When we spotted this slogan in a café in a remote town in Colorado years ago, we realized that one key to youth is continuing education. Influenced by this objective, we recently purchased a small home near Tucson, Arizona, where abundant opportunities for volunteering and learning exist.

Live-on versus Real Volunteers

For the past seven years, we have been “live-on” volunteers, obliged to work a required number of hours to whatever refuge or agency offered us a space to park our RV and give us hookups to run the rig. Living in our own home, however, allows us to be “real” volunteers, as a friend of mine likes to refer to those who give of their time without any consideration in return. Consequently, we hope to spread our volunteer time over two or three groups and institutions to broaden our experience, as well as take advantage of classes and programs that expand and complement our interests.

Choices

Our first choice for volunteering near Tucson was Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge /(BANWR) where we had previously presented several snake programs to schools and helped with the Annual Grasslands Fair. But because BANWR is over 60 miles from our house, we plan to limit our time there to occasional special events and school programs in and around Tucson.

The Sonoran Desert Museum is fairly close to our house, and their expertise on the Sonoran Desert is well respected. For now we plan to take advantage of the classes and activities the Museum offers, a few of which we have already experienced such as a two-day course entitled “The Natural History of the Sonoran Desert,” as well as several keeper talks offered each day.

Even closer to us is Saguaro National Park, the northwest section. Exploring the visitor center at Saguaro and talking with staff and volunteers made us feel welcome and comfortable.  After checking out the schedule of programs, we decided to attend “Snakes:  The Slither Factor” presented by Park Ranger Philip Brown. We’ve been to programs in other parks and institutions, some of which were outstanding, some of which were average, some of which bordered on embarrassing. Ranger Brown’s program was everything we hoped for, and we came away with a better understanding of the snake population of the area. It was obvious that he knew his subject intimately.

We returned the next day for a presentation by Park Ranger Donna Gill called “Neighborhood Characters.” In her program, Ranger Gill introduced visitors to different plants and related them to stores and people we might find in our own neighborhoods. “This creosote bush could be considered a pharmacy,” she said. “It provided native people with what they needed to treat their diseases.”

Saguaro National Park offers us continuing education, hiking experiences, and volunteer opportunities that we hope to explore.

Expanding the Mind

While we have educated school children, winter visitors, and other travelers over the past seven years, we’re finding it refreshing to be able to expand our own education. And as we engage in continuing education for ourselves, as well as continuing to educate others with our snakes and skulls, we keep in mind advice we once received from a doctor:  “If you’ve got it moving, keep it moving.” Even though he was referring to physical parts of the body, we now know that it also applies to our minds!

Parked at the National Elk Refuge

On one hand, living in a spacious RV with many amenities could be considered luxury, far from hardship associated with “wild.”  On the other hand, some might consider living in the open spaces of a wildlife refuge as adversity and privation.

Living on a wildlife refuge isn’t for everyone.  For us it means fresh air, great views, space, and interesting work.  For others it can mean isolation, loneliness, hardship, and drudgery.  Not everyone is comfortable living miles from doctors and groceries, surrounded by wildlife and secluded from society.  Comments from our friends and acquaintances range from, “How can I get to do what you’re doing?” to “Are you nuts?”

While not all wildlife refuges are remote, we prefer those close to nature and far from big cities.  Shopping has never been a priority for either of us, and our needs are few since we live in our RV and have most everything we want.  Enough groceries can be stored after a once-a-week trip to town, and anything else can either wait or come by mail after placing an order on Internet.  We do our best to avoid medical issues by maintaining a healthy lifestyle of proper diet and exercise.  While this does not address every medical need, we rationalize the trade-off of possible medical problems with the freedom of living “away from it all.”

Wildlife Galore

Waking each morning to unlimited views and coyotes yipping or sandhill cranes chortling is just one advantage that lures us to this lifestyle.  And spotting wildlife is expected on wildlife refuges.  A bobcat once ambled by as we sat with a glass of wine behind our trailer.  At the National Elk Refuge in Jackson Hole, a moose and her calf once worked their way across the Refuge toward the volunteer campground and finally slipped between two RVs before heading up the hill behind us.  Gila woodpeckers, Gambel’s quail, yellow headed blackbirds, white pelicans, and even trumpeter swans are a few of the birds of all kinds that surround us at different refuges.  And we regularly observe elk, deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and small mammals.  But because our main interest is reptiles, the thrill for us is searching for snakes and lizards of all species.

