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photo by Paul Kemiel
Each month we will be highlighting various opportunities, events, and notable volunteers. Check out our website, and call or email us for any questions you may have. We look forward to seeing you at Indiana Dunes National Park!
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Gene Daly
Gene joined our Beach Cruisers volunteer program just a few months ago, but he has already managed to blow us away with his valuable contribution to the park. He has done amazing work educating our park visitors, identifying some hazards at the beaches, and picking up large amounts of litter. Thank you, Gene, for dedicating your time to helping us keep our beaches clean, safe, and enjoyable for everyone!
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Prickly Pear in Bloom
Volunteer photographer Mark Chantell captured this shot of a blooming prickly pear cactus along the Long Lake trail at West Beach. This photo was taken just last week, so there's still time to go out for a hike and check it out!
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Volunteer Appreciation Night
August 20, 6 PM - 8 PM
Chellberg Farm
We are so grateful for all the time and effort volunteers contribute to the park, and we want to celebrate! Please join us for music and dinner at our annual volunteer appreciation night on Saturday, August 20. Bring along your choice of beverage or a bottle of wine to share with your table if you'd like. Please RSVP to parkconnection@gmail.com or 219-221-7098. We hope to see you all there!
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BARK Rangers Group Hike
July 20, 1 PM - 2 PM
Bailly / Chellberg Trail
Bring along your furry friends and join us for a BARK Rangers hike around the Bailly/Chellberg trail loop. Please be sure all pups are on their best behavior- that means wearing a leash and practicing the rules of B.A.R.K! Meet at the Park Connection Office at 1 pm CST on Wednesday, July 20. We hope to see you and your four-legged sidekicks there!
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Drop-In Volunteering
July 16, 9 AM - 12 PM
The Park Connection Office
Drop-in volunteering provides hassle-free opportunities at Indiana Dunes. With no previous experience or sign-up required, drop-ins are perfect for those with just a few hours of free time or those visiting the dunes for the weekend.
Join us every third Saturday at the Park Connection office (618 N Mineral Springs Rd) at 9 am to complete a two to three hour project. Projects vary by date and season, but can include working with invasive species, land and building restoration, or preparing for special events.
We also have a daily drop-in opportunity called Trash Trekkers, a litter clean up program. Simply check in at the Visitor Center to receive trash bags, then choose from one of our many beaches or hiking trails to collect trash. Visitors are awarded with a free, reusable water bottle for filling up their bags.
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Hay, thanks!
Thank you to all the volunteers who came out to help bale hay at Chellberg Farm. Thanks to you, we now have 80 bales of straw and 60 bales of hay that will help support the cattle throughout the season. You're amazing!
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July Interpretive Programs
Indiana Dunes' interpretive rangers are providing plenty of summer activities with public programming in July. Join us on Saturday, July 23 at 10 am for a four-hour biking and birding hike, beginning at West Beach. Bring your bike and we will provide the binoculars and take you to some fun spots in Hobart to see birds and enjoy a morning bike ride. Get your exercise and learn some basic birding techniques! Park passes are required.
See the park's event calendar or Facebook events page for the full schedule of guided hikes, interactive events, and presentations.
photo by Paul Kemiel
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What's New With the Friends
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The Friends of Indiana Dunes, Inc. sponsor invaluable educational and recreational opportunities. Since 1982, our mission is: “to enhance and foster understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of the Indiana Dunes through financial and volunteer support of the National and State Parks as well as the Dunes Learning Center."
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On Saturday, June 24, the Indiana Dunes National Park and Indiana Landmarks hosted their annual Logs to Lustrons Tours. We want to thank the many NPS and FRIENDS volunteers who helped to make this very popular program a huge success. Fun times had by all!
photo by Paul Kemiel
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It is a good bet that we will start seeing the fruits of labor from our Chellberg Farm Garden volunteers available in the small Chellberg Farm Produce Stand located in our office parking lot by the end of July. Feel free to start checking it regularly for some fresh farm goodies. All donations are appreciated and help our Indiana Dunes partners.
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REMINDER: All Friends of Indiana Dunes members – Any hours donated
on Friends projects that benefit the National Park count as VIP hours.
For more information on our philanthropic organization, visit:
dunefriends.org or facebook.com/friendsofindianadunes.
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We are working hard to restructure and update our database, but we need your help. Please take a brief moment to review these tasks:
1. If your contact information, address, or emergency contact has changed since you were onboarded as a volunteer, please fill out and sign a new Volunteer Service Agreement and email it to parkconnection@gmail.com.
2. We rely on your feedback to be the best supervisors we can be. If you have suggestions or comments about your volunteering experience, please respond to this brief survey and send it to Volunteer Program Manager Jim Whitenack at james_whitenack@nps.gov.
3. The park's resource guide has been updated for 2022 and contains tons of valuable information about the park. Feel free to review it for background on the park's purpose, history, ecology, and more!
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Please don't forget to turn in your times monthly to parkconnection@gmail.com.
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Get involved with the park from the comfort of your own home! Time spent on training DOES count for volunteer hours, so make sure to include it on your monthly hours report.
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Trail Riding 101
Equine professionals created this course to prepare riders to make informed decisions when riding horses on trails. This 3-5 hour course will prepare you to take on Indiana Dunes' riding trails like a pro!
Find course here.
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Foundations of Interpretation
This introductory course provides the philosophical groundwork for why we do interpretation, what interpretation is, and how interpretation works form personal connections between the meanings of the resources and the interests of the audience.
Earn certificate issued by the Eppley Institute for Parks and Public Lands, Indiana University
Find course here.
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Leave No Trace Online Awareness Course
This brief course will provide you with a better understanding of recreation-related impacts, the Seven Principles and how Leave No Trace skills and ethics can help protect the outdoor places we love.
Earn Leave No Trace certificate
Find course here.
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Trail Safe!
This program is a unique safety training program designed specifically for National Park Service (NPS) Trail Volunteers, but is useful to everyone! It's based upon NPS Operational Leadership Training, where the Human Factor of safety is explored. Trail Safe! captures the core learning objectives of the 16-hour Operational Leadership course while allowing volunteers to learn from their homes online.
Earn Trail Safe! certificate, SPE/GAR card, and pin
Find course here.
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Introduction to the National Park Service
Learn about the ideas that formed and later transformed the National Park Service (NPS), the people who generated those ideas, and the laws that continue to shape the NPS today.
Earn certificate issued by the Eppley Institute for Parks and Public Lands, Indiana University
Find course here.
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Fire Extinguisher Training
National Park Service employees are required to complete annual fire extinguisher training. It's important to knowing how and when to operate an extinguisher, whether you are volunteering at the park or not!
Find course here.
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