There’s Ally, Anne, Aral, Becca, Cynthia, and Dan. There’s Dawn, Debbie, Eric, Frank, Jane, Jenny, Julia, Kayleigh, and Kelly. We can’t forget Lacey, Linda, Luke, Marie, Matt, Myron, Nick, or Paul. Then, of course, we must include Reuben, Rob, Ryan, Sally, Sharon, Steve, and Virginia.
Clearly, the list goes on as these are only a sample of the scores of individuals who volunteered with Humboldt Park Friends this year. While some focus on particular events and activities, others are back most days of the year. They are a community of people who care about and for Humboldt Park.
Volunteering with Humboldt Park Friends connects me with a community that cares deeply about being good stewards of this invaluable resource. –
Humboldt Park Friends has no paid staff. Our all-volunteer board devotes many hours each month to planning activities, researching ways to protect and improve the park, and engaging neighbors and friends in Humboldt Park activities
Much of our volunteer work goes unnoticed unless people happen upon us in action. For example, playground visitors might see scores of people scouring the grass under trees, looking for bits of plastic and other debris at our annual clean-up event. Early morning dog walkers might wonder about the volunteer carrying a shopping bag as he loads it with cans tossed into the roadways or shopping receipts blown out of a passing car. Then there are the “weed ladies!”
Milwaukee County Parks conducts weed-outs in many of their parks, enlisting the help of volunteers. Our park volunteers were dubbed the “weed ladies” by a young lady who went on walks with her mom. The weed ladies have been assisted by an area boy scout troop. We have nearly eradicated the Canadian thistle and have burdock on the list to be pulled out in the next few years. The thistles and the burdock have deep roots that easily return. The Milwaukee County Parks naturalists assist the volunteers in deciding which plants are deemed invasive and need to be removed.
Our volunteers are also professionals. We are accountants, architects, artists, buyers, calligraphers, designers, environmentalists, fundraisers, graphic designers, horticulturalists, musicians, photographers, psychologists, public relations specialists, realtors, social media specialists, strategic planners, and teachers. We’re students, too. We are learning all the time about ice skating, pollinators, trees, county regulations, water quality, climate resilience, building codes, watersheds, birds, micro-forests, Porta-potties, grant writing, and so much more.
Becoming a volunteer has allowed me to see the scope of Humboldt Park’s impact on the community. The breadth is amazing — music in the summer, skating in the winter, and educational and enrichment programs for kids and adults throughout the year.
Perhaps the most unexpected part of volunteering with Humboldt Park Friends is our ever-growing sense of community. We come together to be stewards of the park. However, in that process we find that we share a passion for the environment, a commitment to things going well for everyone, and a belief that when we put our shoulders together, we can make big things happen.
There are MANY reasons why I am so grateful to raise a family in Bay View, but none equal the Humboldt Park Friends and the community they help build.
We welcome your involvement in Humboldt Park Friends. Come to a monthly meeting to learn what we are about. Respond to our invitations to help with park clean ups, cattail cutting, garden planting, Tree Day Celebrations, and more. And please consider a year-end gift to Humboldt Park Friends to support the amazing work done by our volunteers every day.