To Serve and Protect on Memorial Day
Hi there, friends, hope your day so far has been splendid. (NOTE: remember that these seven chapters of this “Mini-guide to Wildlife Research Team” were originally sent out as email newsletters to WRT’s supporters.) As this is being sent to you on Memorial Day, many of you are enjoying a day off work, going to the beach, taking advantage of “special” retail sales, etc. Please remember that we get to enjoy such a day because of the brave men and women who put on a uniform in order to serve this great country. Some, like our founder Tom Kazo, returned home under their own power, but others returned to their native soil in a coffin. And others vanished completely. Tom returned on crutches, as a decorated wounded warrior, and chose to continue to serve and protect the public as a police officer; but his Vietnam memories never left him. I was still picking shrapnel out of him the day before he passed away.
Wildlife Research Team was also founded in order to serve and protect. We have worked to make a difference for two decades, and our volunteers have come from all levels of society. It doesn’t matter to us what your financial status, political affiliation or religious persuasion may be, only that you are willing to grab a paddle and help us serve and protect Nature so that our descendants will be able to enjoy it. And of course, even if you are not physically able to paddle a canoe, you are still welcome to join in the fun!
Today’s post presents five of our six “Outcomes” which we believe, based on our experience, cover everybody, beginning at about the age of seven. Possibly younger, but it depends upon the child’s level of maturity and behavior and how well he or she can be controlled by the parent or guardian. In the other direction, I seem to recall a passenger who was 105 years young!
Remember: it all starts with our basic training session which we call “Canoeing 101” which was the subject of a previous post. Even if you tell us you’ve paddled before, well, WRT does things a bit differently. And hey, it’s FREE, so don’t be afraid of being a beginner! And remember, most people will solemnly swear they are good drivers even on the way to traffic school!
It’s worth repeating: once you have volunteered for twenty (20) hours with Wildlife Research Team, you are a Lifetime Member. There will never be dues to pay! We will be introducing a small user’s fee for Members-only events and excursions, however, to cover the direct costs (campsites, launch fees, food, etc.) and to set up a self-insurance fund that will pay for lost, damaged, or worn-out gear or equipment.
First Outcome: Able-Bodied Volunteer – Potential WRT Member – Potential Paid Staff
Criteria:
- At least 12 years of age;
- Wants to volunteer with WRT;
- Wants to become a Member;
- Physically able to become a strong paddler;
- Lacks financial means to pay for our fee-based programs.
Outcomes:
- He or she is welcome to volunteer for WRT cleanups and other physically demanding water-based activities;
- Welcome to volunteer for land-based events such as shop workdays, office tasks, fundraising drives, etc.;
- If needed, can earn Community Service hours;
- Welcome to volunteer as assistant on You Point We Paddle excursions;
- Earns Lifetime Membership after twenty hours of volunteering;
- Could become a paid, certified Canoe Guide/Naturalist, or other staff member;
- Therefore: this person won’t ever have to open his or her wallet to enjoy a rewarding relationship with WRT;
- We consider this opportunity to be part of our nonprofit mission. Perhaps a donor would step forward to help this Member pay the user’s fees for some Members-only excursions, which this person might not be able to afford.
Second Outcome: Able-Bodied Volunteer – Client – Student – Potential WRT Member – Potential Paid Guide or Staff
Criteria:
- At least 12 years of age;
- Wants to volunteer with WRT;
- Wants to become a Member;
- Physically able to become a strong paddler;
- Can easily pay for WRT’s fee-based programs, tours, extra canoe lessons, tuition to Canoe View University classes.
Outcomes:
- He or she is welcome to volunteer for WRT cleanups and other physically demanding water-based activities;
- Welcome to volunteer for land-based events such as shop workdays, office tasks, fundraising drives, etc.;
- If needed, can earn Community Service hours;
- Welcome to volunteer as assistant on You Point We Paddle excursions;
- Earns Lifetime Membership after twenty hours of volunteering;
- Could become a paid, certified Canoe Guide/Naturalist, or other staff member;
- Student of Canoe View University classes;
- Client for other paid programs (ex.: books a customized You Point We Paddle tour for parents’ anniversary);
- WRT Members enjoy a group outing, and this person is able to pay user’s fees.
Third Outcome: Passenger – Client – Volunteer – Student – Potential WRT Member – Potential Paid Staff
Criteria:
- A person of any age who is less able to paddle due to chronic illness or disability, or perhaps age is a handicap;
- Able to pay for fun or educational You Point We Paddle tours and/or Canoe View University classes;
- A guide would be required to power this person’s canoe.
Outcomes:
- Welcome to volunteer for land-based events, such as shop workdays, office tasks, fundraising drives, or the like;
- If needed, can earn Community Service hours;
- Earns Lifetime Membership after twenty hours of volunteering;
- When WRT Members enjoy a group outing for which there are user’s fees, this person is able to pay them;
- Possibly could become paid staff for land-based jobs not physically demanding;
- Can afford tuition for Canoe View University classes;
- Client for other paid programs (ex.: books a customized You Point We Paddle tour for a special personal event);
- WRT Members enjoy a group outing, and this person is able to pay user’s fees, although a guide will be required to paddle this person’s canoe.
Fourth Outcome: Nature Therapy – Client – Passenger Only
Criteria:
- People of any age who are not physically able to paddle to improve their health through interaction with nature;
- May or may not be able to pay for our programs;
- Unable to volunteer due to limitations of health, age, etc.;
- Would require our most highly trained guides for the safest possible You Point We Paddle excursion;
- May require a health care assistant or family member in their canoes (and of course, these people would also be required to attend Canoeing 101).
Outcomes:
- Improved health!
- Happiness!
- WRT would seek sponsors for such excursions so that we could offer Nature Therapy as part of our nonprofit mission and still be able to cover our costs (which would include paying our Certified Canoe Guide/Naturalists).
Fifth Outcome: Client – Passenger – Student
Criteria:
- Ages 7 and up (with parent/guardian if under 18);
- Can easily pay for WRT’s fee-based tours or tuition for Canoe View University classes;
- Not able to paddle strongly enough; definitely require a guide;
- A You Point We Paddle classification;
- No interest in volunteering, WRT membership, or working as paid staff.
Outcomes:
- These people may seek “only” personal enjoyment and enhancement of being;
- Could become a student of Canoe View University classes;
- Could become a client for other paid programs (ex.: books a customized You Point We Paddle tour for a special personal event).
Where do you see yourself? If we’ve somehow missed you, or a family member or a friend, please let us know. If you think that a challenge to your mobility bars you from enjoying our Canoe View, think again! One of the best features of our wide-bodied 17-foot tandem Mohawk canoes is that we can fix up the center area quite comfortably. We use plenty of cushions, and cover the gunwales (those are the upper edges of the sides of the canoe, for you landlubbers) andthwarts (the crosspieces that keep the canoe from folding up) with foam insulation. Our passengers have become so cozy and relaxed they’ve fallen asleep!
One more day and this particular journey together will be at an end.
Tomorrow, Part Seven, the Sixth and Final Outcome: How YOU Can Help!
Thank you again for your time, tenacity and interest in our Team.
May your ears catch the song of every bird.
Warmest regards,
Donna
Photo Credit: Donna Kazo. Canoeing in South Florida can happen almost every day of the year! A sparkling December morning on Biscayne Bay, as WRT volunteers set out on a cleanup of the mangrove shoreline of Matheson Hammock/R. Hardy Matheson Preserve.
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