A Big Thanks to Our Summer Volunteers

MOSI Outside has had some amazing volunteers this summer! Gwen, Stuart, and Heather have given their time generously during the hottest part of the year, sweating under the Florida sun to help our gardens grow and our butterflies thrive.

Gwen and Stuart have volunteered at MOSI Outside for several summers now, and we’re always glad to see them return! Starting in June, this brother-sister team has been here three mornings a week, pulling weeds and installing new plants. In particular, we’re grateful for their work maintaining the salvia bed, planting the new Flatwoods and Ice Gardens (more on those soon), and hauling wheelbarrow after wheelbarrow of yard waste to the compost bins and beyond. There are those that will tell you that “Generation Y” has no sense of loyalty or work ethic – we look at young people like Gwen and Stuart and completely disagree.

Heather found us this spring when visiting MOSI Outside with her young son. It was definitely our gain, since Heather spent the summer putting in 100 hours of volunteer service! She helped with lab work, including feeding caterpillars and maintaining the Flight Cage. She also weeded beds under the hot sun, and spent her last two weeks here every morning digging holes for hundreds of plants under some very “root-y” trees. Her help made the new Mount Vernon, Andersonville, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt gardens look fantastic, and her drive and enthusiasm have been incredible even under the hottest and dirtiest working conditions!

With our very small paid staff, volunteers are the lifeblood of MOSI Outside, and they keep our exhibits and gardens running. We offer our sincere and heartfelt thanks to Gwen, Stuart, and Heather for all their hard work this summer – believe us when we say, “We couldn’t have done it without you!”

MOSI Outside is always looking for good volunteers. You can join us in the gardens, learn to grow and maintain caterpillars and butterflies in the lab, or spend time in the Flight Encounter providing a great guest experience. If you’re interested in volunteering, drop an email to kristeng@mosi.org.