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By Andrea Weeks, Associate Professor and Director of the Ted R. Bradley Herbarium, George Mason University

​In Fall 2016, a new online volunteer opportunity for the Virginia Master Naturalists was launched in a webinar entitled, “Digitizing Virginia’s Herbaria for Research and Education”. The goal of this volunteer project is to transcribe label information from high-resolution images of Virginian herbarium specimens into an online database. These pressed and dried specimens of native plant species are currently held in cabinets at research institutions around the Commonwealth and they document our flora from the early 1800s to the present day. As the online database grows, it is shared freely with the public and scientists (www.sernecportal.org) to improve our understanding of Virginia’s flora through space and time.
 
We are very grateful to report that since its inception, “Digitizing Virginia’s Herbaria for Research and Education” has been adopted by 11 VMN chapters and received over 460 hours of volunteer support. It has proved to be particularly popular during the cold winter months when opportunities for volunteering out-of-doors may be more limited. In total, over 17,000 separate herbarium specimens have been fully transcribed and entered into the online database. What is remarkable about this large number of transcriptions is that approximately 11,500 of them were created by a cohort of fewer than 40 VMN volunteers!
 
We want to thank all the VMN volunteers who have lent a few minutes or many hours to this endeavor. We are making substantial progress on a large task with your support. As of the writing of this post in late January, our current collection of specimens to be transcribed is nearing completion (Wetland Plants of Virginia) and we are cueing up the next batch of 5,000 specimens for debut by mid-February (Pollinator Plants of Virginia II). If you’d like to join the online fun, we encourage you to check out the archived webinar. Along with the webinar, we have a project proposal form for the project and instructions for doing the transcriptions.

We have been busy this January compiling the annual reports from our chapters.  We’re still digging into the stories of the impacts they have made on natural resource conservation and in their communities, but here we provide some of the basic program statistics for 2017.

In 2017, 1,845 volunteers reported nearly 156,000 hours of service, nearly 28,000 hours of continuing education, and more than 127,000 face-to-face exchanges of educational information about natural resources.  The volunteers reported stewardship work at 323 sites across Virginia, including local, state, and national parks, local and state natural areas, trails, schoolyards, and more.  Their service in 2017 is valued at  $4.2 million, based on the 2016 value of a volunteer hour in Virginia as calculated by IndependentSector.org (2017 value is not yet published.)

Watch the spring issue of our quarterly newsletter and our Facebook page, where we will share some specific stories of outcomes and impacts of this service as we dig into those stories!

Thank you to all the volunteers who contributed, either through reporting their service, or by submitting their chapters’ annual reports so that we can learn about the great work that you do!

VMNs Make a Difference at Pleasant Grove
Contributed by Walter Hussey, VMN-Rivanna Chapter

Pleasant Grove is a county park in Fluvanna County with 23 miles of trails on more than 800 acres, including 2.5 miles along undeveloped Rivanna riverfront.  VMN volunteers in the Rivanna Chapter have been active in habitat restoration and education at the site. 

VMN volunteers have assisted with the development of a new Nature Room at the Museum, working with partners to acquire the necessary permits for collecting and displaying wildlife artifacts.  VMNs also have generated information for new trail maps on the natural habitats along the trails as well as wildlife, plants and flowers you may see. They have assisted in creating 70+ acres of wildlife meadow and planting 1200+ trees over the last three years.  In addition, they installed and monitor 34 bluebird nest boxes.  And, they have partnered with Fluvanna Master Gardeners on a new Butterfly Garden with over 500 native plants in 4 landscape designs as examples for home pollinator friendly native plant landscapes.  In terms of education events, VMNs lead hikes and nature activities and an annual Earth Day field trip for first and second graders.

In addition to Walter Hussey, who has spearheaded many of these efforts, other Rivanna Chapter volunteers providing major contributions have included Ida Swenson, Jeff Divers, Pat Coldeway, and Deborah Anderson.  A dozen or more additional volunteers from the chapter have assisted with one or more of the projects at the site.

Conservation Educator of the Year

Jody Ullmann, VMN-Tidewater Chapter, received the Garden Club of Virginia Conservation Educator of the Year Award for all of the many programs she has developed both in her work role as the Education Coordinator for Lynnhaven River NOW and in her volunteer role as a Virginia Master Naturalist volunteer in the Tidewater Chapter.  Jody accepted the award at the 2017 Garden Club of Virginia Fall Symposium, where she gave a moving speech describing her programs and the many ways adults can inspire our next generation of natural resource stewards.

2,500 Hour Achievement
Bob Dinse, VMN-Fairfax Chapter, completed 2,500 hours of volunteer service as a Virginia Master Naturalist.  

