VOLUNTEERING WORKS
Volunteering is the HEART of HeartLands Conservancy Our staff and volunteers have been busy bees this spring! Over 650 volunteer hours have been logged in 2022. We logged over 300 hours in April alone! Many of our volunteer days have taken place in Metro East parks, like the Swansea Clinton Hills Exploration Garden and Arlington Wetlands. At our standing volunteer days (3rd Friday 9:00am-12:00pm at Signal Hill and 4th Saturday 9:00am-12:00pm at Arlington Wetlands), we have been diligently working on removing invasive species like bush honeysuckle, tree of heaven, Japanese honeysuckle, and phragmites. At Arlington Wetlands, volunteers have helped repair bluebird nest boxes and planted native plants around the welcome sign. At the Exploration Garden, volunteers helped install a rain garden and conducted species monitoring in the meadow. A dedicated group of volunteers have been monitoring bluebird boxes weekly during the breeding season. Bluebird nests successfully fledged at the Exploration Garden and Arlington Wetlands! There are several ways to volunteer with HeartLands Conservancy. From individual, self-paced commitments to attending large stewardship days, HLC has ways for everyone to get involved. The most common way to volunteer is by attending Stewardship Volunteer Days.
Bluebird Nest at Exploration Garden by Pam Belmonte
Tree Swallow and Nest at Arlington Wetlands by Kathy MacKay & Scott Gerstenberg
These events are held at least monthly and are located throughout the entire region on public lands and HeartLands Conservancy properties. Anyone can attend these events. They are published on the events calendar online, in newsletters, and sent to our volunteers’ list. HLC is always seeking individuals with unique skills, interests, and expertise to help our organization with a variety of conservation efforts. You can apply to volunteer via the application on our website at https://heartlandsconservancy.org/volunteer/.
8 MEANDERINGS SUMMER 2022
