People who are curious about nature, enjoy the outdoors, and want to be part of a team working together on natural resource management and conservation in Grayson County are perfect candidates to become Bluestem Master Naturalist volunteers.
Mission of the Texas Master Naturalists:
To develop a corps of well-informed volunteers to provide education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities for the State of Texas.
Many communities and organizations rely on such citizen volunteers for implementing youth education programs; for operating parks, nature centers, and natural areas; and for providing leadership in local natural resource conservation efforts. In fact, a short supply of dedicated and well-informed volunteers is often cited as a limiting factor for community-based conservation efforts.
Master Naturalists volunteer to build and maintain Eastern Bluebird nestbox trails and butterfly gardens. They also clear hiking paths and improve habitats for many species of wildlife.
Bluestem Master Naturalists receive training covering many aspects of nature and the wildlife of Grayson County. Photo by Laurie Sheppard
Volunteer options for master naturalists include teaching children about nature and wildlife through activities and crafts. We work with school groups and Refuge Rocks throughout the year.
Bluestem Chapter volunteers serve communities within Grayson County by partnering with Eisenhower State Park and the Friends of Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge to support nature-based programs addressing conservation and other environmental issues. These free public offerings include educational, nature-based children’s programs such as Nature-Ology, Refuge Rocks and school-based field trips. Programs for adults include bird walks and watches, nature seminars and interpretation. Naturalists also work to improve wildlife habitats and other natural spaces, including prairie restoration, Eastern Bluebird nestbox monitoring, butterfly garden upkeep and hiking trail maintenance. Naturalists also work with the Texas A&M Agri-Life Extension Service, Grayson County, Habitat for Humanity, GLOBE, Cornell University, CoCoRaHS and the Texas Master Gardeners program.
In 2021, Bluestem Master Naturalists teamed up with Habitat for Humanity and Texas Master Gardeners to create a new project called Habitat for Monarchs. This program provides Monarch Way Station butterfly gardens for willing Habitat for Humanity participants.
TMN Tuesday FAQs TMNTuesday presentations are open to the public!