VMN-Shenandoah Chapter Hosts a Successful VMN Statewide Conference

The Virginia Master Naturalist 2017 Statewide Conference and Volunteer Training took place in September at the Northern Virginia 4-H Center in Front Royal.  Our Shenandoah Chapter served as the local hosts, assisting with program planning and many other aspects of the conference, which was our biggest ever, with approximately 250 attendees.  They planned and organized special additions to the conference, including field journaling stations and an amazing assortment of handmade door prizes.  In all, 45 members of the chapter supported the conference in some way.  Members of the organizing committee and supporting committees were recognized at the chapter’s annual picnic.

Marie Majarov – Marie did an amazing job of redesigning the photo contest process by converting it to a digital format.  She received much praise for the effort.  It will be used for future state contests as well as adopted by many of the chapters.  She also ran our chapter photo contest this year.

Melanie Schneider – Melanie played a big role on our social committee especially in making sure the dining hall looked good for our meals.  In particular she hand crafted 32 beautiful center pieces for the Saturday evening dinner as well as provided wild flower vases for all other meals.

Karl Dydak – Karl was our “Green Team” meaning he took care of all recycling, composting and hydration stations by designing the layouts and setting them up.  This is a new position to the state conference this year.  In addition Karl was always there and willing to help with any tasks.  He really did a lot for the conference.

Sara Dydak – Sara stepped in to take over the role as the volunteer coordinator when we lost the person that had originally signed up for that role.  Sara came on board late in August just when things were really heating up as we prepared for the conference and then over saw the volunteers during the conference itself.  Not an easy job.

Laure Wallace, Margie Miller, Karen Fall, Kelly Macoy – The social committee had a great deal of the work required to prepare for and support the conference.  This group was originally headed by Laure and Margie.  It transitioned to Karen and Kelly during the summer and they headed up a working group we formed to ensure that all of the various tasks would be completed.

Susan Galbraith and Jo Riding – Susan and Jo were responsible for putting together what we called a ‘local interest’ display for the conference.  This display was to inform attendees about interesting things to do in our area.  The end result was quite spectacular and well put together.

Richard Stromberg – Richard was part of the group that oversaw the activities of our chapter as we prepared for the conference.  This was called the Conference Organizing Committee and was made up of 7 of our members and the three individuals from the state office.  Richard’s main task was to help to put together the conference program which in the end was very well received.  He also led some field trips into Shenandoah National Park.

Alex Newhart – Alex Newhart served as the lead organizer for the chapter’s contributions to the conference and on our program planning team.  He was instrumental in contacting the chapter’s partners to get them engaged in the conference, in recruiting volunteers, and in many other aspects!

Virginia Master Naturalists are a rather impressive bunch of people, dedicating extraordinary amounts of time and significant talents to benefit Virginia’s natural resources.  We recognize our volunteers’ accomplishments in our newsletter, through items such as milestone pins, and also, for a small number of volunteers and chapters, through our statewide awards.  Each year, we put out a call for nominations for some special awards to bring extra attention to the great work of our volunteers.

In 2017, we expanded our awards into eight different categories.  We very much thank all of the people who took time to write and submit nominations for these awards.  Details on this year’s winners are below.

Volunteer With the Most Hours
This award recognizes the volunteer who reported the most hours in the previous year.  The recipient, Daina Henry (VMN-Peninsula Chapter), completed and reported 1,087 hours of Virginia Master Naturalist volunteer time in 2016.  That is just about the hours of a half-time job!  In 2016, Daina conducted water quality monitoring in local streams, organized a biodiversity inventory of a wetland and creek area, assisted with trail maintenance for a nature trail used by school groups and the public, and participated in several education and outreach efforts in the community. She also served as the president of her chapter.  

Volunteer of the Year​
For the Volunteer of the Year, we received 11 nominations of volunteers from 11 different chapters.  Every single one of these people, as well as many who weren’t nominated, is truly a Volunteer of the Year.  It is amazing what these individuals give to improving natural resource education, stewardship, and citizen science in their communities.  We want to recognize all of the nominees, along with this year’s winner.

