The benefits of volunteering are incredible, and it’s well worth it to make some time in your life to give back as a volunteer. You can help worthwhile causes, be a good steward of local lands, change things to be more equitable and accessible, build a sense of community, and help others discover why you’re so passionate about the things that are important to you.
Learn the many benefits of volunteering, as well as specific ways you can give back in the PA Wilds! Looking for organizations to volunteer with? Check out the Volunteer in the PA Wilds page here!
Check at the bottom of this blog to hear directly from volunteers in the PA Wilds region.
Regardless of what your interests or skill sets are, there is a volunteer opportunity for you. If you like going out and getting your hands dirty, consider doing a trail or river cleanup. Organizations such as CleanScapes and Keystone Trails Association often have events where you can meet up with other volunteers and spend the day picking up litter or marking trail blazes. If you love the arts, consider volunteering with events at a local theater or art gallery and support simple tasks like being an usher and taking tickets or more in-depth tasks like planning an event. If you are a history buff, historical societies look for volunteers who can be present to answer questions at their buildings during their open hours or even lead a tour of a historical landmark.
Image: Wanda Shirk, a volunteer with Keystone Trails Association, marking a blaze on a trail
Most organizations are also happy to have the extra set of hands and want to find the volunteering task that is best suited for you, so don’t be shy to tell them any stipulations of what you can or can’t do. If you only have a few hours a month to volunteer or have physical restrictions, be honest so the organization can suggest something that you’d be interested in, have capacity for, and would be good at! Have physical limitations? No problem! Even organizations that typically focus on a lot of physical labor also need organizational, educational, creative, or administrative support.
Image: A rain barrel workshop in Bellefonte with Penn State Extension Master Gardeners. Photo courtesy of volunteer Karen Reed.
Volunteering helps connect you to the community in a new way. Nowadays, many people are feeling more isolated or disconnected from the towns where they live. A 2016 survey by Harris Poll of more than 2,000 American adults found 72 percent report having felt a sense of loneliness, with nearly a third experiencing loneliness at least once a week. Joining an organization and volunteering for a cause that is important to you helps connect you to new people and opportunities, broadening your support system and giving you new ties to the community. The next time you drive down the street, you’ll likely have new fond feelings for the people who live there and the things you accomplished together.
Image: Volunteers planting native trees at Walter Dick Park in Brookville. Photo courtesy of Karen Reed.
Imagine walking on a local path and seeing that it’s suddenly free from litter. Or imagine enjoying an event where the whole community turns out. Now imagine the feeling of knowing you played a direct role in helping to make that happen. With volunteering, you can make a difference in your favorite places, and you can see those changes for yourself. Life becomes more rewarding when we start thinking about other people and the legacy that we ourselves will pass on. Make your mark on this world… for the better!
Image: Allegheny Outfitters and volunteers clean up the Allegheny River. Image courtesy of Allegheny Outfitters.
Volunteering can help keep you physically fit! Especially if you are volunteering for a physically demanding task, such as cleaning up a river or playing kickball with kids during a community event, you’re bound to get a good dose of exercise. Even for less physically active tasks, you may find that you end up walking more when volunteering. Studies have even shown that people who volunteer tend to have a lower mortality rate than those who don’t. By getting a little bit of exercise while volunteering, you’ll lower risks of heart disease and high blood pressure… while also having fun and making a positive impact!
Image: KTA volunteer Wanda Shirk, hard at work doing some bushcutting on a trail
Volunteering makes you happy! In scientific studies, researchers found that being helpful towards others delivers “happy hormones” like oxytocin, serotonin, and dopamine to your brain. Humans love connecting with and helping others. We’re hardwired to feel good when we give back. Spending time with others and volunteering can help lift your spirits, break you out of a negative thought spiral, and build an emotional support system.
Image: Volunteers restoring a wildlife habitat on Medix Run. Image courtesy of volunteer Ray Hunt.
