VOLUNTEER
Individuals or groups interested in volunteering their time may contact our Volunteer Coordinator:
Neil Mara
volunteer@mcbones.org
509-730-9340
We are always looking for dedicated volunteers. There really are no requirements other than an ability to work as directed and be dedicated. It takes a certain amount of training so we prefer people that can be dedicated enough to go beyond the training to become valuable members of the organization. Our regular Dig Days are the second and third weekends of each month from March through October, and we generally work 6 hour days. We also have lab work and other activities that go on during the week and over the winter at various locations.
We ask that prospective volunteers first sign up for a tour of the site (if they have not already done so). Volunteers will then go through additional orientation and on-site training, starting with simpler, more mundane tasks, and as time goes on advancing to more skilled tasks in their areas of interest. Most people are fascinated by the prospect of doing some of the actual excavation (digging) and finding/retrieving mammoth bones. While we do need that kind of help, those positions take a lot more training and dedication than other support activities.
There are still lots of volunteer opportunities - it just depends on an individual’s interest and availability.
Here are informal committees/teams that can always use good/committed volunteers, and some of the associated jobs/activities:
Administrative/General
- Project Management
- Tour Coordination
- Volunteer Coordination
- Cleaning
- Curation/Archival of Specimens and Records
- Displays
- Landscaping
- Sign-In Records/Data Entry, Liability Waivers
- Fund Raising/Grants
- Public Relations (Publicity, Flyers/Brochures, etc.)
- Social Media
- Website
- Educational Displays/Kits (Traveling Displays)
- Bone Replica Creation
- Docents/Tour help
- Internships
- Speakers Bureau
- Volunteer Training
- Data Entry and Records Management
- Excavation/Digging and Support
- Field Site Facility Improvements, Maintenance, Security
- Geologic Research (Stratigraphic Mapping)
- Microscopy
- Paleontological Research
- Paleoecological Research
- Micro-fossil Picking (through wet screened sediments for micro fossils)
- Photography (Micro- and Macrophotography)
- Site Surveying
- Specimen preservation/documentation (photography)/archival activities
- Wet screen Operations