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Volunteer

Volunteer

Nothing feels quite as good as working hard at work worth doing (except maybe a nice massage afterward)! Volunteers are an integral part of achieving our mission, and there are many ways to get involved. We need help to extend our reach on the land, in the water, and in your neighborhood.

Opportunities Available:

(*) denotes corporate or group volunteer opportunities. We have a need for volunteers at a variety of locations throughout our service area. We’ll do our best to find your match, but please note we are not able to accommodate all volunteer areas at all times of the year. If you have questions about volunteer opportunities please email our Volunteer Coordinator John Bower.

Steps to Volunteer for The Conservation Foundation:

  1. Fill out the volunteer application below.
  2. Wait to hear back from our Volunteer Coordinator about availability and fit.
  3. At the interview we’ll do our best to match your interests and skills with our current volunteer opportunities.
VOLUNTEER APPLICATION

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McDonald Farm
10S404 Knoch Knolls Road
Naperville, IL 60565
Phone: (630) 428-4500
Fax: (630) 428-4599
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: 9:00am to 5:00pm
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Our organic farm is busy spring through late fall growing and harvesting produce for our farmshares and food pantry partners. Volunteers are mostly needed weekday mornings to weed, wash and pack produce, and help with farmshare pickup days. View more information regarding Green Earth Harvest here.

Summer Camp at McDonald Farm is a unique experience for kids because they get to learn about nature, the farm, and gardening! Campers harvest fresh vegetable and herbs from the garden for dips, teas, and snacks. Volunteers help us to plant and maintain the gardens throughout the growing season, starting with spring planting and mulching and culminating with putting the garden to bed and prepping for next year. Weekly garden helpers are needed May through September, but occasional special garden work days are also available for those who can only help occasionally. Gardens include the Children’s Garden (Lenore’s Garden), the Sensory Garden, and the Edible Forest Garden.

The Native Gardens at McDonald Farm are showcase gardens that not only provide habitat and food sources for our native bees, insects, and birds, but also show how native plants can be a part of any home landscape. Like any garden, these need weeding and tending periodically. Volunteers are needed for weekly weeding/maintenance from April — September, and for periodic work days throughout the growing season.

Volunteers support our summer camps, Club Nature, Forest Therapy, and tabling events with a variety of our partners and outreach efforts. Programs are held throughout our service area. Times and days vary.

We are involved in several programs that help protect rivers and streams in northeastern Illinois. As a volunteer, you can become a Winter Chloride Watcher, participate in Storm Drain Stenciling (DuPage County only), Adopt a Stream, River Sweep, and It’s Our Fox River Day litter clean ups. Learn more about registration, trainings, and more through our Clean Water Initiatives. Many of these activities can be done on your schedule. River Sweep is held in the spring. It’s Our Fox River Day is held the third Saturday in September.

Habitat restoration, or stewardship, is different than gardening. Our volunteers work in one of our preserves to cut, pile, and burn brush, remove invasive species, plant plugs, harvest and distribute seed, and a variety of other habitat maintenance tasks. Volunteers are needed at each of our preserves: Dayton Bluffs in Ottawa and O’Hara Woods Nature Preserve in Romeoville. We are looking to expand our volunteer stewardship corp to our newer preserves soon. We also have a select group of experienced volunteers who help maintain our easements in various counties. Restoration work days are held the second Saturday each month at Dayton Bluffs and the 4th Saturday at O’Hara Woods.

Old barns, buildings, and a lot of land need maintenance to keep them looking their best. Our farm maintenance volunteers work weekly to handle any tasks that need to be done. Painting, fence repair, removal of limbs, mowing, general house/barn maintenance, and driveway repairs are just a few of the things this group manages. If you are handy around the house/yard, this may be the perfect place for you. Work day is currently Tuesday mornings.

Dickson-Murst Farm is a five-acre site that serves to preserve the barns and farm house of what once was a working farm. This group of dedicated volunteers are in charge of maintenance of the barns on the property. The Partners put on three events each year to raise funds to support the maintenance and provide a free, family-friendly farm experience for the community. Dickson-Murst Farm is located in Montgomery. View more information about our Dickson-Murst Farm here.

Native gardens have recently been planted at the Dickson-Murst Farm in Montgomery to educate others on the benefits of native plants, and to soften and beautify the barns and yards with seasonal interest. Garden walks and other learning opportunities are being planned. The Community Gardeners meet monthly on various days to weed and maintain the gardens.

From Plant Sales to benefits and Music on the Farm, we are always looking for some extra hands to help us park cars, help patrons, share information, or just help set up and tear down for the many things that happen at our facilities. Times and days vary with many needs occurring on weekends.

Winter Chloride Watchers Training Registration

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