And the Winners Are..........

Select this link for profiles of the winners

It's official: Eight outstanding BLM volunteers and two exceptional BLM employees have been selected for their contributions on behalf of this country's public land resources.

Volunteer Winner Riley McCoy gives several tours a day of the "bottle house" at Rhyolite, Nevada.

As national BLM volunteer award winners, they will travel to Washington, D.C. to receive BLM's 2001 "Making a Difference" National Volunteer Awards in a special ceremony May 23. These awards recognize exemplary volunteer contributions made in the year 2000.

"This year's recipients represent outstanding service to America's 264 million acres of public lands and the natural and cultural resources found on them," said Acting BLM Director Nina Hatfield. 'The work of our volunteers is as diverse as the work of the BLM itself. And as the populations surrounding our public lands grow, volunteer assistance becomes ever more critical for our agency. We are truly grateful to the more than 17,000 volunteers who serve BLM each year."

Highlights of this year's winning accomplishments:

• A husband-wife team inventories cultural artifacts and assists visitors at the Gold-Rush-era ghost town of Rhyolite, Nevada, offering everything from sign repairs to tours of Nevada's best-preserved "bottle house."
• A Colorado senior citizen who has volunteered for the past 12 years maintains and updates over 50,000 BLM land records that are critical to the work of historians, lawyers, title companies — and BLM staff.
• A group of volunteers and volunteer groups in Nevada's famous Black Rock Desert cleaned up an illegal dump on the edge of the dry lake bed, piling up by hand nine tons of wood and 16 tons of metal, including 26 miles of barbed wire.

Two winning BLM employees—from New Mexico and Oregon, respectively—have led volunteers in locating and monitoring archaeological sites, and also mentored students and formed partnerships resulting in on-the ground benefits to our public lands.

The eight winning entries are: Joy Fisher, Lakewood, Colorado; Sheila Brewer, Albuquerque, New Mexico; Grant Madden, Las Cruces, New Mexico; Jerry Vertrees, Boise, Idaho; Roger & Etha Brand, Mill City, Oregon; Riley & Suzy McCoy, Tonopah, Nevada; the Black Rock Desert Volunteers, Winnemucca, Nevada; and the Upper Missouri River National Wild & Scenic River Team, Billings, Montana.

In addition, two BLM employees were selected for recognition for their outstanding leadership in the BLM Volunteer Program. They are Joe Ross of Roseburg, Oregon, and Anthony Lutonsky of Albquerque, New Mexico.

How Are Selections Made?

A national panel of BLM and partner organization representatives selected the winners from a large pool of nominations submitted by ten BLM State Offices and the National Office of Fire & Aviation. Award recipients are chosen for "Making a Difference" in management and conservation of the public lands and their resources, rather than for length of service or number of hours contributed.

The awards will be presented at a special ceremony at the U.S. Department of the Interior's historic South Penthouse and Roof Terrace in Washington, D.C., on May 23, 2001.

How Many Volunteers work for BLM and What Do They Do?

These winners represent only a small fraction of the exceptional contributions that are being made every day by thousands of people on public lands throughout the country.

The BLM recruits 17,000-20,000 volunteers each year to perform a variety of jobs, from campground host to archaeologist to educator. Collectively, they donate about 1 million hours in a given year. The value of this work is conservatively estimated to exceed $15 million. In many instances, volunteers serve as BLM's first point of contact with the public, playing an important ambassadorial role for the agency. In some remote areas, campgrounds and other recreation sites would be closed were it not for volunteer assistance. Additionally, volunteers play an increasingly important role for the agency as growing populations in the West have placed increased demands on the public lands.

BLM initiated its "Making a Difference" National Awards in 1995, holding its first recognition ceremony in 1996. This year's observance will mark the sixth annual presentation of these awards.

Select this link for highlights of the 2000 Volunteer Awards.