May 1996

Volunteering for Chicago Wilderness

by Mary Kate Hogan

Return to Chicago Wilderness Fire article

Preserving Chicago Wilderness will take more than good planning. It means people. And volunteers can help with many different projects.

There are lots of ways to volunteer. You can guide walking tours and canoe trips on the Chicago River. You can greet visitors and answer questions at Lincoln Park Zoo, or teach 5- to 7-year-olds about animals. You can learn to burn—participating in prescribed burns in the Palos Preserves. You can capture and identify insects in the Lake County Forest Preserve District. You can become “treekeepers,” learning to care for trees and organize workdays in their communities. You can help Sierra Club with grass-roots activism and lobbying local officials.

To become a Chicago Wilderness volunteer, call any of these organizations:

The Field Museum, 312-922-9410, ext. 360, Anita Morgan

Brookfield Zoo, 708-485-0263, ext. 396, Laura Jasiek

Lincoln Park Zoo, 312-742-2124, Elizabeth Wheeler

Chicago Botanic Garden, 847-935-8281, Linda Doede

The Morton Arboretum, 708-719-2428, Susan Dietrich

The Chicago Academy of Sciences, 312-549-0606, ext. 2026, Laura Sabransky

John G. Shedd Aquarium, 312-939-2426, ext. 2500, Nanette Schaumberg

Volunteer Stewardship Network, 312-346-8166, ext. 22, Rebecca Gee

Openlands Project, 312-427-4256, Julie Sacco

Lake Michigan Federation, 312-939-0838, Ellen Gibson

The Friends of the Chicago River, 312-939-0490, Chris Cercone

Sierra Club, 312-251-1680, Jack Darin

Forest Preserve District of Cook County, 708-771-1574, Steve Mayberry

Lake County Forest Preserves, 847-948-7753, ext. 212, Tom Smith

DuPage County Forest Preserve District, 708-876-5920, Portia Blume

Kane County Forest Preserve District, 708-741-9924, Valerie DePrez

Forest Preserve District Will County, 815-727-8700, Richard Wachenheim

McHenry County Conservation District, 815-678-4431, Sue Jacobek

Illinois Department of Natural Resources, 217-785-8285, Jay Johnson

Illinois Nature Preserves Commission, 815-385-9074, Steve Byers

North Park Village Nature Center, 312-744-5477, Nancy Saulsbury,

Chicago Park District, 312-747-1463, Lori Crockett

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