A lesson in stewardship
Volunteers, state officials spruce up French Creek State Park
ELVERSON » Some new paint and a little love and care can do wonders for outdoor areas shared by a community.
That’s why French Creek State Park is lucky to have the help of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps, a group of teen volunteers who have been working over several weeks to spruce up the park and give community areas some much needed updates.
“The Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps, we have youth corps all throughout the state,” explained Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps Manager Michael Piaskowski. “Today we’re visiting our Reading youth corps and our youth corps is young people ages 15-18. The heart of it is a job training program centered around conservation and recreation projects. We’re trying to bring the next generation of conservation leaders into the fold.”
The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn and other Department of Conservation and Natural Resources officials visited the group in the park on Thursday to take a look at some of the progress they’ve been making in their projects.
Work has included painting and replacing windows on some of the park’s cabins, which are heavily used in the summer months by thousands of visitors, as well as other tasks including clearing brush from trails, installing new grills in recreational areas and others.
“We have gotten a lot of great work done this past year thanks to the help of these volunteers and the Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps crew,” said Brent Erb Assistant Park Manager at French Creek State Park. “I’ve estimated that
there have been more than 750 hours dedicated to just simply this unit. There are 10 small overnight cabins in this one unit lodge, as well as the rest room ... There’s two group camps and the other one is twice as big. So there’s endless amounts of work to do here in our park to maintain it.”
Members of the Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps got a chance to speak with Dunn about the work they’ve been doing, their experience so far and what they hope their volunteer work will do for them in the future.
Following introductions to staff members, Dunn was able to take a look inside one of the cabins and view a slideshow of photographs showing before and after pictures of some of the Corps’ projects.
“I’m excited to be here,” Dunn said to the volunteers. “Some of the best days I’ve had on this job are days that I come out and meet the Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps crew. I think that you’re sort of the expression of the hopes and aspirations of the DCNR staff. We need the next generation to step forward and be the stewards of these public lands that we care about so much. We put a lot of hope and a lot of interest in your great work.”
French Creek State Park, just south of Birdsboro along the border between Berks and Chester counties, is a popular area for many visitors who enjoy recreational activities including hiking, swimming, biking, horseback riding, boating and fishing.
Straddling the Schuylkill Highlands, the 7,730-acre park is the largest block of contiguous forest between Washington, D.C., and New York City.