Volunteering

Volunteering is something that has been on my mind for quite awhile.
For one I think it is good to get beyond ourselves and help out in the world. Secondly, kids that serve tend to be more caring and kind. They have a sense of contribution and sometimes ownership. Third, God calls us to care for the elderly, the sick, the poor and this world.
So I have been mulling over different scenarios that may work for our family.
Visit elderly in a nursing home.
Serve meals at a soup kitchen.
Help out a single mom or elderly doing yard work.
Neighborhood clean-up.
Helping lead arts and crafts at the Creation Station.
Volunteer our time and bodies to Fenner Nature Center.
While all are noble causes, the one that has won out in the end is the latter.

I don't think it is a big secret that I LOVE NATURE! If God created it, I appreciate it. After studying birds the last couple of months, the kids and I have grown in our appreciation of our local wildlife including but not limited to the birds. We have enjoyed hikes through the woods. Exploring different habitats. And learning all that we can about this world we live in. After a few trips to Fenner this Winter we began to wonder if we could somehow get involved there. We talked to the new directors (who by the way are awesome) and shared our desires to get plugged in. It does not matter to us what we do, just that we are able to do something. Be it help set up displays, pull invasive species, feed the animals, relate with the public, pick up trash, groom trails, lead hikes, create signs...the possiblilties are endless. Thankfully they have been very receptive.

Our plan is to come a minimum of once a week and donate 2 hours of our time to do whatever they ask us to do. Yesterday was our first day. We had so much fun.
The naturalist there has taken us under her wing to show us all that we need to know. Yesterday we helped put out all the seed in the various bird feeders, saw the behind the scenes and feeding plans of all the critters on display, cleaned out a fish tank and the boy held a milk snake. Pretty exciting stuff!

My prayer is that we can be a blessing to Fenner. Serving them selflishly. Learning more about our enviroment. Getting others excited about nature. And have a great time doing it.

I can't wait to see what next week will bring.