Volunteer
Volunteers are the superheros of Turtle Bay! Our 475+ volunteers on average serve a combined yearly total of 25,000 hours. We are grateful for these dedicated volunteers who help us provide many of the programs we offer to the community.
Volunteering at Turtle Bay is a great way to give back to your community by supporting a growing cultural institution. You’ll meet new people, gain additional skills, and enjoy the beautiful campus, while helping support our education-based mission. Active community members serve in a variety of positions, both indoors and outdoors, with the public and behind-the-scenes, ranging from 3 hours per year to 3 hours per day.
The common thread that runs through our volunteers is their love of learning new things about the natural and cultural world both in our region and beyond. We offer a great bi-annual training and enrichment program for all volunteers regardless of position.
Volunteer Positions
Regular positions
Horticulture
Horticulture volunteers focus on gardening, plant propagation, raking, weeding, pruning, care of nursery plants, and other general horticulture activities in the beautiful McConnell Arboretum & Botanical Gardens. Horticulture volunteers may also choose to work on special research projects and help organize the bi-annual Plant Sale. Volunteers work on a drop-in basis, Wednesday and Saturday mornings.
Docents/Education
Docents are volunteer educators who support the Park by interpreting and explaining exhibits for both casual visitors and school groups. Docents may lead interactive activity stations or give formal guided tours in the botanical gardens, museum, and/or forest camp.
Animal Programs
Our animal programs department offers a variety of positions for the critter-enthusiast including amphitheater show assistants, and keeper aids, who assist with cleaning, feeding and other behind-the-scenes tasks. Both positions start new volunteers at an entry level, with opportunities to progress to over time, with training.
Councils
Individuals with interest in the arts, forestry, or horticulture are encouraged to apply to become council members. Council members meet on a regular basis to assist with program planning, fundraising, and provide steering support to staff.
On-call positions
Registered on-call volunteers receive a weekly email posting which includes events and special project opportunities, and choose to help at those which interest them and fit into their busy schedules.
Special Events
In addition to exhibit openings and special programs, Turtle Bay hosts a variety of large fundraising events throughout the year including: Auction, Kool April Nites, Art and Craft Fair, and Winter in the Woods. Typical duties include: providing guest service and collecting admission.
Special projects
Many special projects are clerical and may include: photocopying, database entry, mass mailings, telephone work and other general office tasks. If you have a special talent that may be useful such as sewing or computer skills, we may be able to put it to use as well!
Group projects
Groups such as community service organizations and scout groups may participate in special volunteer projects on a case-by-case basis, depending on the needs of Turtle Bay Exploration Park and the learning goals of the organization. Please contact the Volunteer Coordinator for more details.
Volunteer Benefits
- Registered Turtle Bay volunteers receive the following benefits:
- Be a part of a growing natural and cultural center in our community
- Discounts in cafe, museum store, and nursery (must present volunteer badge)
- Free training and low-to-no-cost field trips and lifelong learning opportunities
- Volunteer Appreciation dinner and awards and other social events.
- Snacks and occasional meals at meetings and special events
- Membership benefits for those who work 100+ hours between May 1 and April 31.
Responsibilities
We request that volunteers:
- Turn in an application and go through an interview process
- Become a Turtle Bay member
- Attend and complete Turtle U training
- Record your hours using our computer time tracking system
- Call a supervisor if you are unable to come in
- Follow all Turtle Bay rules and policies and be open for evaluation
Training
The common thread that runs through our volunteers is their love of learning new things about the natural and cultural world both in our region and beyond. All new Turtle Bay volunteers are required to graduate basic “Turtle U” training; some positions require additional training.
- Turtle U consists of four 2-hour courses to orient volunteers to our campus
- Trainings are held bi-annually, in August and January
- Courses are conveniently scheduled with the work week in mind.
Application
Volunteer Applications
- Download Adult Volunteer Application (PDF: 100kb)
- Download Adult Volunteer Application (Word: 172kb)
(* To view and print Adobe Acrobat .PDF documents, please download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.)
Download a volunteer application today! Completed forms can be mailed or faxed to:
Volunteer Coordinator
Turtle Bay Exploration Park
1335 Arboretum Drive, Suite A
Redding, CA 96003
Fax: (530) 242-3126
If you have difficulty downloading this form, you may phone the Volunteer Coordinator to request a hard copy, at (530) 242-3112. Upon receiving and reviewing your application, you will be contacted with information regarding the next training session.
