Pump crew
Inflate 12 boards before the kids arrive.
Show up 45 minutes early. Electric pumps do the work — you fit valves, set fin boxes, line them up on the launch.
Best if you like quiet, focused work and being first to the water.
Now scheduling · spring + summer river daysBe on the water
Be on the water
with us.
Paddle parents keep our cohorts + river days running. A shift is about three hours. You pick the role that fits you. Your kid sees you out there with them.
Parents of all backgrounds welcome. No paddle experience required — confident in the water is the bar.
Salt River · cohort day · parents and athletes on the same board.
Six river-day roles
Pick the role that fits you today.
One shift, six jobs that have to happen. Pick whichever one you'd enjoy — switch next time if you want a different view of the day.
Basecamp
Pop-up tent, chairs, water cooler, sign-in.
Build the shore HQ. Welcome families as they arrive. Run the sign-in table and keep the snack/water station stocked.
Best if you love meeting parents and setting the tone for the day.
Lab-kit lead
Stage a science kit for each cohort.
Hach meters, kick-nets, ID cards, journals — one full kit per group of 6. You check it out, walk it down to the launch, take it back at pack-out.
Best if you like checklists and getting things ready before anyone asks.
Field photographer
Capture the day. Drop to the shared album.
iPhone is fine. Get the smiles, the buoy turns, the kid identifying their first egret. Upload to the cohort album that night.
Best if you already shoot a lot and want a reason to be on the bank.
Pack-out crew
Dry, deflate, fold. Last off the beach.
Boards back in bags, paddles racked, lab kits inventoried, trailer loaded. The team that closes the day cleanly.
Best if you take pride in leaving a place better than you found it.
Field-science co-teacher
Run a 20-min station with the lead coach.
Pick a station — wildlife observation, turbidity tube, riparian ID. The lead coach gives you the script; you run a small group through it.
Best if you teach, mentor, or just love watching a kid get a concept.
What a shift looks like
Three hours. Three blocks.
One arrival, one launch, one pack-out. Most volunteers do Mon + Wed Academy practices or one Saturday river day per month — whatever fits the family calendar.
01Set up
45 min
Roles split: pump crew at the boards, basecamp building shore HQ, lab-kit lead checking out gear, photographer staging.
02On the water
~2 hrs
Cohorts launch. Co-teachers run their stations. Photographer rotates from launch to mid-river to lunch beach. Basecamp keeps the snack table alive.
03Pack out
30 min
Boards dried + deflated + bagged. Lab kits inventoried back. Trailer loaded. Album uploaded that night.
Shifts run across the Academy — Mon-Thu practices at Tempe Town Lake, Wednesday Field Labs at Saguaro Lake, and Saturday river days on the Salt River. Apply once; pick when and where on your scheduling form.
Show up ready
Three things. We cover the rest.
No paddle certification required — that's for our paid instructors. We don't ask volunteers to lead curriculum; we ask you to keep the day running.
01
Confident in the water
50-yd swim + 1-min tread. We test it once, in a pool, with a coach.
02
Current CPR / AED
Red Cross or AHA. Don't have one? We cover the course.
03
SafeSport + background check
Free online module + an NCSI check we run for you.
Tell us you're in.
Five-minute application. We read every one and circle back within a week to put you on the schedule.
Apply to volunteer →