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FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
FINAL REPORT
SCA Adirondack Winter Corps
2020-2021
Program Dates: 11/2/20 – 2/26/21
Program Manager: Jeremy Burns
Project Coordinator: Rebecca Kambic
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Summary
In 2020-2021 the SCA Adirondack Winter Corps Program continued the partnership between the New York State Commission on National and Community Service, the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), and SCA. The Winter Corps completes priority conservation, trail, and infrastructure projects throughout the Adirondack Park.
About SCA
The mission of SCA is to build the next generation of conservation leaders and inspire lifelong stewardship of our environment and communities by engaging young people in hands-on service to the land.
SCA was founded in 1957 by Elizabeth Putnam, a college student with a big dream. While at Vassar College, she developed her senior thesis around the concept that a commonsense solution to the abuse and under-maintenance of America’s treasured public lands would be putting to good use the energy, talent and hard work of a force of youthful volunteers. In the intervening 63 years, SCA has deployed a force of more than 75,000 members, completing 26 million hours of conservation service in 550 parks, forests, wildlife refuges and urban green spaces at the national, regional, state and municipal level in all 50 states.
About SCA Adirondack Winter Corps
The Student Conservation Association’s two Corps programs in New York State, the Hudson Valley and Adirondack Corps, are funded through a partnership between the SCA, the NY State Commission for National and Community Service, and State or non-profit partners in conservation. Young adults serving in these programs are NY AmeriCorps members, and are a part of the national service movement, making a commitment to support their country though service and volunteerism.
For the past 22 years the SCA Adirondack Corps has fielded teams of like-minded young adults performing critical outdoor conservation projects throughout the Adirondack Park during the summer. For the third year in the winter of 2020-21, the Adirondack Corps fielded a stewardship team during the winter season. The 3 members of the Adirondack Winter Corps in 2020-21 served the land by carrying out such responsibilities as trail construction and maintenance, trail marking and clearing, and carpentry and construction projects. The Adirondack Corps program is building the next generation of conservation leaders in our country while accomplishing important stewardship projects throughout the Adirondack Park with the support and continued partnership from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
By The Numbers
In 2020-21, the 3 members of the SCA Adirondack Corps served 17 weeks from November through February.
During this time they were trained and supported by Program Coordinator Rebecca Kambic. The members of the
Adirondack Winter Corps devoted over 1,600 hours to training and service to the local communities and natural
areas of the Adirondacks. Collectively the crew members earned $5,034 in Segal AmeriCorps Education Awards
during their terms of service.
Trainings and certifications provided were:
Trainings
Stone Construction
Stone drilling and splitting
Tool Use and Maintenance
Sustainable Trail Design
Carpentry skills
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Adirondack Winter Corps members performed service work in the backcountry and frontcountry, commuting
daily from their basecamp in the Whitney Wilderness, from November through February.
Project Accomplishments:
Quarried and split 233 stones on the Mt. VanHoevenberg East trail in preparation for construction next summer
Cleared blowdown and signed 1.1 miles on Coney Mountain trail
Brushed and signed 2 miles on the 3 rd Lake Creek Trail in the Fulton Chain Area
Brushed and signed 2 miles on the Tooley Pond Trail
Brushed, cleared blowdown, and signed 2 miles on the Bridgebrook Pond Trail
Split and stacked a 3 year backlog of firewood at the DEC Whitney Headquarters
Prepped materials and renovated 4 rooms in SCA residences at the DEC Whitney Headquarters
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Work projects were planned, supervised, and supported by the SCA Program Coordinator who worked closely
with NYS Department of Conservation staff to address priority land management projects that could not have
been accomplished without the efforts of the SCA Adirondack Corps. These accomplishments are underscored
by an emphasis on designing and constructing high quality structures that will last for many years, help reduce
further degradation to the trails/ecosystems and be enjoyed by generations of visitors to the Adirondack Park.
Geographically, the Adirondack Corps performed conservation work in Regions 5 and 6 of the Adirondack Park,
traveling to project locations in SCA vehicles.
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Safety
Staff and crew members of the Adirondack Corps consider safety and risk management on a daily basis. SCA
promotes a strong culture of safety, including but not limited to: performing a Job Hazard Analysis before each
project to identify and mitigate risks specific to a project, such as working at heights. Crew members research
and complete Emergency Response Plans for each project location in case of a workplace incident. Staff and
crew members also complete daily ‘tailgate safety sessions’ to discuss possible hazards and how to mitigate
them. Crew members are also strongly encouraged to hold each other accountable for making safe judgement
calls in the field, and to monitory safety throughout the day.
