Haywood Waterways Association

Volunteer Opportunities!

VWIN Volunteers
Do you know what the VWIN Program (link to VWIN page) is? We are always looking for volunteers to help. All it requires is an hour or two of your time, maybe even less depending on where you live, the first Saturday of every month. We currently have 29 sites throughout the county. It also requires getting your hands wet. If interested, contact Dave Dudek at 828-926-1308.

Festivals
Haywood Waterways participates in many festivals and public events throughout the year. We use these opportunities to speak to the public, share our mission, and distribute our publications. Sometimes we even raffle off a few donations. We could use help staff the booth for an hour or two. Call one of the staff members for a list of upcoming events.

Adopt-A-Stream
We are seeking individuals, families, and organizations, such as businesses, schools, churches, and community groups, to dedicate a few short hours every year to help keep our waterways clean. Cleaning up trash contributes to our own enjoyment of the county, helps bring in tourist dollars, contributes to healthy fish communities, helps keep water bills low, and keeps local industry’s infrastructure working properly.

You can adopt a stream anywhere in the county. You would not be adopting an entire stream but only a section that is manageable for the organization, typically a quarter mile to a couple miles.
You would be responsible for at least one stream clean-up event each year. Some streams could use more attention than just once a year, though!
The cost is minimal, basically just heavy duty trash bags. Additional items that make the events run easier include gloves, drinks, and snacks. Through our partnerships, Haywood Waterways may even be able to provide some supplies!
For groups that want to take it to the next level, we can teach folks how to collect water quality data, either chemical or biological, or both.
If you are interested in adopting a stream or want more information, contact Christine O’Brien at christine.amblema@gmail.com or 828-226-8565.

Stream Clean-ups
Can’t participate in the Adopt-a-Stream program but still want to clean up trash? Our experienced staff will help organize an event. All you need to do is to tell us what stream you want cleaned up and when, and help organize volunteers. Through our partnerships, we may even be able to provide some supplies!

Writers
Press releases are a great way to talk about anything to do with water. If you have a talent for writing, we could use your skills. Please send us your article and we’ll send it to all our media contacts in your name. We can work with you on topics that are consistent with Haywood Waterways’ mission.

Trip Leaders
Haywood County is full of beautiful places to visit and interesting creatures to discover. Are you interested in leading a hiking trip, a float trip, or organizing a workshop? We are looking for hikers, paddlers, ornithologists, botanists, photographers, and anyone else with an interest in the natural resources of our county. Our experienced staff would take care of organizing the event; all we need are interested leaders!

Speakers Bureau
We are encouraging our Board of Directors and interested members to join the Haywood Waterways Speakers Bureau. Help is needed in targeting audiences and delivering oral presentations using PowerPoint as a visual aid. You could become a polished spokesperson with the help of a experienced presenter familiar with Haywood Waterway’s mission.