A New Year and New Opportunities with NVC!

Hello! My name is Jo Swanson and I am excited and honored to be joining Northwoods Volunteer Connection as the Executive Director! I’ve spent many years living, working, and volunteering in the Northwoods, collecting miles, campsites, and friends along the way. There’s no place that feels more like home, and I look forward to connecting others to this great northern landscape and its many opportunities.

My journey to NVC began as a volunteer on trails in Lake County. At the time, I had no idea what it takes to create and maintain access to outdoor recreation opportunities. I learned quickly that this is group project work unlike any other. It takes an enormous amount of dedication to keep trails open, canoe entry points cleared, and campsites maintained. If you’ve played in the Northwoods, you’ve almost certainly benefited from the great work of volunteers. 

Volunteers are awesome and so important! Most recently I worked for the Superior Hiking Trail Association, where I was able to meet and work with fantastic groups of volunteers. Every year we coordinated and led projects along the entire route of the 300-mile trail. Volunteers consistently went above and beyond, impressing me with their dedication every day.

As we celebrate the arrival of 2024, we at NVC hope you will consider joining us in our mission. We will announce upcoming projects beginning in February. Please sign up to receive project announcements here.

In the meantime, we continue to rely on donations to help fund our stewardship work. Your contributions are used as critical match dollars as we leverage private and federal grants to fund our projects. You may donate at any time by clicking here. We appreciate the support.

I am looking forward to leading NVC and working with you on the trails!