In this episode, we talk with Frank about volunteer opportunities.
What is Pure Waters doing to recruit talent?
- We are making sure no stones are left unturned. We have a very robust section of our website describing all the volunteer opportunities.
- We included a request for volunteers in our Annual Survey and had 52 folks respond! Many of these folks have now been placed in very rewarding positions and they are glad they have joined.
- When we sent out our Annual Membership campaign letter, a number of folks submitted their name to volunteer.
- We have local events where we always meet new people willing to help
- Our latest Newsletter will have a feature article outlining some specific areas of need
What kind of talent does Pure Waters need?
- Regardless what your background is, we can use your help
- You name an occupation and I can easily identify one or two teams or projects where the individual can help. As an example, let’s say you had a friend who was an accountant or a finance expert. That person could jump right in to our Finance team. How about a writer or editor – this person could jump right to our communications team.
- Folks often think the only volunteer opportunities we have are in the water. Yes, these types of volunteer positions support the bedrock of our organization for sure. However, this bedrock and our membership base needs to be surrounded by a diverse talent pool doing other important work.
Where does Pure Waters need immediate help with support functions?
- Membership and Fundraising – we need help raising funds to allow us to complete all the work we have on our plate. You can help with membership campaigns, special fundraising activities, including requesting support from large donors. Every dollar counts.
- Events – we have lots of fun planning and delivering a wide variety of social and educational events. Come have some fun with this group!
- Communications – we can use writers and editors – if takes a ton of communications to run our organization. Articles, newsletters, website maintenance and design, brochures. If you have background with any of the above, please join our team.
- Finance – the numbers count. Accountants and Finance experts are very welcome.
The water programs. Where do you need help?
- Stream monitoring – we sample and monitor all of the major feed streams going into the lake. The lake is nothing more than the sum of the pieces. Incoming streams drive water quality. We can use team leaders and sampling volunteers in this area.
- HABs – we have 72 miles of shore line to cover and need to maintain a volunteer base of over 120 to cover this immense area. We also have 4 regional leaders that could use assistance and last but not least, our current Director, Bill Roege could use an assistant and always needs IT help
- Lake Assessment Program – annually we sample select locations out in the lake to monitor the overall quality of our water. This is another great team folks could join.
How about new programs? Any needs there??
- Fisheries – we want to help bring back the fish to Seneca. We are just starting up a team and defining our plans. This would be a great one to join if you enjoy fishing and have been wondering where the fish have gone.
- Invasive Species – have you ever thought about invasive species taking over the lake? Did you know Stary Stonewart has been spotted? Did you know this tangled plant could change our ability to maneuver and enjoy the lake? Did you know Keuka is spending thousands battling this problem? Ever heard of Round Goby fish? There are aquatic and terrestrial invasive we need to worry about. We would love to have folks consider this team. This will be a very rewarding journey for whoever decides to join in on the challenge.
- SNPR – soil and nutrient pollution reduction – this is another great one. We are working closely with all the Soil and Water districts around the lake to help fund projects that will go after problems that are now surfacing due to unusual rainfalls and other issues in the watershed. 90K has already been allocated to go after this really important challenge
- Climate Change – we do not have a specific team for this project. We have concluded Climate Change is impacting much of what we do. We could use volunteers who would like to help with high level brainstorming around this one. We will not solve climate change, but we can educate folks on how it is impacting our lake ecosystem.
Need any Board Members?
Always. Board members terms expire every year. If you would like to join our Board, we are always ready to explain the role and see how we can use your talents.
What is the easiest way to sign up??
Go to sencalake .org and hit the volunteer button. It is as easy as this.
