Each year, we’re reminded how much our volunteers make possible. From early morning creek sampling to shoreline cleanups and invasive plant removals – volunteers give life to our mission. In 2025, more than 335 volunteers contributed over 2,200 hours of service to support clean water, healthy habitats, and an informed, empowered community.
Volunteers by the Numbers
For over two decades, volunteers have played a major role at the Estuary Program. Volunteers serve on our governing board, participate in water quality and restoration efforts, help with watershed cleanups, and restock pet waste bag dispensers in Morro Bay and Los Osos.
When you add it all up, 2025’s volunteer effort is an inspiring metric proving the strength of this community. This year alone, we had over 335 volunteers who:
- Collectively dedicated 2,200+ hours of service
- Picked up 227 pounds of trash
- Removed 407 invasive sea lavender plants
- Cleared 280 pounds of sticky snakeroot
- Monitored dozens of sites across the watershed and bay
Restoration Volunteers
Our restoration team does work throughout the watershed and estuary to help support healthy ecosystems. This year, we had the help of 12 restoration volunteers who contributed over 100 hours of their time.
In those 100 hours, they removed over 400 European sea lavender plants and 200 pounds of sticky snakeroot. Each invasive plant removed makes space for native species to thrive. These invasive species removal projects are important to the health of our estuary and would not be possible without the hard work of our restoration volunteers.
Monitoring Volunteers
Our monitoring team collects important information throughout the watershed and estuary to help us understand the health of local waters. This year, 33 monitoring volunteers and 11 student fellows contributed more than 1,100 hours to this effort.
Throughout the year, volunteers measured water temperature and dissolved oxygen to track conditions for sensitive aquatic life, collected and analyzed bacteria samples to assess recreation safety, monitored creek flows, assisted with bioassessment, and supported eelgrass and recreational-use studies. Each data point they collect helps us build a clearer picture of estuary health.
Education and Outreach Volunteers
Our Education and Outreach (E&O) volunteers assist with cleanups, events, and photography for our publications and social media. In 2025, a total of 290 E&O volunteers contributed 750 hours and picked up over 220 pounds of trash! We also have a dedicated team of Mutts for the Bay volunteers who stock 36 donation-funded pet waste bag dispensers throughout our watershed. Throughout the year, Mutts for the Bay volunteers have contributed over 260 hours of their time. By keeping full dispensers of free pet waste bags for the public to use, these volunteers play a large role in helping keep pet waste (and the bacteria that comes with it) out of our waterways.
Governing Board Volunteers
The Bay Foundation of Morro Bay is the governing board that provides the organizational framework that allows us to carry out our work to protect and restore Morro Bay. This nonprofit board is made up of nine volunteer members who work to review our workplan and budgets and help guide the direction of the organization. Their hard work behind the scenes makes the mission of the Estuary Program possible.
2025 Volunteers of the Year: Mike and Steve
On November 15, we celebrated the hard work of our volunteers and recognized five standout stewards at our 2025 Volunteer Appreciation Event.
Mike Milanesi and Steve Harrell were recognized as the 2025 Volunteers of the Year. This award recognizes our monitoring program volunteers who have made a big impact on the program over the past year. Mike and Steve have been volunteering with the Estuary Program since 2019 and have cumulatively dedicated almost 250 hours of monitoring support. Each month, they gear up their personal kayaks in the early morning hours to measure temperature, dissolved oxygen, and salinity at several sites in the bay.
2025 Outstanding Volunteers of the Year: Sue and Myron
Sue and Myron Hood are this year’s Outstanding Volunteer Award recipients. This award recognizes monitoring volunteers who’ve made a substantial contribution over their entire time with our program. Sue began volunteering in 2006 alongside her dear friend and neighbor, Liz Curren, and has since contributed over 450 hours monitoring water quality on Pennington Creek. Myron began helping more regularly in 2018 and stepped in fully by 2022, contributing around 100 hours of his time. Longtime residents of Los Osos since the 1970s, the Hoods first came to the area when Myron started teaching math at Cal Poly. We are incredibly grateful for their time, effort, and significant contributions.
2025 Community Volunteer of the Year: Becka
Becka Kelly is this year’s Community Volunteer of the Year recipient. Becka represents the Harbor Department on our Executive Committee, a management committee that helps oversee our program operations. She has served on our advisory and management committees since 2012 and provides a direct link to the goings on at the Harbor Department to help us coordinate projects and initiatives with this valued program partner.
2025 Community Volunteer of the Year, Becka out on the water
In addition to our annual awards, each volunteer received tickets to a raffle made possible by generous donations from local businesses. We want to thank Fitness Works of Morro Bay, Nautical Bean, Oak and Otter Brewing Co., Starbucks, There Does Not Exist, Trader Joes, Two Broads Ciderworks, and Whole Foods for contributing to our raffle and sending volunteers home with great prizes.
Volunteers and support from our local community make possible the work we do here at the Estuary Program. We want to extend our gratitude to everyone who supports our mission and has contributed to making this year such a success.
Help us protect and restore the Morro Bay estuary!
- Donate to the Estuary Program today and support our work in the field, the lab, and beyond.
The Estuary Program is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. We depend on funding from grants and generous donors to continue our work. - Support us by purchasing estuary-themed gear from ESTERO. This locally owned and operated company donates 20% of proceeds from its Estuary clothing line and 100% of Estuary decal proceeds to the Estuary Program. Thank you, ESTERO!
- Purchase items from the Estuary Program’s store on Zazzle. Zazzle prints and ships your items, and the Estuary Program receives 10% of the proceeds.
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- We want to hear from you! Please take a few minutes to fill out this short survey about what type of events you’d like to see from the Estuary Program. We appreciate your input!