An organist and avid biker, Nancy has been a dedicated BNRC volunteer for more than five years.
In 2022, 80 volunteers participated in volunteer programs at BNRC, accumulating over 600 hours across all roles. Nancy King has been a hardworking volunteer since 2018.
“I love [BNRC] for all it does to keep open land for everyone to enjoy in the Berkshires.”
These wonderful volunteers provide support in many areas of the organization. Nancy fondly remembers her time helping out the opening of the Parsons Marsh trail, where she distributed wildflower seeds to the children in attendance and helped them decorate handmade hiking poles.
“To see whole families walking the trail and getting excited about nature was inspiring!”
Nancy also serves as a volunteer Trail Steward at Housatonic Flats and Thomas & Palmer Brook, both in Great Barrington. As a Trail Steward, she hikes at her assigned property, and submits an online report about her observations on the trail. This report includes when and where she visited, how many English and Spanish language trail maps were restocked at the kiosk, and indicates any problems she may have encountered (downed trees, or issues with trash, as examples), so that BNRC staff can follow up and resolve the issue quickly. Reports from Trail Stewards like Nancy are essential to maintaining BNRC’s 60+ miles of hiking trails.
Nancy also participates in volunteer workdays. For Nancy, the two new bridges constructed last year across streams at Basin Pond in Lee were a significant improvement. Six volunteers supported this effort with BNRC staff by carrying wood from the trailhead to the building sites. The completion of these bridges has made the hike much safer— in fact, this hike is one of Nancy’s favorites, so be sure to check it out!
“I am happy to do my part to keep the older trails in shape and to work on new ones.”
Volunteer Workdays at BNRC
In addition to Trail Steward opportunities, volunteers support the BNRC Stewardship Team at scheduled workdays. These stewardship workdays can include trail maintenance and construction, invasive species management, habitat restoration, repainting trail blazes, and more. Last year, 25 of the volunteer workdays were stewardship-focused.