Opportunities From: Five Rivers MetroParks

Thank you for reserving an Adopt-A-Park Service Kit!

Your volunteer service helps protect our region’s natural heritage and keeps our parks and river corridors healthy and beautiful.

To receive your kit, you must RSVP for a Drive-Thru Adopt-A-Park Service Kit Pick-up. Kits will be available for pick-up in the morning at Cox Arboretum and Wegerzyn Gardens MetroPark on Saturday, April 25.

How to Participate Complete your litter pick-up using your service kit in a park or green space of your choice Follow the instructions included in your kit for safety and disposal guidance After your cleanup, log your volunteer hours and share your impactImportant Timing

Service kits are intended to be used during April and May as part of our Adopt-A-Park efforts. Cleanups completed outside of this timeframe will not be eligible for volunteer hour tracking in Get Connected.

Team Registration

If you're registering as an individual, click Respond.
If you're planning to participate with a small team, select Respond as a Team to register your group.

As a Team Leader, you will:

Add team members (name required, email optional) and manage your team registration Log your team’s volunteer hours after completing your litter pick-up Submit hours for each date if your team participates multiple times

For a step-by-step guide, click here to watch a short video walkthrough of the team registration process.

For registration assistance, contact Volunteer Services at volunteer.services@metroparks.org or call 937-275-PARK.

Planning Your Cleanup

If this is your first time using a service kit or you'd like a refresher, please review the service kit instructions. These instructions will be included in your kit. You may clean up any green space of your choosing, or use the list provided in your kit to find high-priority areas within MetroParks.

Trash Disposal:
Please take your bagged trash with you or place it in the nearest park trash receptacle if working outside of a Five Rivers MetroPark.

Log Your Impact:
After your cleanup, please:

Log your volunteer hours in Get Connected.  Watch this video for instructions on how to add your team's hours.Complete the short impact survey to share how much litter you collected. Your response helps track our collective efforts and make a bigger difference.
Thank You for Making a Difference!

We appreciate our volunteers, staff, and generous community sponsors for supporting this effort:

Montgomery County Environmental Services

Keep Montgomery County Beautiful

QEI Engineers Inc.

Join us for these additional Public Volunteer Days: 

Service Saturdays every third Saturday from May to September Make A Difference Day in October  Interested in bringing your coworkers, team, or community group out for a volunteer workday or a series of volunteer workdays throughout the season or year? Learn more about group volunteer opportunities here.    

Interested in other volunteer opportunities with MetroParks? Learn more about our types of volunteer service and how to get started as a volunteer with us. 

Join us as we introduce our wildlife animal ambassadors to youth and families at the Omega/Hope Center. Wildlife Ambassador volunteers are needed to help handle and present the animals at the wildlife ambassador booth including the turtles, snakes, owl, and hawk.

In this shadow experience, staff will work with you to show you how to confidently handle and interpret the animals to the public.

Five Rivers MetroParks Wildlife Ambassador volunteers assist with animal care and animal programming, sharing our conservation message with community members of all ages at a variety of programs, events, and outreach opportunities year-round.

Impact

Volunteers like YOU can share our conservation mission and the importance of healthy habitat for animals like them and people like us to a variety of audiences throughout our community.

Tasks

Assist staff in set-up and clean-up of wildlife ambassador booth space.With the help of your staff lead you will:Welcome guests to the booth, introduce yourself and the wildlife ambassadorsProvide excellent customer service to the public when approached with questions. Review talking points regarding the wildlife ambassadors in the Wildlife Ambassador Manual.Follow all safety procedures and ensure the safety of all participants. Alert staff when and if any issues arise.

Eligibility: This is an opportunity for individual Long-Term volunteers who are qualified Wildlife Ambassador Animal Care volunteers.

GET STARTED: This opportunity requires Volunteer Onboarding (Profile, Volunteer Handbook Signature, and for those 18 and up an eligible background check), plus Wildlife Ambassador Volunteer Training.  Simply click the blue RESPOND button to begin completing your qualifications or click here to learn more about becoming a volunteer.

Additional Notes

Parking & Meeting Instructions: Arrive at 1816 Harvard Blvd, Dayton, OH 45406 and meet your staff lead to help unload in the parking lot.Dress: Please wear you volunteer name badge and volunteer apparel. Please bring your drivers license as identification to get into the school.Environment & Physical Demands: This program takes place indoors. Volunteers can expect bending, kneeling, reaching, and lifting objects 10 lbs. or more, and standing for long periods.If you would like to request a service accommodation in order to volunteer at this opportunity, please contact Volunteer Services at least 1 week before the scheduled opportunity. 

Learn more about Programming with us on the Volunteer Position page! Have questions or need help getting started? Contact Volunteer Services at volunteer.services@metroparks.org or #937-275-7275 or join us at a Volunteer Open House.

