Volunteers Drive CFO
For over 50 years, CFO has provided learning opportunities for Colorado's birding community and supported research on and conservation of Colorado's birds through the dedication and hard work of countless volunteers.
CFO thanks all those individuals who have offered their time and support to volunteer causes and encourages new and returning volunteers to join the efforts.
Volunteer opportunities include a mix of in-person and at-home opportunities from helping on small projects and leading field trips to serving on CFO committees and being part of the CFO Board of Directors.
CFO will occasionally put out specific volunteer announcements when specific skills and open positions are available but encourages anyone to contact us at any time about opportunities. Some of the best new initiatives of CFO have occurred because someone had a great idea and brought it to the CFO board and collaborated to make it a reality.
Special Call for CFO Volunteers
While CFO has openings for all types of volunteers all the time (see green box below), these are specific roles we are recruiting for right now.
Accounting/Year-End Taxes Assistance
If you have experience with tax filing for nonprofit organizations, Colorado Field Ornithologists could use your help. When tax filings are due, your assistance to our treasurer would be a great help. If you would like to assist, please email treasurer@cobirds.org.
Help with other occasional accounting questions would be a bonus.
Help digitalize Rare/Unusual Bird Records
The Colorado Bird Records Committee is looking for one or more volunteers to help with scanning older written records so that they can be added to the digital database. This is important work to make the wealth of data on Colorado's birds that the Committee has available to researchers and conservation scientists.
Role: Scan old records into PDF format and provide them to the CBRC chair. The CBRC chair will upload these PDFs to the database.
Needs: Access to a scanner.
Time Commitment: Depends on your interest, you can take on as many as you'd like.
If interested, please contact pgent@cobirds.org.
Colorado Birding Challenge Event Coordinator
CFO seeks a volunteer to support the Colorado Birding Challenge. The volunteer will work with several board members and with CFO's administrative contractor to revise the Challenge description for 2023 including updating the event rules and procedures for participants, responding to event participants who request assistance in registering or donating/pledging, and communicating the competition results to the CFO board. The volunteer would also assist with marketing the Colorado Birding Challenge and writing a summary for the CFO newsletter and journal. For questions or to volunteer, contact Nick Komar.
QuickBooks Online Expertise
CFO seeks someone with QuickBooks Online expertise. We are transitioning to QB Online and it would be really helpful to have someone who can assist Sondra Bland, CFO’s Treasurer, with advice and troubleshooting specific issues. Sondra will be doing the hands-on bookkeeping but is seeking advice on specific issues such as integrating with other apps, tax preparation, and so on. For questions or to volunteer, contact Sondra Bland at sbland@cobirds.org.
Survey for Pinyon Jays
CFO is partnering with other regional organizations to map Pinyon Jay activity across the western US in pinyon-juniper habitat and surrounding areas. Volunteer community scientists (you!) record data anytime the bird in the appropriate areas -- whether or not they see jays.
Volunteer on a CFO Committee
Committees form the backbone of CFO with most of the work and idea generation occurring at this level. Volunteering to be part of a committee is a great way to be part of exciting initiatives, meet CFO board members, and to give back to your community. CFO committees are chaired by a CFO Board Director and have a mix of other directors and volunteers on them. Most committees meet monthly throughout the year for 1-2 hours. Additional time commitment by committee members varies depending on tasks and, for many committees, an annual cycle around events.
A complete list of committees and committee membership can be found on the CFO Leadership page. Descriptions below highlight some of the types of committee volunteer opportunities.
Communications
Do you have an interest in communications, marketing, or education? The communications committee ensures that the Colorado community knows about CFOs upcoming events through the website, social media, and emails.
Colorado Birds Journal
Are writing or photography your forte? There may be a volunteer opportunity to see your work in print in Colorado Birds whether you make regular contributions or a single article.
Conservation
Be part of planning how CFO will support conservation in Colorado.
Education
This new committee will focus on creating partnerships and implementing educational efforts for learners of all ages.
Events
Do you like event planning and want to make CFO conventions the best possible events? Is planning a Big Day event and helping raise funds for conservation. These committees are for you!
Field Trips
Field trips & workshops cannot operate without trip leaders! Enjoy birding in your local area and want to share it with others? Let us know! There are opportunities to shadow experienced trip leaders before you start leading.
Interested in Voluntering? Let Us Know
Interest in joining the CFO Board?
The CFO Board of Directors provides oversight and direction for CFO. In addition, Directors serve as Committee Chairs and participate in various committees to ensure the success of CFO's endeavors.
CFO strives to have a board that geographically represents all of Colorado, to facilitate this, quarterly board meetings occur online. Many board members are still actively working or raising families so don't think you need to be retired to participate! Directors serve a 3-year term with 2 term limit but may return to the board for additional non-consecutive terms.
If you are interested in joining the board, please download and fill out the application form and return it to the CFO President.