Black Moshannon named state park of the year at event unveiling new volunteer system

A new online system that makes it easier to volunteer at your favorite state park was unveiled Monday at Black Moshannon State Park, which officials also announced as state park of the year.

The 3,394-acre park, located at 4216 Beaver Road at an elevation of 2,000 feet atop the Allegheny Plateau, received the honor after developing a reputation for “creating opportunities for all, improving accessibility, working closely with the volunteers and managing the amazing space for the visitors and locals alike,” Pennsylvania Parks and Forest Foundation President Marci Mowery said.

Black Mo — as it’s dubbed by locals — and the winners of other awards like state forest and volunteer of the year, will be honored at the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resource’s 17th annual awards banquet on May 12 at Little Buffalo State Park in Perry County.

Centre County Commissioner Mark Higgins was among those at Monday’s event who wasn’t surprised by the award.

“I’ve been known, more than a couple times a year, to rent kayaks at the kayak rental and do a lot of hiking as well, so maybe it’s misplaced pride, but I think that this park very definitely deserves to be the state park of the year for Pennsylvania,” he said.

When visitors first arrive at the park, they’ll be greeted by some of Centre County’s finest nature, along with clean trails and well-maintained facilities, Higgins said. He credits that, along with the good appearances of the county’s other state parks, to the hard work of volunteers.

“The safety, cleanliness and accessibility of these places hinges on the generous volunteers whose work ranges from maintaining the trails to restoring habitats,” Higgins said. “Volunteers play a vital role in keeping Pennsylvania beautiful and alluring to the millions of people who travel to and through Pennsylvania each year. Put simply, without volunteers, these lands wouldn’t be what they are today.”

And in an effort to increase volunteer participation across the commonwealth, a new, user-friendly conservation system was unveiled Monday that allows people to sign up for different volunteer activities online.

When visiting the system’s website, all you have to do to is click the green “Volunteer now” button, and a slew of opportunities at Pennsylvania’s state parks will pop up, such as roadside cleanups, group boat washing sessions, campground host opportunities and more.

From there, you can respond to an event using your DCNR volunteer account information.

“It’s a very workable system back office for us, to help us help volunteers and enrich the volunteer experience,” DCNR Secretary Cindy Adams Dunn said during Monday’s event. “You may have always volunteered at a certain spot, may have always chose a certain campground, may have always chose a certain trail, but this might open up opportunities for you to fan out and experience the rest of the parks and forests that you as a Pennsylvanian own.”

At Monday’s event, four volunteer work-driven organizations were also honored — the Friends of Black Moshannon State Park, the Keystone Trails Association (KTA), the Pennsylvania Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship and the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Biking League.

Representatives from each organization spoke, detailing what volunteer work looks like for them. Most of the time, that work involves physical labor, such as maintaining trails, repairing and installing park infrastructure and more, but other times the volunteer work comes in the form of spending time at events, or raising money for park upgrades.

Regardless of the kind of work that’s being done though, KTA Trail Care Coordinator Al Germann said there’s much more to be gained from volunteering than just making a trail in a state park look pretty.

“I think it’s one of the most important aspects of a volunteer experience to feel a connection to the people who are working beside you,” Germann said. “You also form deeper connections to the land and to the natural resources we have here in Pennsylvania. When people are given the opportunity to care for and give back to these trails, they are empowered by a sense of ownership.”

To access DCNR’s new volunteer system, visit dcnrvolunteers.pa.gov/need.