Trekkers exceeds 10,000 volunteer hours last program year‏

Trekkers alumni volunteer, Alex Wallace ’12, alongside Jacob Witham on last year’s 8th grade Advanced Trekkers expedition.

Thomaston, Maine - Trekkers, a nonprofit outdoor-based youth mentoring program, announced today that the organization reached 10,669 volunteer hours during its 2011-2012 program year. Volunteers include adults in the community, Trekkers alumni and current students. These volunteers served as mentors, tutors and administrative and fundraising support.

In total, 78 adults volunteered 4,652 hours, 19 alumni volunteered 2,895 hours, and 90 students volunteered 3,122 hours, earning the most volunteer hours in the organization’s history. Within its six core programs for 7th-12th graders, student volunteers completed 212 hours of community service locally and while on an expedition. Trekkers seeks to incorporate a community service project within each of its core expeditions and shorter local treks, viewing students as a valuable resource that is able to contribute on a community-wide level and as a fundamental part of the solution.

Elisabeth Lohmueller, currently serving as an AmeriCorps volunteer for Trekkers, commented, “Volunteers are critical in enacting our mission to connect young people with caring adults. We are very fortunate to have
so many loyal volunteers open to creating genuine relationships with our students, and we hope to find even more as we continue to expand our programs.”

Volunteer-oriented at its core, Trekkers has involved community members in every step of its growing 19-year history. The organization recruits volunteers annually to serve as expedition mentors, tutors, one-on-one mentors and as administrative and fundraising support. Trekkers was recently awarded the 2012 Outstanding Non-profit Volunteer Program Award by the Maine Governor’s Awards for Service and Volunteerism.

Due to Trekkers expansion plan, where it will transition from servicing 160 students to 240 students in its core programming by 2016, it is seeking even more volunteers. If you are interested in volunteering with Trekkers, contact Executive Director Don Carpenter at 594-5095, or apply online at www.trekkersonline.com.

Trekkers is a non-profit outdoor-based mentoring program that connects young people with caring adults through expeditionary learning, community service and adventure-based education. As a preventative, community-based program, Trekkers brings students and adult mentors together to build meaningful relationships over a period of six years. Trekkers serves the communities of St. George, Owls Head, Cushing, South Thomaston, Thomaston, and Rockland.