Living on a wildlife refuge also means taking care.  In bear country, we must place garbage in special waste containers to avoid luring bears into human territory.  In snake country, we must carry flashlights at night to avoid stepping on a rattlesnake after dark.  While hiking in remote areas alone we carry first aid supplies, extra water, and a radio.  And on any wildlife refuge, we must remember that wildlife comes first.  We don’t interfere with it, and that includes not putting up bird feeders or artificially feeding other species.

Site at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge

Most wildlife refuges where we have volunteered have access to ponds, lakes, or rivers to launch our canoe and paddle backwaters in solitude, searching for and observing wildlife.  All refuges have or are near hiking trails we can explore without traveling great distances.  Some are near bike trails or allow biking within their confines.  In all of these activities, we find ourselves fairly isolated in the midst of wildlife on mostly pristine lands.

So how to answer the fourth grader who asked if we live in the wild?  After reflecting for a moment, I slowly nodded my head.  “Yeah,” I said, “I guess we do.”

Living in our RV makes it possible.  And for us it’s great!

 Volunteer site at DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge:

View from our Trailer at Imperial National Wildlife Refuge:

Jackson National Fish Hatchery:

These volunteers bring needed skills and excellent work ethics from previous life experiences and jobs, and with some we’ve connected with strong emotional attachments that we never experienced living in a neighborhood.

Chuck demonstrating snakes at Yuma River Daze

Volunteer coordinators strive to choose their volunteers not only by their qualifications for a job, but also for their ability to get along with others. They search for volunteers with a positive, enthusiastic attitude. They look for congenial people who do their best not to alienate others who live and work with them. Such people keep their pets under control and limit the noise they create. They don’t monopolize conversations or try to “one-up” others. And they do their best to honor their commitments or contract.

Part of the excitement of volunteering at different parks and refuges is meeting new people who share our lifestyle and our interests. Many volunteers we have worked with keep in touch, and our paths crisscross as we traverse the country. As our network of friends expands, we realize that those chosen for these positions represent the values and commitment we also embrace.

Looking for Volunteers

Kristen Gilbert, Volunteer & Grants Coordinator for Alaska National Wildlife Refuges, interviews potential volunteers as she would anyone applying for a job. “I check references and look for how motivated they are,” she says. Kristen likes to give volunteers the opportunity to learn and grow, and she searches for those interested in learning experiences rather than those who merely want a space to park.

Mid-Columbia National Wildlife Refuge Complex Visitor Services Manager Sue McDonald considers the needs of the Refuge, as well as the needs of the volunteer. “I look for what the volunteer wants to do that fits with what the Refuge wants and needs,” she says. “And I look for enthusiasm and excitement in a volunteer. You need to cherish the volunteers and the needs of the volunteers, or you’re setting up for failure.”

And during a reference check, Sue inquires about their social skills. “It’s very important,” she says, “to know if they get along with others!”

“The first thing that jumps to my mind,” says Imperial National Wildlife Refuge manager Elaine Johnson, “is how well they get along with others, because many are interacting with the public.” Volunteers need to fit in with staff, as well as with other volunteers, according to Elaine. “The way I look at it is that they are full members of the staff. To me, they’re an integral part of the program.”

More inclined to recruit people she meets in person, Nancy Corona, Public Use Ranger for Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, will also consider a good resume from another facility. Nancy looks for those with a good work ethic who can function independently and may not mind being somewhat isolated if working on an assignment in the field.

Helping with biology

When Juliette Gutierrez, Assistant Manager of Buenos Aires National Wildlife Refuge, searches for volunteers, she seeks those who are optimistic, flexible, and independent. “I want hard workers,” she says, “who can see things with a new eye and come to the table with positive ideas and enthusiasm to do right by the refuge mission and its community.”

Volunteer service is invaluable, according to Juliette, and staff could not accomplish as much without their help. But she expects her volunteers to understand that, while they’re all on the same team, volunteers are a support system and need to maintain a positive frame of mind. “Truly, a positive attitude can outshine the most skilled worker!”

Ideas from Volunteers

“Volunteers don’t come in as empty vessels,” says Kristen Gilbert. “I’ve learned a lot from managing volunteers, and I like to take advantage of their strengths.”

One of the best lessons Chuck and I have learned, however, came from fellow volunteer, John Fairbank #42661, one of the first live-on volunteers we worked with. “Our motto,” said John and his wife, Joyce, “is that we are there to assist the agency’s staff in any way that we can.” That includes, according to John, monitoring our own work and volunteer hours rather than fretting over what others have or have not done.

Heeding advice from those who choose volunteers and others who are volunteers can make a volunteer experience educational and rewarding. It has more than enhanced our RV life!

A similar version of this article was published in the January/February 2011 issue of Escapees Magazine.