The 618-acre Sugarcreek MetroPark is filled with a diverse habitat of scenic creeks, rolling hills, dense woods, wildflowers, fields, prairies, and wetlands, all conveniently located just south of Centerville/Kettering. Your participation in a Service Saturday project helps MetroParks continue its mission to protect the region's natural heritage and provide outdoor experiences that inspire a personal connection with nature.

Impact

Protecting open space and natural areas is a priority for Five Rivers MetroParks, which protects nearly 16,000 acres of land — 90 percent of it in its natural state. Conservation volunteers are a part of our regional conservation story by assisting in implementing a variety of natural area management plans.

Tasks  

Volunteers will have the opportunity to remove invasive Garlic Mustard at Sugarcreek MetroPark.

Eligibility

This opportunity is open to individuals, groups, families, public, long-term and short-term volunteers, ages 5 and up.

Background Check: We do not require a background check for our public volunteer opportunities; however, persons with a criminal record may be disqualified and prohibited from service. Please review our background check policy here. For those required to complete Court Appointed Community Service, please click here.Family Volunteers: This opportunity is family-friendly. Families with youth volunteers under the age of 14 are welcome to volunteer. The family must include one parent or guardian per 3 children who engage in service and assume supervisory responsibility for the children during volunteer service.

Additional Notes

Parking & Meeting Instructions: Click here for a map of Sugarcreek MetroPark. Volunteers should park and meet staff in the main parking lot near the restrooms and kiosk at 4178 Conference Rd., Bellbrook, OH 45305. Please plan to arrive about 10 minutes before your shift to allow time for parking, check-in, and connecting with the staff lead. Look for the 'Volunteer Event' signage. Cancelation: If you need to cancel a shift at the last minute or are running late, please call project staff lead Matt Stevens at (513) 200-7271. Environment & Physical Demands: ​​This project takes place outdoors. Please be aware of outdoor exposure risks (i.e., sun, poison ivy, insects, etc.). Volunteers should be aware of seasonal allergies (i.e., grass, pollen, bees, etc.), and can expect to participate in bending, kneeling, pulling, lifting, cutting, walking on potentially uneven terrain, and dragging objects 15lbs or more. We will be in the woods working on flat and sloped terrain.If you would like to request a service accommodation to volunteer at this opportunity, please contact Volunteer Services at least 1 week before the scheduled opportunity. Dress: Volunteers should dress for the weather, wear long pants, long sleeves, and sturdy closed-toe shoes, and have their favorite work gloves, water bottle, sunscreen, and bug spray.

Learn more about Conservation opportunities with us on the Volunteer Position page! Have questions or need help getting started? Contact Volunteer Services at volunteer.services@metroparks.org or #937-275-7275 or join us at a Volunteer Open House.

Join us as we introduce our wildlife animal ambassadors to youth and families at the Westbrooke Village Elementary School. Wildlife Ambassador volunteers are needed to help handle and present the animals at the wildlife ambassador booth including the turtles, snakes, owl, and hawk.

In this shadow experience, staff will work with you to show you how to confidently handle and interpret the animals to the public.

Five Rivers MetroParks Wildlife Ambassador volunteers assist with animal care and animal programming, sharing our conservation message with community members of all ages at a variety of programs, events, and outreach opportunities year-round.

Impact

Volunteers like YOU can share our conservation mission and the importance of healthy habitat for animals like them and people like us to a variety of audiences throughout our community.

Tasks

Assist staff in set-up and clean-up of wildlife ambassador booth space.With the help of your staff lead you will:Welcome guests to the booth, introduce yourself and the wildlife ambassadorsProvide excellent customer service to the public when approached with questions. Review talking points regarding the wildlife ambassadors in the Wildlife Ambassador Manual.Follow all safety procedures and ensure the safety of all participants. Alert staff when and if any issues arise.

Eligibility

This is an opportunity for individual Long-Term volunteers who are qualified Wildlife Ambassador Animal Care volunteers.

GET STARTED: This opportunity requires Volunteer Onboarding (Profile, Volunteer Handbook Signature, and for those 18 and up an eligible background check), plus Wildlife Ambassador Volunteer Training.  Simply click the blue RESPOND button to begin completing your qualifications or click here to learn more about becoming a volunteer.

Additional Notes

Parking & Meeting Instructions: Arrive atWestbrooke Village Elementary 6500 Westford Road Trotwood, Ohio 45426 and meet your staff lead to help unload in the parking lot.Dress: Please wear you volunteer name badge and volunteer apparel. Environment & Physical Demands: This program takes place indoors. Volunteers can expect bending, kneeling, reaching, and lifting objects 10 lbs. or more, and standing for long periods.If you would like to request a service accommodation in order to volunteer at this opportunity, please contact Volunteer Services at least 1 week before the scheduled opportunity. 

Learn more about Programming with us on the Volunteer Position page! Have questions or need help getting started? Contact Volunteer Services at volunteer.services@metroparks.org or #937-275-7275 or join us at a Volunteer Open House.