2020 also presented the unique risk management challenge of managing a residential trail crew during the
Covid-19 pandemic. ADK Corps staff took many steps, in line with SCA and NYS guidance, to mitigate the risk of
infection. Upon arrival at ADK Corps basecamp, crew members received Covid-19 tests and isolated from each
other for a period of 2 weeks. After the quarantine period and negative testing, crew members and staff
adhered to SCA and NYS PPE guidelines during worktime including wearing masks, regular sanitation of work
surfaces, and physical distancing when able. Throughout the season, the crew acted as a ’family unit’ who
quarantined together, as they both worked and resided together.
Partnerships
The SCA Adirondack Corps has a successful 20+ year partnership with the New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation. The Winter Corps is a reflection of that partnership. Recognizing the ability of the
ADK Corps to get things done, and the value of their work, the DEC extended the partnership to be year round.
Working with DEC Foresters and Operations employees, the Winter Corps tackled projects backlogged projects
such as trail brushing and firewood processing, which may not have been completed until additional resources
became available. The Winter Corps was also able to assist the DEC in increasing their infrastructure output.
Below are comments from DEC partners who worked with the 2020-21 Winter Crew:
In November of 2020 SCA Adirondack Corps Winter Crew did some great work on the Mt. VanHoevenberg
East Trail Project in the High Peaks Wilderness. During our annual, motorized window, in the fall, they
worked on quarrying and splitting rock for use in upcoming construction seasons in 2021. Working in
weather that spanned from single digits to almost t-shirt weather, they worked at the site through a lot of
snow, rain and ice. When seasonal crews are normally ending this crew was able to do this important work
that will allow more efficient trail construction during the summer.
The crew was in good spirits each time I interacted with them and worked to produce a quality product and
follow good safety practices, while working on a mountain side in shoulder season weather.
Thank you to the crew members for all this work.
-Tate Connor, High Peaks Land Manager
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Member Experience
For the crew members, the Winter Corps experience is defined by a close team dynamic, and overcoming the environmental challenges around them. The crew is based out of the William C. Whitney Wilderness area on Little Tupper Lake. The location is remote from the nearest town, about a 30 minute drive, and can feel isolating in the deep winter conditions of the Adirondacks. As a small, three-member team, the success of the Winter Corps depends not only on hardworking crew members, but members who are willing to work on improving crew dynamics when they become challenging. The smaller team size also allows for more one-on-one mentoring by staff.
The Winter Corps is a unique opportunity for growth. All 3 Winter Crew Members in 20-21 had previously served in the summer crew, and made the decision to stay through the winter and continuing serving and learning the Adirondacks. Highlighted below are some first-hand experiences from the crew members.
Kay Emery
After the Winter Corps, Kay moved to Utah to serve
as a Trail Crew Leader with Utah Conservation Corps.
‘Learning to work outdoors in the winter weather
took some trial and error. When you’re a crew of just
a few people, you all feel and respond to each
other’s mood and emotions a lot more readily so you
have to learn to compartmentalize or communicate
those feelings. But learning to do that also prompts a
lot of personal growth. I’m actually kind of surprised
by how much I feel like I’ve grown as a person this
winter. Something about wintering over in the
Adirondacks prompts you to look inward and think through some things you might not otherwise. We learned a
lot of new skills and got to try our hand a lot of new types of work-sometimes frustrating work, but always still
fun in the end. I’m proud of a lot of the work we did.’
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Kaitlyn Gunter
After the Winter Corps, Kaitlyn secured a
position at a veterinary clinic close to home,
and hopes to go to school to be a veterinarian.
‘During the winter program I learned how to be
at peace with solitude. The work we did along
with where we lived forced me to look inward
and work on myself in new ways in order to
arrive to work each day engaged and
energized. With that being said, I believe the
winter program has helped me gain not only
more self-confidence but has also allowed me
to find more happiness in the small things that
happen every day.
I am most proud of the amount of rocks we split at Mt. VanHoevenberg and the amount of tools (and
generators) we carried up that mountain on our backs. It was an unusual project that I would definitely do
again…but I would prefer for the generators to already be at the top.’
Jake Westrich
After the Winter Corps, Jake returned to his
home in Houston, TX, and hopes to find
another conservation position with SCA in the
near future, preferably in Alaska.
‘I have definitely learned how to stay warm. I
gained valuable knowledge of carpentry, the
use of different power saws, and the rock drill.
I had forgotten how cold and snowy winters
can be after living in Texas, but I definitely
remember now. Sometimes I grew tired of
doing monotonous work. However, I realized
that all will be well if I persevere. I'm really
most proud of the rooms we renovated. During demolition and reinstallation I got frustrated at times, but after
all was said and done, the rooms looked very good and I'm glad to say that I helped make them look that way.’
FINAL REPORT – SCA Adirondack Winter Corps thesca.org
Young people today have so many serious challenges that need to be faced head on. I believe it is vitally
important for the young to realize they can each do something positive with their lives-that they can go for their
dream whatever that is. We all are needed to work together for the future of this planet.
-Elizabeth Titus Putnam, Founder of SCA
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