Join our West Cook Wild Ones (WCWO) community of volunteers! We have fun volunteer opportunities throughout the year including tabling events, spring and fall plant sales, and summer garden tours. The success of all these events depend upon volunteers just like you.
Volunteering offers many rewards
- Meet other chapter members to grow our WCWO community
- Expand your knowledge of native plants (all knowledge levels welcome)
- Increase the wider community’s knowledge and importance of eco-landscaping
- Promote the Wild Ones mission:
Wild Ones promotes environmentally sound landscaping practices to preserve biodiversity through the preservation, restoration and establishment of native plant communities.
How to Volunteer
You can also complete the Volunteer Form if you are interested in raising your hand now for specific events and/or committee work. We always welcome new volunteers!
Information and sign-up instructions for upcoming events can be found on this page and on the chapter’s monthly newsletter when volunteers are needed for events.
Volunteer event times range from a couple hours to several hours depending on the event; signing up for multiple shifts are welcome.
Current Volunteer Opportunities
- Tree & Shrub Sale
- Shifts available September 25th and 26th
- Various shifts available including unloading truck and delivering plants to customer cars.
- This is a great way to learn more about native trees and shrubs and meet fellow Wild people.
- Click the link to volunteer: Volunteer for Tree & Shrub Sale
- Wolf Road Prairie Prairie Fest
- Volunteer as WCWO hosts an information table to celebrate the prairie with the Save of Prairie Society of Wolf Road Prairie in Westchester, IL.
- This is a great opportunity share your love for native plants with others!
- Event Date and Location: Saturday, September 12, 2026
- Volunteer Shifts: 9:45 am-1:00 pm & 1:00-4:15 pm, Wolf Road Prairie, 11225 Constitution Drive, Westchester, IL 60154
- Can’t commit to a full shift?
- We’d still love your help. Sign up here to give an hour or so, and/or to lend a hand with the canopy at either end of the day:
- 9:45 a.m. — Canopy setup & table setup
- 4:00 p.m. — Canopy takedown & pack up
- Any short stretch in between — tell us roughly when you can come and we’ll fit you in
- Even 45 minutes at the table makes a real difference. And if you can help hoist the canopy, you are extremely welcome.
- Click the link to volunteer: Prairie Fest at Wolf Road Prairie
- Seeking Native Gardening Advocates — Community Outreach Committee in Formation
- Do you have a good understanding of the environmental importance of planting native? Do you have a fairly solid (let’s say B+) knowledge of native plants and their preferences (NOTE: no latin required)? Are you all-in on the work West Cook Wild Ones does to support and educate native gardeners and future native gardeners (aka: kids)? Can you speak with enthusiasm on these topics? And, do you enjoy engaging with a variety of people at community events?
- If interested in this awesome volunteer opportunity, please fill out and return this Google Form: Community Outreach Committee so we can be in touch.
Your help makes a difference. Thank you.
Join Wild Ones
You do not need to be a member to volunteer but we strongly encourage it. Join Wild Ones. Volunteer with WCWO. Together we can make a difference one yard at a time.