It can feel difficult to make friends as an adult, but volunteering with an organization can provide a new opportunity to meet like-minded people. Social contact and quality time with friends elevates your mood, and it’s easy to become friends with someone when you’re working together to achieve a common goal. Volunteering ensures that you meet folks with similar interests and values, so you’ll likely meet someone who shares your same passions.
Image: Volunteers enjoying quality time together during a cleanup. Image courtesy of Clinton County CleanScapes.
Volunteer work offers the chance to gain new skills or build upon your existing skill set. For example, an avid fisher can gain new knowledge of how to test water quality during a river monitoring event. If you’re new to the workforce, volunteer activities can help you build out your professional experiences. Or maybe you already have a successful career as a sales manager and are accustomed to speaking with strangers, so you can use your existing skills for marketing an event while also continuing to develop public speaking or time management abilities. Many nonprofit or volunteer-based organizations also encourage mentorship from more experienced volunteers to newer members of the group, giving you a fast track to learn.
Image: A cleanup crew at the water of Sinnemahoning Dam. Photo courtesy of Karen Reed.
Time can go by so quickly when you spend every day doing the same thing. Volunteering with an organization ensures that you have something fun and meaningful to do! Instead of sitting in front of a TV, you’ll make new memories of planting trees, pulling tires from a river, teaching a kid how to identify animal tracks, repainting a picnic table, or providing snacks to other volunteer friends. As you continue to volunteer, you’ll have a wide variety of fond memories and inside jokes with the organization.
Image: Eric Wilson holding court at the Stream Study Station during the Clearfield County Youth Field Day. Photo courtesy of Ray Hunt.
Volunteering can help take your mind off of your own worries, simultaneously relaxing you and also providing mental stimulation. Focusing on something bigger than yourself can build your sense of confidence, creativity, and connection. You’ll likely find that you have a newfound or renewed passion for life! Spending time working towards a goal can help bring a new perspective and sense of direction.
Image: Cameron County Historical Society volunteers (left, Mike Wennin, Historian and Life Member; right, John Kautz, CCHS President) after installing a sign at the Little Museum
Check out the PA Wilds volunteering page to learn about many opportunities to give back and travel like a local.
“I grew up digging in the dirt, playing in the mud, splashing in the water, looking for crayfish and tadpoles, and fishing. Being a Master Watershed Steward and Master Gardener has afforded me so many opportunities to unleash my inner child. From planting riparian buffers, monitoring streams for aquatic species to help determine stream health and establishing a native plant garden in Brookville, I get to work with others while enjoying activities and teaching many to appreciate the natural world.”
Image: Karen Reed, doing live staking at Creek Creek State Park
“In 2016, my life changed dramatically as I retired after 34 years of teaching high school French. I rediscovered my LOVE of caring for the environment and being in the forest! I began hiking many of our wonderful trails. It wasn’t long until I discovered the love of volunteering and connecting with a team of people to accomplish outstanding things.”
“I began volunteering for Clinton County Cleanscapes doing mostly river and riverbank cleanups. I am a member of the Clinton County Recreation Advisory Committee. Recently, I became a member of the Keystone Trails Association (KTA) Board, have organized the 2022 KTA Fall Hiking Weekend in Lock Haven, initiated the KTA Trail Care on the Elk Trail, coordinated volunteers for Clinton County’s Frozen Snot Trail Challenge and at an Aid Station for the Eagleton Trail Challenge. I’ve met so many new people who share common interests. It is amazing what good a group of like-minded people can accomplish working together. Try Volunteering for the things that you care about! It makes your life so much richer!”
Image: A safety talk before a Clinton County Cleanscapes cleanup event
“Over 20 years ago I started volunteering for KTA ‘Trail Care’ weekends, and it was one of the best, smartest, luckiest things I ever did! From the very first day, I began meeting amazing, smart, and wonderful people, many of whom have become great friends. I had never even heard of loppers, let alone a pulaski, so I had a lot to learn! It was mentally and physically fun and invigorating to engage in different projects with every event, from basic trail clearing and leveling to blazing, brushcutting, water bar construction, and helping make a bridge transform a ‘wet crossing’ of a stream.”
