Green Thumb
Departments:
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Alexander Ramsey House and James J Hill House
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Historic Fort Snelling
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Oliver Kelley Farm
Service Summary
Dig into history! Become a Green Thumb Volunteer at a historic site. Alongside staff, these volunteers will plant and maintain the gardens.
Responsibilities
Green Thumb Volunteers provide consistent maintenance of the gardens, grounds, landscaping, flower pots, and flower beds. This opportunity includes seasonally appropriate gardening tasks such as: weeding, trimming, raking, soil amending, pruning, planting, seed saving and harvesting. Lawn care is not included in this opportunity.
No previous experience or equipment is required.
Qualifications
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Display friendly, outgoing, respectful, and customer service-oriented behavior with guests of all ages.
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Willing to follow staff directions for seasonally appropriate gardening tasks each shift
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Attend shifts as scheduled
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Able to use hand tools like shovels, rakes, and garden hoes for light to medium physical activity*
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Willing to get dirty, wet, hot, and encounter wildlife (like insects)
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Comfortable being outside for 2-4 hours at a time
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Detail-oriented, observant, and safety-minded
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Enjoy serving with a team of volunteers and staff, but able to work independently
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Interest in historic landscapes
*Training provided
Accessibility Information
We recognize the diverse needs of our audience and strive to enable all volunteers to fully engage. If you need accommodation to participate, reach out - let’s chat.
Training & Safety
A training session will be provided, which will include:
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Basic knowledge of site operations (hours, facilities, emergency and evacuation procedures, etc.)
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Garden-specific training and orientation
Value to the Volunteer
This opportunity will help present and future generations experience the sights, smells, and sounds of these special places. You might even be able to bring something you learned back to your garden at home!
Parking is free to volunteers during their shifts.
Perks for all active volunteers can be viewed on the bottom of the MNHS Volunteer News webpage.
Time Commitment
Each shift is typically 2-4 hours long. Ideally a volunteer commits to coming at least 2 times per month.