Photo by Paul Peloquin
All month long we have been celebrating volunteers on our social media platforms! Volunteers assist with site maintenance, field trips, community events (both large and small), Repair, and more! Their passion and experience help us to provide community members and students memorable nature experiences. These are just a handful of the many people that contribute to making Columbia Springs special. From all of us here at Columbia Springs, “Thank you!”
Elder Flores
Site Volunteer
Elder Flores comes out every week to volunteer his time around our site. He pulls weeds, maintains trails, spreads bark chips, and even untangles fishing poles! He has volunteered hundreds of hours to help keep Columbia Springs safe and beautiful. We are so thankful for his time and dedication.
“I love volunteering at Columbia Springs because I love the work that it do, I love knowing that my work helps to make the visitors that come safe and the area looking nice and welcoming for all that walk the trails and learn about the ecosystem that surrounds them.”
Bill Hickey
Site and Community Event Volunteer
In just the few months since Bill has started volunteering at Columbia Springs, he has volunteered over 60 hours working on the trails. His expertise and passion are invaluable in making Columbia Springs a more beautiful space. Photo of one of Bill’s many projects!
“As a volunteer working the trails, I see firsthand how people of all ages really appreciate the natural space Columbia Springs provides, without having to drive a great distance to a National Forest or Park. Kids can feed the big trout and adults can enjoy some down time walking the trails, with or without their canine partners. With all the urban sprawl we are seeing in Vancouver, places like this will become even more valuable in the future.
Lauralee Martin
Education Volunteer
Lauralee volunteers with the field trip program and community events. She has spent nearly 200 hours interacting with students and making sure field trips run smoothly!
“What I most enjoy as a volunteer is seeing the incredible Columbia Spring’s educators bring the Center’s wonders to life for students on field trips. Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “many eyes go through the meadow, but few see the flowers in it”. While on a field trip, the students feed fish from the hatchery, look under logs and leaves for decomposers, collect macro-invertebrates from the spring for examination under microscopes, and hike the wonderful trails. It makes my day hearing a child announce, “this is the best day of my life.”
Scott Solberg
Education Volunteer
Scott has spent nearly 300 hours over the last 6 years volunteering with field trips! (By our count…it could be more!) He helps to make sure that programs run smoothly and keeps students engaged. Can you tell he enjoys interacting with students based on his favorite question below??
“My favorite question for the kids: Why do mushrooms always get invited to the parties? Because they are _______!”
Jill Holm
Education Volunteer
“My volunteer time has been very rewarding, fun and engaging. I like being in the outdoors and watching the children discover nature and engage with their discoveries either by creating a river habitat for salmon to catching water bugs at the docks. I remember one time when a student found a salamander under a log! That salamander really drew a crowd.”
Melody Isham
Education Volunteer
Melody started volunteering with the education program this school year and has become an integral part of the team! She helps keep the field trips run efficiently and engages students in nature.
“I have been bestowed the gift of serving others by volunteering in different avenues throughout my life. It brings me great joy.”
Mike Farabee
Repair Volunteer
Mike has volunteered hundreds of hours with the Repair program. In particular, he has been invaluable in getting the program up and running again after it went on pause. He plans and organizes quarterly events as well as fixes broken items that come in. While he says that he does not need recognition, we could not let Volunteer Appreciation Month go by without recognizing his many contributions!
Ellen Wilson
Education Volunteer
Ellen has been volunteering with Columbia Springs for over 10 years! She has spent over 1,000 hours engaging with students and community members during field trips and community events! She knows the programs inside and out and is an extremely valuable member of the team. Every year, she leads a bat talk at our October Nature day and helps at many Repair events. She helps us improve our programs with feedback provided through the lens of a passionate and experienced volunteer.
“It is deeply fulfilling be present when someone experiences the joy and wonder of nature all around us. Columbia Springs has provided these opportunities for children and adults of all ages. Those “AH HA” moments of discovery and connection are magical!”
Steve Sylvester
Repair Volunteer
Steve has volunteered with the Repair program for many years! We appreciate his long term dedication and his commitment to helping community members repair their broken items.
“I have always liked helping people and I love working with tools so RCC is the best of both worlds for me.”
Fred Davis
Repair Volunteer
Fred has volunteer with the Repair program for over 8 years! He has dedicated hundreds of hours to interacting with community members and sharpening tools and knives, We appreciate his commitment to Repair!
“Hi, I am Fred. I have been volunteering for a little over 8 years now, first with Repair Cafe, now known as Repair Clark County. I started as a “Greeter” then quickly decided I could volunteer as a “fixer” sharpening knives and garden tools. I have been using my WorkSharp sharpener exclusively as my go-to tool. I have used the same MK1 machine for 8 years and just recently upgraded to the MK2 sharpener. I told that story to the folks that sell WorkSharp so that’s why I wear my WorkSharp ball-cap to events! I love volunteering with the Repair Clark County and working with the other fixers. Most recently, Mike Farabee has been a powerful driving force in coordinating the Repair Clark County volunteer events, conducting initial triage and teaching the fixers about making their own repairs in other areas. He has been an outstanding coordinator, helped foster great friendships and has contributed immensely to the community in so many ways. It has been fun working with Mike and calling him my friend.
Elder Rasmussen
Visitor Center Volunteer
Elder Rasmussen is our Visitor Center host! He opens up the Visitor Center every Monday from 10am – 4pm and welcomes guests into the space. He helps create and maintain rotating displays. He also opens the Visitor Center during community events. We appreciate his passion and dedication! He is always striving to improve the Visitor Center in new and creative ways.
Paul Peloquin
Volunteer Photographer
We have created a memorial blog post with our memories of Paul that you can view here.