Volunteer with Friends of Shelby
Volunteers breathe life into our mission to preserve, protect, and enhance Shelby Park and Bottoms. Volunteers are at the heart of Friends of Shelby: planting trees, picking up trash, maintaining trails, assisting with special events, and helping with various larger projects.
All ongoing volunteer projects are family friendly, so long as volunteers under the age of 18 are accompanied by a legal guardian. Dogs are allowed at trash pickup events so long as they are friendly with other dogs and kept on a 6 foot leash at all times.
Keep scrolling to sign up for upcoming events and projects!
Upcoming Volunteer
EVENTS
Young Friends of Shelby: Seed Harvesting
SAT Oct 17th | 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Help us spread the joy of the Superbloom by collecting seeds throughout the Shelby Park and Bottoms! As flowers fade, there is still goodness to be had with their seeds. Join us for a morning of casual conversation with likeminded young folks as we head into the park and gather various seeds which are used to create free seed packets for our neighbors and community.
Upcoming Volunteer
PROJECTs
Restore the Forest: Invasive Plant Removal
SAT Oct 17th (2:00 PM - 4:00 PM)
THU Oct 22nd (9:00 AM - 11:00 AM)
THU Oct 29th (9:00 AM - 11:00 AM)
It’s that time of year again! Our Restore the Forest program is where we remove invasive plants through hand-pulling and with the use of landscaping tools like loppers, pick mattocks, and weed wrenches. No previous plant knowledge needed, just bring your enthusiasm for improving the park!
Click here to volunteer!
Nature Center Garden Help
THU Oct 15th (9:30 AM - 11 AM)
Join us at the Shelby Bottoms Nature Center for a morning of community gardening! We will be working in the Pollinator Garden to pull weeds, remove unwanted plants, and mulch as needed. This will help to allow the flowering plants which attract all kinds of native wildlife to thrive and allow our community to enjoy them to their fullest!
Click here to volunteer!
Trash Pick-up
MON Oct 19th (9:00 AM - 11 AM)
Help keep Shelby Park beautiful! Join Friends of Shelby and your friends and neighbors as we do a park wide sweep of trash to restore the natural beauty of this public space and keep litter off the ground and out of our streams and rivers. This is a great opportunity for everyone of all ages!
Click here to volunteer!
District 6 Tree Planting Day
SAT Nov 14th (10:00 AM - 12:00 PM)
Join the Metro Beautification and Environment Commission for their second annual East Nashville Tree Planting Day! Continuing a beloved community tradition — planting trees to beautify our neighborhood, support our environment, and create a greener future for all with this day of giving back at Kirkpatrick Elementary School.
SHELBY PARK AMBASSADORS
Do you love Shelby Park and Bottoms? Would you like to be more involved in park events, the community, and Friends of Shelby? Join our Park Ambassador program! Park Ambassadors help achieve our mission of preserving, enhancing and protecting the park by increasing our community outreach via tabling, events, and open houses. In this reoccurring volunteer program, you will learn all there is to know about the park, FOS, and how-to share this valuable information with the public!
Interested in joining the team? Send an email to linds@friendsofshelby.org!
Community Group Volunteer Opportunties
Friends of Shelby loves to partner with groups of all kinds. Whether it's your 10-person team or your 100-person corporate office, please reach out and see if we have a project that would suit your goals. Friends of Shelby helps coordinate the project and provides tools, gloves, and work project assignments to match the size and capabilities of any volunteer group. Each volunteer day begins with an orientation including the goals of the park improvement effort, tool training, and general safety rules.
If you are interested in a project for your group, please click the button below and fill out our interest form!
Questions? Email our Volunteer Program Manager at linds@friendsofshelby.org.
Thank you to our community partners
We could not do this great work without your help
Funding for the volunteer program provided by the Grateful Daniel Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
