Volunteer Spotlight
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."
-Margaret Mead
Mark, Susan and their children Jake and Ben love to spend time in the outdoors. They have visited many natural areas in the United States i
ncluding numerous National Parks and National Monuments where they love to hike, kayak and sight see. They also enjoy volunteering as a family in and around their home town of Oak Brook, IL . So, for spring break this year, the family decided to merge their interests in volunteering and exploring interesting places by volunteering for Grand Staircase Escalante Partners.
After Mark contacted Partners about volunteering last winter, Cindy Oster, Volunteer Coordinator, came up with the perfect plan for the Halls. The entire family was very excited to have the opportunity to work with BLM range managers Dustin and Brian to rebuild a 50 year old barbed wire fence their first day in the monument. On subsequent days, they helped Assistant Monument Manager, Harry Barber, by tracking pronghorn antelope and bighorn sheep (well, that was their assignment - they did actually track the pronghorn but the bighorn eluded them) and finishing the fence. Working with Dr. Alan Titus in the paleontology lab was a real treat for the family. Dr Titus taught them how to prepare fossil bones for examination. 
The boys prepared a 80 million year old Hadrosaur leg bone that had been brought into the lab during last summer’s field season.
Back home in Illinois, Jake loves to run, play soccer and read while Ben skateboards, plays guitar, basketball and soccer, and reads. Mark works for a renewable energy company while Susan volunteers at the boys’ schools and with several community organizations. All four are looking forward to returning to GSENM for another volunteer vacation.
Our thanks to Mark Hall, Susan Brodie and the boys for helping us preserve the Monument for this and future generations.