The award for Volunteer of the Year goes to Bill Blair (VMN-Northern Neck Chapter), a volunteer who exemplifies the leadership we hope to see from Virginia Master Naturalists.  His nominator writes, “His energy, positive attitude, subject matter expertise, and communication skills have had a clear and measurable impact on motivating people to learn about and embrace the natural world and volunteer.  His volunteer work defines what it is to be a selfless Master Naturalist to better the Commonwealth of Virginia.”  Examples of his ongoing work in include volunteer projects at Belle Isle State Park Youth Camp, Leading tours and educational programs at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), leading several bird survey projects, providing stewardship work at two local parks, and even performing a re-enactment of John Muir and his legacy of conservation. ​

Chapter With the Most Hours Per Active Member
Our chapters vary greatly in size, so for this award, we scale the hours based on the total number of volunteers in the chapter who reported service hours that year.  Winning the award for their 2016 work this year is the Historic Rivers Chapter, one of our larger chapters, with 118 active members in 2016.  On average, those volunteers each contributed 134 hours of service during the year.  Some of the projects they did included wildlife monitoring through DGIF’s Wildlife Mapping project (done as an organized group in local parks), numerous bird and butterfly counts, environmental education with local parks and schools, and oyster restoration projects.  

Chapter Advisor of the Year
Each of our chapters has a chapter advisor who works with one of the seven state agency sponsors of the program.  Our 2017 Chapter Advisor of the Year is Paul Bugas of the Headwaters Chapter.  Paul is a Fisheries Biologist with DGIF.  His contributions have included sponsoring the original organizers of the chapter, arranging for chapter outings and continuing education opportunities, nurturing the chapter through various growing pains.  The nominator writes, “Our project list and volunteer participation levels are still a reflection of his positive influence, as we are motivated to live up to his trust and example.  He is there at night and on weekends for graduations, tours, annual meetings, and individual member needs.  And he is not just there – he will bring a casserole too!  Because of Paul, the Headwaters Chapter members will continue to volunteer for chemical and macroinvertebrate river monitoring, river cleanups, school and public education days, riparian buffer planting and maintenance, and many other projects.  We honor his investment in us!”

​Education Project of the Year 
The Virginia Junior Master Naturalist Program of the Tidewater Chapter connects youth to nature through a creative model of training teen leaders who then develop lesson plans and lead learning sessions and field activities for 8-13 year old children twice a month.  The program also pairs other Certified Virginia Master Naturalists from the chapter with the teen leaders to help provide mentorship, and members of the chapter also serve as guest instructors or helpers for the activities.  The intention of the program is to help youth grow from participants to teen leaders to future Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers.  Two VMN volunteers, in particular, have really made this program happen: Suzanne Moss and Jody Ullmann.  They taught a session about their program at the VMN statewide conference in September.  

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Citizen Science Project of the Year
The Bat Monitoring Project of the Pocahontas Chapter started with a focus on monitoring bat populations in Pocahontas State Park, documenting the existing population and determining locations for additional bat boxes based on weekly monitoring throughout the park.  More than 40 members of the chapter have participated in the project.  Now, more recently, it is starting to expand to new locations, and they are working to get 12 more chapters involved in bat monitoring using bat detectors and a standardized national protocol.  Liz Revette of the VMN-Pocahontas Chapter has been the leader for this entire effort, proposing the original project in the park, contacting other chapters as she works to expand the project, and writing grants to purchase equipment.

Stewardship Project of the Year
Quite a few of our chapters participate in the DGIF Birding and Wildlife Trail Adopt-a-Trail project, in one way or another.  The Northern Neck Chapter has turned this project into a major chapter project, monitoring 22 sites for the Northern Neck Trail spread out over some 8,000 square miles.  Nearly one-third of their chapter members participate, and they contributed approximately 300 hours to the project in just 18 months.  Much of their success is due to the hard work by Alison Sowar, who coordinates the project within the chapter, organizing the volunteers, collecting the data from the volunteers and creating reports, and communicating with DGIF.

Administrative Project of the Year
Between 15 and 20 percent of VMN volunteer hours are on administration – all that work that keeps our local chapters running effectively.  This work is vital due to our program structure; we don’t have any local staff serving as coordinators–just our chapter advisors who provide some oversight.  Few people become Virginia Master Naturalist volunteers because they want to work on chapter administration, yet some volunteers really put in effort to go beyond the minimum to make their chapters the best they can be.  The selection committee has chosen the Historic Southside Chapter’s “Update of Chapter Projects, Homepage, and Overall Usage and Understanding of the Volunteer Management System” for this year’s award.  Early in 2017, Chris Peters, who was a new member of the chapter, volunteered to do research and develop a presentation to enhance the chapter’s use of the VMS.  That resulted in a major overhaul of project organization, with reviews and updates of all project descriptions.  They also re-vamped the chapter’s home page on the VMS to highlight current projects with photos, in order to encourage members to log on frequently to see what is new.  Chris developed a training presentation on the VMS used with both new trainees and the general membership.  The chapter has seen a 12% increase in the number of hours entered, and many chapter members have expressed appreciation for the additional training and the upgrades.