In fact, there’s 10 miles of beautiful trails for those to see woodlands and meadows.

As with any park, there’s plenty of things that need worked on or tended to. Trail markers, signs, gates that need painted.

Thankfully for those at Rider Park, volunteers help a ton with doing things such as that, and the park itself couldn’t be happier seeing those volunteers take time to make the park what it is.

“That definitely benefits Rider Park,” Rider Park manager Sara Street said.

PHOTO PROVIDED Volunteers from Church on the Mountain help clear branches and trails at Rider Park in this photo by Rider Park manager Sara Street.

Numerous people volunteer throughout the park, among them include the couple of Don and Donna Krupilis. Every Tuesday you can see the couple in the park from 10 in the morning until noon doing numerous different things to make Rider Park great.

“It’s just nice to have someone to count on. So I have things for them to do ahead of time if I’m not available to help them,” Street said. “They can work independently because I have the time to set things up. They have done all kinds of things.”

That includes placing various trail markers on trees and replacing older ones.

Last year, 104 signs were made and put up at intersections of each trails to mark various routes. That was also helped by the Krupilis’s.

“They really helped with Rider Park. The staff would lay out signs, rout the sign letters and Don and Donna would take over and sand and sand and then put a clear coat on, paint the letters black, touch up, sand a little bit more and get any stray marks,” Street said. “They prepped a lot of these signs.”

PHOTO PROVIDED Members of the PA Outdoor Corps are shown helping at Rider Park and volunteering planting trees in this photo by Rider Park manager Sara Street.

They also helped Street and the Rider Park team plant trees, do additional signs and help with bringing students from Lycoming College to do planting and water new plants, shrubs and trees and put up fencing material.

But the Krupilis’s aren’t the lone volunteers at Rider Park. Numerous volunteers like them help make Rider Park a great place to enjoy nature. That includes Steve Lutcher.

Lutcher wanted to work alongside the part-time maintenance staff at the park and worked roughly10 hours per week for more than a year. Street and her crew ended up relying on Lutcher a lot because of how good of a mechanic he was. He ended up later getting hired.

“That’s a really good example (of a great volunteer),” Street said.

“I have volunteers who have mobility issues (too). They can’t walk that well or something like that, but we just had a lady who painted a yellow gate for us, a forestry gate, where she could sit there or stand there, lean against something, and paint,” Street said.

PHOTO PROVIDED Volunteers from the AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program help paint a building at Rider Park in this photo by Rider Park manager Sara Street. AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP is a program in which those age 55 or older volunteer to help out. AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP works with Rider Park.

Volunteers are key for helping with a lot of things at Rider Park, and Street is more than thankful for what they do.

“I have various types of volunteers that help with all kinds of tasks,” Street said.

Those volunteers are part of the AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP program. It is meant to help those who are retired, aged 55 or older, get out and volunteer with the program.

“In Lycoming County, it’s more about promoting anything that has to do with improving the environment,” Street said.

Improving the environment is something those volunteers have done and done well. And for Street and the Rider Park staff, they’re more than glad to have such great volunteers keeping the park beautiful for those who visit it and hike trails.

The AmeriCorps Seniors RSVP (Retired and Seniors Volunteer Program) program is a federally-funded program and Diakon Community Services has sponsored RSVP for Clinton, Lycoming, Union, Snyder, Northumberland, Columbia, Montour, Berks, Pike and Wayne counties. The program is for anyone who is age 55 or older to be able to give back to their local communities through volunteering.

“Volunteerism is rewarding, the feeling of giving back to the community, learning new skills or using skills that you already have. Our volunteers are glad to participate and often build relationships and become more physically and socially active,” said Chris Barton, program manager for Diakon Community Services. “We work to ensure that volunteers have a variety of opportunities to best fit them with the volunteering they would like to do.”

Barton also noted that people can volunteer at more than one location and have a minimal commitment of two hours a month, or 24 hours a year, to remain active. The volunteers also gain the benefits of being insured when they volunteer and may qualify for mileage reimbursement between their home and where they volunteer.

The volunteers and their impact are felt not only at Rider Park, but at Diakon Community Services as well in the feeling of reward.

“It is very rewarding to all of us that work for Diakon (and) AmeriCorps Seniors to see the value of volunteerism for everyone involved. We really appreciate all the work we do in all our counties from the park maintenance to improvement at Rider Park to the help we also give other agencies with the tasks needed,” Barton said.

“Seniors have helped with technology, building trails, programs that brings parents and children together and many more,” Barton added. “What a joy it is to have the opportunity to help the community and the seniors that are helping it improve.”

Volunteer organizations such as Church on the Mountain and PA Outdoor Corps help with projects at Rider Park as well.

That volunteerism is more than noted in the community and parks. The difference is noticeable for sure.