Every year, we come together to take a look back and honor the accomplishments of refuge volunteers at the annual Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Banquet. This is an opportunity for refuge staff to spend an evening thanking the volunteers who help us accomplish so much at the refuge.

 

Sherburne’s volunteer program is incredibly strong! In 2017, our volunteers contributed over 6,000 hours to the refuge, which is the equivalent of nearly three full-time staff! Volunteers are involved in every area of the refuge from education, biology, maintenance, and more; they coordinate entire programs and complete many projects independently. Volunteers are critical to Sherburne’s mission of conservation.

 

2017 was a busy year and our volunteers accomplished a lot! Our environmental education program, which is almost entirely volunteer led hosted over 2000 students from neighboring communities at our learning center. The Sherburne seed collector volunteers who collect native seeds on the refuge to use for habitat restoration projects collected over 60lbs of seed, roughly valued at $15,000! 

 

We had numerous volunteers who helped keep the refuge clean by picking up litter on trails, at kiosks, by the river, and on the roads. Our adopt-a-road program last fall saw 70 volunteers come to the refuge and clean up over 21 miles of roadway! Throughout the year, volunteers led several public guided hikes including bird and wildflower tours as well as assisted with multiple free, family-focused public events including a snowshoe hike, moonlight ski, Spring Celebration, and our annual wildlife festival. 

 

We also have many other projects and opportunities that volunteers help with including trail and other maintenance work, invasive species removal, biological surveys, our roving interpretive program, and more. The volunteers at Sherburne are the reason we are able to accomplish the amount of work that we do. They are truly the heart of the refuge and we couldn’t be more thankful to have so many wonderful volunteers!

 

Jill Beim was named the Volunteer of the Year for 2017. The volunteer of the year is determined by a number of criteria including commitment to conservation, superior skills in organization and leadership, having a positive attitude, and the ability to work as a team player. 

 

Jill began her volunteer service in 2014 and in four short years has already logged 815 hours, donating 298 hours this year alone. Jill is a jack-of-all-trades and has held many volunteer roles at Sherburne including a roving interpreter on our Wildlife Drive and an environmental education volunteer. She has also assisted with bird surveys and recording biology photo points. In addition, she has led and assisted with numerous public events which include leading birding tours. 

 

In the past year, Jill has been an integral part in creating and sustaining the Sherburne Photography Club, which celebrated its one year anniversary this fall. The Photo Club is entirely volunteer led and has been very successful in its inaugural year and this is in large part thanks to Jill’s coordination, leadership, and many hours of behind-the-scenes work. She is a patient, knowledgeable, easy-going, creative and passionate volunteer and the refuge has been so fortunate to have her be a part of our team.

 

For more information on the refuge volunteer program or to learn more about becoming a volunteer, contact the refuge at 763-389-3323 or email sherburne@fws.gov.