We have so many dedicated volunteers who put in thousands of hours removing invasive plants, building trails, creating natural habitats, maintaining the landscape, organizing events, and more. For the past six years, we have tracked volunteer hours, and now we can look back at all of our efforts. Thank you to everyone who contributed!
The total number of hours has grown about 25% since 2020, with some year-to-year fluctuation. Individual volunteers are the backbone of the organization and have been contributing about 5,000 hours per year. That is a lot of time and dedication! Volunteer hours jumped to nearly 7,000 in 2024, thanks to 2,000 hours of service from AmeriCorps. We were grateful to welcome another AmeriCorps team back for 1,725 hours in 2025.
We continue to receive growing support from a wide variety of groups. These include university students from UC, Miami, Miami University of Florida, and Mount St. Joseph; high school students from Elder, Summit Country Day, Oak Hills, and Beechwood; churches including Crossroads and Good Shepherd; as well as support from Good Samaritan employees, the Boy Scouts, and Job Corps. Thank you! Your efforts have made a huge impact.
A handful of volunteers have contributed at least 100 hours each year for all six years (listed in bold below). That is true commitment. In addition, many other volunteers have contributed 100 hours in at least one of those years.
Unbelievable but true: one volunteer, Tim Sisson, has contributed nearly 1,000 hours per year for each of the last six years. Thank you to our amazing volunteers: Tim Sisson*, Jeff Ginter*, Gary Rapien*, Matt Taylor*, Joyce Richter, Tom Malone, John Klein, Sally Sisson-Anderson, Mary Perkins, Kathy McDonald, Rick Helmchen, Walt McBeath, Roselyn Schloss, Debbie Lutkenhoff, Ted Ridder, Jeff Doering, Mark Rudemiller, Roger Auer, Davie Rudemiller, Jessee Smith, Mark Streicher, Sarah Kent, and Mike Brunner.
A huge thank you to all of the anonymous volunteers out there who routinely help out but do not record their hours. Your efforts do not go unnoticed. Thank you!
Volunteer hours are split roughly 50/50 between outdoor work (habitat restoration, trail work, and more) and indoor work (meetings, events, newsletters, fundraising, and more). No matter how you choose to contribute, there is a place for you at the Western Wildlife Corridor. You will be appreciated, and you will make a difference.
