Park Host Volunteer Couple - Oxford, MA

Welcome to beautiful New England! We are looking for patriots to join our team at Buffumville Lake and Hodges Village Dam. I bet you are thinking football right about now. Well, they did just win the Superbowl. Since I’m a Packer’s fan, being half cheese-head (my mother was born and raised in Green Bay), my reference is more of an historical one. More about that later…

Hi, I’m Park Ranger Jamie and here’s your invitation to learn more about the US Army Corps of Engineers and our rural, picturesque sites and to tempt you to join us in 2015. We are looking for our last couple to fill the Park Host Volunteer position at Hodges Village Dam in Oxford, MA. 

Located in South-Central MA, Hodges Village Dam has over 700 acres with a dry-bed reservoir. There is no permanent pool, however there is a huge diversity of wetlands and uplands. There are over 15 miles of trails and on one side, we do allow registered dirt bikes. The HV Damsite motor home pad is tucked between a line of lilacs and low evergreens, is a full hookup site that includes a 50 amp service, septic tie-in, well water, local phone, some garage storage plus the use of an ATV.

We have 5 full hookup sites in total. BV Damsite is less than 3 miles away and is where the other volunteer park host couple lives. Then we hire 3 Park Attendant Contractor teams-of-two to live onsite at Buffumville Park. These 4 couples have been hired.

Both damsites have disc golf courses. The one at Buffumville is New England’s largest. At our office we have a full laundry setup for all to use. These 5 couple positions include uniform shirts and hats and many opportunities for training like CPR and first aid.

So let me give you more details about the HV Park Host Volunteer Position:

Volunteer agreement acceptance is contingent upon a successful background check with finger printing.

We are pretty flexible with arrival(April/May) and departure (September/October) dates. A minimum of 20 hours per person per week is expected. The days/times are flexible and pretty much dictated by visitation and weather. Basically, the job entails the daily patrol of the damsite buildings and lawn areas, disc golf course and parking lots to pick up trash, clean restrooms and interact with the public. And weekly patrol and light maintenance of the various trails around Hodges Village Dam. As needed refresh of brochure racks and updates to bulletin board, If interested, care of flowerbeds and bushes, sign installation, painting projects, and/or natural resource projects like blue bird box programs.

So future teammates, this is what we are looking for in our perspective PH’s:

1) Mature, flexible people-persons who are good at meeting and greeting the public, able to be friendly to all ages and backgrounds. Folks with great communication skills to convey the projects’ rules and regulations. And a team that is wise and confident enough to handle ever changing situations.

2) A team experienced in driving an ORV and/or willing to mountain bike the easy to moderate trail system.

3) The couple must be physically able to pick up trash, willing to mop an occasional floor, and cleaning toilets are part of the job. Be aware, it's not always glamorous!

I would very much love to speak with you and send you a few photos of our lovely rural, picturesque and historical New England sites. We are 2 USACE sites within a National Park that is the Last Green Valley. This region has retained its great historic places, scenic roads lined with rock walls and stunning low mountain views. By satellite, this fabulous region is the last remaining dark zone, unencumbered by light pollution, on the east coast. And this area I call home is center to it all- 1 hour to Providence, RI, 1 hour to Hartford, CT, 1 ¼ hour to Boston, 1 ½ hour to the New York boarder, less than 2 hours to VT and NH and the down east coasts of ME. Consider a summer in New England and maybe my soon-to-be-retired NPS Park Ranger husband and I can take you on a tour of Bunker Hill and other patriotic hot-spots.