Volunteer Spotlight
Pam Reed
Volunteer of the Year Award for Protection
Pam Reed has been a local volunteer for just over six years. So far, she has contributed almost 3,000 hours of volunteer service. Pam serves as the head volunteer for the park’s River Patrol Program. In that capacity, she schedules other volunteers, helps organize the program, and provides each patrol volunteer with training and orientation. Every week, she spends two to four days actively patrolling the river with other volunteers.
Silver Springs is a very busy park and eco-tourist destination. Between 100 and 1,000 paddlers enjoy canoe and kayak trips on the Silver River every day. Many visitors have "theme park” expectations, with some of them even thinking the river will circle around and bring them back to the paddle launch. Pam and her team of trained volunteers provide a critical role in protecting the river by helping visitors understand paddling safety, hydrology, springs systems and wildlife, and how their behavior can impact natural resources. Thanks to Pam’s efforts, visitors enjoy a safer, more educational experience on the Silver River.
She also has served on the board of directors for Friends of Silver River State Park, the park’s citizen support group.
Silver Springs Facility Closure Camping Area Maintenance Team
Volunteer Team of 3+ Award for Maintenance
The Silver Springs Facility Closure Camping Area Maintenance Team is a large, diverse team with several divisions split to utilize time and resources and tackle many projects while remaining socially distant and physically safe. No time was down time and no time was wasted. In 2020, they focused their energies on the entire 59-site campground with two bathhouses, 10 cabins and the day use area. From repairs to rejuvenation, this team made improvements for visitor safety, facility appearance and park functionality.
Catherine “Cat” Gorton, who has been a campground host at Silver Springs State Park for several seasons, has contributed more than 1,364 hours. Larry Mathis is a longtime veteran multiple park campground host with more than 9,100 hours. Rod Taylor also has volunteered at numerous state parks with 1,025 hours.
Rusty and Alicia Ramsey have been resident volunteers at Silver Springs for four years. They started out as camp hosts and moved over last year to resident maintenance volunteers. Debra Welch is a new resident volunteer. She started as a campground host for one month, then she and husband Bill signed up for an additional three months as resident maintenance volunteers. This group of four volunteers contributed 2,861 volunteer hours.
Local residents Jane and Jim Kaufman have contributed 4,220 hours, and Lisa and Kevin Donnelly have volunteered a total of 540 hours. Both couples can be found helping out with a wide variety of volunteer projects, including river patrol, maintenance, events, administration and more.
Pete Ellis and Bill Hahn are new volunteers, having started just this past July and August. Pete has volunteered just over 200 hours and Bill just over 100. Volunteering in maintenance, they help with a wide variety of tasks including electrical, carpentry, cleaning and organizing the Springs Shop area, recycling and more.
2020 Florida State Parks Volunteer Recognition Award Winner