Every spring, ATC looks forward to the arrival of the “Jersey Volunteers,”a group of volunteers from the Outdoor Club of South Jersey (OCSJ) who have been volunteering for the A.T. Visitor Center for almost 30 years. The tradition began with Richard Grevé, who wanted to give back to the A.T. after he completed his section hike of the A.T. (Some volunteers, including Dee Adams, Vicky Seifried and Anne Marie Seifried, have come almost every year!) OCSJ volunteers take on everything from building and maintenance to assistance with technical projects. This month we honor OCSJ volunteer Dennis McKane.
Dennis has made several trips to the A.T. Visitor Center. He’s painted, rewired, helped with plumbing projects, and, most recently, reconfigured the A.T. Visitor Center in time for the Spring Hiking Season Celebration on May 7th.
Dennis, whose wife, Fran, also volunteers, “is a skilled carpenter” says ATC’s Laurie Potteiger, “we save up our most challenging projects for him.” Dennis is detail oriented and a good problem solver who recruits other volunteers who have the skills needed to complete scheduled projects. He helps keep “the 1892 building that houses the Visitor Center in good shape,” adds Laurie.
Dennis, is a hiker and backpacker who has hiked 1200 miles of the A.T likes seeing the results of his efforts, and he enjoys meeting people from many different backgrounds. Most of all, he says, I know what [other Trail volunteers] do for me, and that’s why I want to do it for other people.’