OREGON, Ill. - The Boone, DeKalb, and Ogle County Master Gardener and Master Naturalist volunteers are comprised of trained and dedicated individuals. These individuals come back year after year because they are devoted to giving back to the community, helping and teaching others, making a positive difference in others’ lives, and sharing their knowledge, experience, and passion for gardening, nature, and the environment. Extension volunteers form friendships and believe the knowledge they pass on to the community is vital.
Extension in Boone, DeKalb, and Ogle Counties is celebrating our Master Gardeners and Master Naturalist volunteers during National Volunteer Week from April 20-26. These volunteers served over 5,800 hours in the community last year by helping at various Extension programs and events, working in community gardens, leading programs through the Speaker's Bureau, and answering the Horticulture Help Desk questions. These individuals help Extension grow and succeed in our communities.
For more information on the Master Gardener or Master Naturalist program and how to become a volunteer, contact the Boone County Extension Office at 815-544-3710, the DeKalb County Extension Office at 815-758-8194, or the Ogle County Extension Office at 815-732-2191.
University of Illinois Extension develops educational programs, extends knowledge, and builds partnerships to support people, communities, and their environments as part of the state's land-grant institution. Extension serves as the leading public outreach effort for University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences in all 102 Illinois counties through a network of 27 multi-county units and over 700 staff statewide. Extension’s mission is responsive to eight strategic priorities — community, economy, environment, food and agriculture, health, partnerships, technology and discovery, and workforce excellence — that are served through six program areas — 4-H youth development, agriculture and agribusiness, community and economic development, family and consumer science, integrated health disparities, and natural resources, environment, and energy.