Both last April and this April, some of you were introduced to Carrie Sparks at our Women’s Wellness Weekend. During that weekends Carrie taught the Outdoor Cooking sessions and guided our Wildflower Walk. Carrie is a valuable member of the Hungry Mother State Park team. Carrie is a volunteer.
Carrie spent every Tuesday this past summer helping the park by leading the “Critter Crawl” each week. The program allows children of all ages to investigate the creek at Hungry Mother and what calls it home. Carrie is on hand to help offer safety techniques for participants and inhabitants, as well as general information.
By being willing to volunteer her time this summer, Carrie enabled staff to conduct another of the popular programs at Hungry Mother, “Canoe the New”. The canoe program is a 4 mile float down the New River. Staff leading this trip must be ACA (American Canoe Association) certified. Carrie’s volunteer time allowed the canoe trip to be conducted with all available certified staff.
But that isn’t all Carrie does for the park. She also rotates as a guide of the Heritage Walk, a guided history walk through the park. Regularly, you can see Carrie and her husband Jim picking up trash along the trails of the park. And she serves as secretary for the Friends of Hungry Mother, a citizens support organization focused on helping meet the needs of Hungry Mother State Park.
Carrie is has her certificate as a VA Master Naturalist and she spearheads the organization of the Mt. Roger’s Naturalist Rally each May in Konnarock, VA. She is a member of the Marion Garden Club and an active member of the Friends of Mt. Rogers.
Carrie, the staff of Hungry Mother State Park, would like to thank you for all the time and effort you have given to our programs and parks. We appreciate you and your work.
This is a great example of what can happen in our parks with volunteers in your VA State Parks. Each park has someone designated to work with volunteers and volunteer projects. You can get general information by calling (703) 583-5497 or emailing vspvolunteer@dcr.virginia.gov. You can also register as a Virginia State Park volunteer through our website.
If you are interested in joining Carrie for one of her programs check at the Discovery Center at Hungry Mother State Park for an up-to-date schedule or call Candace or Gwen at (276) 781-7415.
