Can I Do it? Yes You Cane! –Volunteering in Treasure Valley Idaho
My eyes darted left, right and then to the floor. My feet shuffled toward the self-checkout. I didn’t want a cashier judging my purchases. I gripped the cold metal collapsible cane in one hand and tried not to focus too much on it. The play of light across the gold paint reminded me of church pews and sitting next to my grandmother. I idly played with the wrist strap.
“Do you really need that?” Eyebrows shot up and a concerned smile framed the question I’d dreaded to hear.
My hands were plump, soft, unwrinkled. Unusual hands to be holding a cane at the checkout line.
My feet burned. My hips ached. The errand packed day loomed ahead. My hope for less pain was fragile, but anchored by the collapsible cane.
“It’s a tool I need today.”
There were slow nods and no more questions. After my purchase, I stumbled on my new stroll into the parking lot. Sunlight peeked from around the clouds.
Clic-ck step – step. Clic-ck step step.
I found my new walking rhythm on evening walks, among the moon, stars, and old winter air. The earth and I began a new season of our lives in tandem.
Recognizing new limits and different options to serve the community science scene
My cane companion keeps me active and reminds me I need more breaks, more level ground, and more thoughtful parking to be able to participate in volunteer opportunities to my best. Since this development, I’ve thought it would be useful to have reports of volunteer opportunities in the Treasure Valley along with some sort of ranking system. Several emails worth of citizen volunteer programs enter my inbox and I’d like to share them with more people.
Future blog articles will include occasional reports on local volunteer opportunities. These will also include whether it is a “Phase 1, Phase 2, or Phase 3” accessible type of volunteer opportunity. I hope this may help reduce the pains of eagerly signing up, only to find after a lot of planning that your car can’t handle the trip, or you can’t easily get to the worksite from your car.
After all, not everybody has 4 wheel drive Jeeps or Trucks that can handle the terrain, or ankles that can handle a few mile-hike to and from the parking area!
Difficulty as a phase
Phase 1
The opportunity will include seated options. Handicapped parking, paved roads and paths. Slopes, elevators available on site as alternatives to stairs. Work at your own pace, come and go at your own pace.
Phase 2
Opportunities ranked as “Phase 2” will have a few places to sit, limited paved paths, or require extra planning to travel to or around the worksite. Work may also be more limited and structured in time frame with expected arrival and finish times than “Phase 1” options.
Phase 3
Those ranked “Phase 3” will have no formal seated options unless you bring your own. Unpaved roads and paths, steep slopes, rocky terrain, lots of walking, hiking, lifting or moving, multiple hours of work planned with a specific join time and stop point expectation. These opportunities may also have membership or education threshold expectations.
There’s room for everyone to help!
For every field opportunity there is an equal if not greater amount of “desk” opportunities. While I definitely find holding an American Kestrel much more fun and unique than holding a hole puncher, both are needed! (The hole puncher also tends to bite less.)
There’s no money for the equipment and professionals without the help of passionate grant writers. There’s little interest in funding when there aren’t passionate photographers and social media advocates letting somebody know there is real work happening.
I’ve lately limited my own volunteering to mostly Phase 1 opportunities. I’ve helped design websites, manage email lists, plan meetings, record those meetings and punched out hundreds of dots for insect identification projects. There’s still plenty of room and places to pitch in. From fieldwork and identification, to your backyard garden, to your phone, there’s plenty of opportunities where you can lift the cause of making the world a better, wilder, more diverse place to live.
For those in the Treasure Valley, I will be sharing blogs with local opportunities and who to reach out to. Most of these opportunities will range from Mountain Home to Caldwell.
Let’s get to work to make our community a brighter place!
