d been coming to work parties for years, to those who joined for planting this year and returned week after week. I love chatting with the volunteers I already know, hearing about what’s new in their lives as we work and learning from the expertise of those who have been doing this work longer than I have. I have a tremendous respect for those who choose to give their time, week after week, on rainy days and freezing ones, to help make the natural environment a bit better, tree by tree.
At the same time, a new face is always exciting. I love getting to know folks who haven’t worked with the Land Trust before, learning what motivated them to come out on a Wednesday or Saturday morning, and in turn, sharing what the Nisqually Land Trust does and explaining how the forest we’re restoring in that field along the shore will be important for the salmon, who need a shaded river with woody debris from fallen trees. I always enjoy taking new volunteers (and some returning ones!) down to the Nisqually after we finish planting for the day to share more about the river—from the needs of the salmon who live in it, to its dramatic erosion of the bank we’re standing on.
The accomplishments of all our volunteers are incredibly motivating. It’s so satisfying to look back at the rows and rows of plants that are in the ground at the end of the work party and announce that this morning, we’ve planted hundreds.
As one of four people on the field stewardship team at the Land Trust, it’s easy to see that we couldn’t tackle projects like that November planting without all the volunteers who chose to pitch in. I’m so glad I’ve had the opportunity to get to know these folks through my AmeriCorps position, and I look forward to many successful Wednesday and Saturday morning work parties in 2023, as we begin our next planting projects.