By John Hankins
“Welcome to Sierra Club’s home in Yosemite.” That was often our greeting as valley visitors came curiously into the Yosemite Conservation Heritage Center.
I was there as a volunteer the first week of June (“the waters are raging...”) representing the club at its iconic home, built in Curry Village in 1903. There were three other volunteers on our half-day shifts: Deanne, Lisa and Randy all corralled by Curator Connor McIntosh.
It started with a press release for club members to the Condor Call: “Volunteers needed in Yosemite Valley 2023,” free entry, free camping and two days off (“anticipate construction activity…”).
As I formatted it for our printer, I heard the call of the wild over the clack of my keyboard: “The mountains are calling, and I should go,” John Muir wrote.
I should and did and you too can volunteer in Yosemite or other National Parks (see below).
The home was the first permanent visitor center in Yosemite Valley; the first structure? A chapel, no doubt for the “thank god we’re here” exhilaration. It was originally built with Merced River stone and redwood from outside the park.
You learn a lot from inside the building and you can’t help but look up – the architect’s vision of the mountains. You’ll also find the history of the club and Yosemite via storyboards, including member Rachel Carson of “Silent Spring” fame and the President Roosevelt visit with John Muir that led to Yosemite as a National Park. Books about climbing and conservation and iconic photos in front of a hefty fireplace are yours to browse. Kids can create a drawing, sign it and it goes into a yearly date folder so they can always find it as they grow up and return.
Volunteers have time off. One day all four of us trekked up to Mariposa Grove at 6,000 feet (“Fire crews will be burning piles...) where I rested my feet. We met a deer, then fawns peeked out and we just enjoyed them at full silent stop. Other times we’d go anywhere on our own or in pairs.
The center also has talks and events in the evening. We had a special show about the first female Smokejumper (our volunteer, Deanne) and detailed photos of responders with her in the thick of it. The audience was amazed at the risks they had to take carrying heavyweight packs, especially on a smaller Deanne. She was a trailblazer, earning the respect of a usually male team.
Volunteers come from many walks of life: Lisa a teacher, Randy a nurse, Smokejumper Deanne and Condor John a writer.
A large part of volunteering was meeting the public (“thunderstorms may occur...”) some of whom came in from the rain or the cold.
Many said, “it’s the first time I’ve been here.” We’d have a dialogue and answer questions (“the bathroom is across the road…”). They come from all over the nation and foreign countries.
Long-time visitors especially had tales well told. One had family ties to Yosemite’s Postmaster of 30 years whose family members still reside here. Another mentioned the fishing skills of the indigenous peoples.
The most fun came from Joe Gutierrez, eager to tell us about a song he wrote and recorded about Yosemite entitled, "Ahwahnee." After he sent it to us, we all gathered around and were blown away (“gusts to around 40 mph…”). His response?
“That this song brought you joy brings ME so much joy! I now know we are kin...made my eyes well up...you made my day, my week, my month...oh heck, you made my whole dang year!” And he’ll be back on Oct. 7.
Volunteers at Sierra Club’s Heritage home must be members; there may even be slots for members left through September, or for next year; contact Curator Connor at: connor.mcintosh@sierraclub.org
Membership is not required at Yosemite Conservation: https://yosemite.org/experience/volunteer/
Or for any federal gig at https://www.volunteer.gov
This was Connor’s first year at Heritage with over a decade's worth of work in environmental and outdoor education; on the ground too, completing both the Appalachian and Pacific Crest Trails. She also biked 2,000 miles across the US and got married along the way!
Connor replaced the legendary curator for the last 22 years, Dr. Bonnie Gisel. Learn more about how the Sierra Club was instrumental in making Yosemite a National Park here: https://tinyurl.com/MuirYosemite