“I got a whole new appreciation of trails — new eyes to see so much more when I hike. I got to camp free at many state parks and campgrounds, and I learned about trails with interesting names like ‘the Donut Hole,’ ‘Quehanna,’ or ‘Bucktail Path’ which I had never heard of before. That set me on a path to hiking all the major trails of Pennsylvania, completing challenges like the State Forest Hiking Trails Award and the ‘Mega Meter.’ KTA Trail Cares were literally life-changing for me. Also, being strongly committed to living as good, kind, and moral a life as possible, I want and need to give back to this beautiful, wonderful world that has given me so much. Volunteering on trails has been satisfying, rewarding, and a source of great joy! I can’t recommend it more highly!”
Image: Wanda Shirk, enjoying a backpacking trip while volunteering in the forest
Volunteering with Cameron County Historical Society is rewarding in so many ways. First off, you are in total control as to how much time that you choose to volunteer. Secondly, you get to handpick where you want to volunteer, at our Museum in Sterling Run, the History Center in Emporium, a event, doing research on anything from the past. Thirdly, volunteering in regards to history quickly opens up an educational experience that becomes addictive. All people and cultures are living history. History is fun!”
“Fourth, volunteering in regards history allows you to meet new people and find out what we have in common everyday and share identities. Fifth, every time you volunteer whatever area you select there is a history to go along with it. Lastly, history can help you develop your skills and transform you to be a better version of yourself as a citizen, a student, and person overall.”
Image: The Cameron County Little Museum. Photo courtesy of the Cameron County Historical Society.
“I have been on ‘both ends of the stick’ when it comes to volunteers and volunteering. I recently attended classes at our local library to learn the basics of fly-tying; 6 weekly 2-hour classes taught by an experienced angler sharing his time and talents has set me on my way to tying myself and I am truly happy about this! Years ago when I worked at the library, I was ever so thankful when volunteers came to help shelve the MANY MANY books that flowed in and out during the summer reading program or to assist with typing (it just so happens that I had started as a volunteer at this library with my hours morphing into experience and a part-time job).”
“On the giving end of ‘the stick,’ I have helped to build fish habitat and was a Girl Scout leader, but I have also given my time as a visual artist sharing my know-how. A few examples include painting workshops which taught a new skill while bringing in money for a scholarship fund and a building campaign, drawing reproductions both commemorated an event and were sold to help cover event costs, while stamp cancellation designs have helped to raise awareness of events. For me, volunteering ‘feels good on the inside.’ I like knowing that by sharing a bit of my time and skill I was able to assist a group or individual to reach their goal and help to make the world just a little bit brighter.”
Image: Julie Mader, painting some inspiration from the PA Wilds
“I became a DCNR conservation volunteer after a random post on Facebook during Covid, and continued because there was a need. I’ve done most of the duties a trail maintainer might contemplate, but nothing has been more rewarding than the slow pace, sometimes even the full stop, that maintaining can cause. Those few minutes listening over a quiet swath of woods while painting a blaze or lifting an offending log along the trail and finding your first slimy salamander are the real treasures. What I wouldn’t give to have that youth back when I would rush from point to point like I was racing the wind. What did I miss? I’m finding what I missed, and what awaits all of us, while being rewarded now through fulfilling a real need in our own backyard.”
Image: A Northern Slimy Salamander that Matthew found under an offending log during one of his trail care weekends
Give back to your community or travel like a local! When you’re exploring the communities and public lands of the Pennsylvania Wilds, look for opportunities to volunteer with local organizations.
Author: Britt Madera
Britt joined the PA Wilds team as communications manager in 2022, helping to tell the stories that make our region so unique, whether that is covering our beautiful landscapes, the innovative businesses, or the spunky people that call it home. She had worked the last 10 years in radio and news broadcasting, and now she’s continuing to connect media outlets with positive news stories. Britt oversees external communications, media relations, and paid and volunteer content on the blog. As someone who grew up in Clearfield County and moved back shortly after college, Britt is eager to share her passion for the PA Wilds and help our area grow and shine.