The invitation was certainly intriguing: food, shelter, R&R at the coast and all for a little volunteer work. In fact, it was so intriguing, Jeremy Richards, chaplain and director of service leadership at Linfield University, remembers thinking, “What’s the catch?” As it turned out, “There wasn’t one,” Richards said. Just a weekend of new experiences, great food and the satisfaction of knowing you did something good for the planet.
Richards and six Linfield students were among the first participants in the Tillamook Coast Volunteer Adventures , a program that started last year to provide help to local organizations in need of some extra hands. “We’ve got so many different ways that our stewardship and conservation partners need help, whether it’s clearing brush or caging trees or invasive species, you name it,” said Dan Haag, director of Trails, Outdoor Recreation, and Accessibility for the Tillamook Coast Visitors Association. “We hoped by creating this program, we could act as a bolster to some of the volunteer forces and projects that are needed out here.
But we also wanted to help create a bond, even in a small way, between residents and visitors that maybe didn’t exist previously.” The program is paid for by the Tillamook Coast Visitors Association and is open to school, corporate, church, community and family groups of about 8-15 people. The volunteer component is a physical activity outdoors with itineraries typically spanning 1-21⁄2 days with meals, lodging and other activities included.
Before groups visit, Haag reaches out to learn what he can about the individuals and their needs. He asks about dietary restrictions, the physical fitness of the members, and depending on the group, what badges they are working on and if there are any service project requirements. “We want to make sure we design an experience that is physically appropriate,” Haag said.
“The Cub Scouts we had in June were younger, so we did a beach cleanup. The Linfield students are older so a more physically challenging project was in order. The Linfield group we have coming in August are all incoming freshmen, so the focus is more on team building.
” The Linfield University students Richards escorted to the coast during their 2023 fall break worked with the Lower Nehalem Community Trust caging trees to prevent beavers from killing them. They spent nights in the Manzanita Schoolhouse, the former Pine Grove School built in 1928 that is now a vacation rental, and dined around town. One meal was hosted at the Offshore Grill, where Chef Jake Burden offered a short behind-the-scenes talk about the use of ingredients from local growers, gatherers and fishermen.
They also visited the Tillamook Cheese Factory and the Rockaway Beach “Big Tree.” “It was a great, rounded experience,” Richards said. “The students learned some skills and about the ecosystem.
We caged trees and then went back and did an apple cider pressing. We ate good food and had a great place to stay. It was very holistic.
The students were blown away by how well they treated us. We’re just very grateful.” Susan Beal led a group of four Portland area Girl Scouts and two adult chaperones last year to the coast, where their volunteer adventure included picking up trash from Manzanita beach.
“The beach cleanup was great,” Beal said. “It was really rewarding. We learned about marine debris and had a really great conversation with one of the volunteer adventure staff members who was incredibly helpful.
She explained to us how this beach trash ends up getting into the marine ecosystem and how many problems it causes. Not doom and gloom, but just how we can all make a difference.” After their time on the beach, the teens took part in a workshop hosted by Heart of CartM — a Wheeler nonprofit dedicated to achieving zero waste in the community — on creating art from marine debris.
Beal’s daughter, Pearl Dickson-Beal, 16, rated it one of her favorite parts of the visit. “I thought it was beautiful to see how things people thought weren’t beautiful could be turned into something stunning and have a beautiful message,” said Dickson-Beal, who earned her Girl Scout Outdoor Arts Expert Badge for her work during the visit. They also attended a private talk arranged by Haag with a panel of Tillamook women leaders who talked to the teens about what it means to be a woman leader.
They spent nights at a nearby campground — reservations courtesy of Haag — and dined on meals provided by local restaurants. And still had time for play. “There was plenty of time at campsite for the girls to walk to the beach, play cards and just do fun things together,” Beal said.
“It wasn’t packed, all go, go, go. It was a nice mix. The beach cleanup was our main volunteer work, but just kind of the way that they really invited us to be part of this was really important and special and really engaged the girls.
It really made the trip so meaningful.” Beal hopes to plan a repeat visit in the coming months, but she’ll have to get in line. Now in its second year, the volunteer adventure program has been so successful, Haag’s having trouble keeping up with the demand.
“The program has been so well received; we don’t yet have the capacity to say yes to all the requests,” Haag said. “I don’t know if we’ve tapped into something people enjoy as far as community service or the way a younger generation is looking at the world and that involves giving back to others and giving their time to others and helping preserve beautiful spaces. But we’ve had volunteers from every generation, and they all just dove in.
It’s not just a free trip to the beach. They’re here to do service and learn. It makes me feel good about the future.
” To learn more about the Tillamook Coast Volunteer Adventures, visit tillamookcoast.com/what-to-do/tourism-adventures — Lori Tobias, for The Oregonian/OregonLive.
