Governor Nixon has announced he plans to renew the state’s State Parks Youth Corps Program. The program uses federal funds to pay Missourians between the ages of 17 and 21 to do work in nearly all of the 85 state parks and historic sites. Scott Holste, the Governor’s spokesman, says there’s a wide range of tasks.
“During the last year, the State Park Youth Corps workers put in more than 187,000 hours at the parks. They put roofs on 25 buildings, they used 2,000 gallons of paint; painting buildings and fences. They blazed almost 650 miles of trail in 58 state parks and they did research and cataloguing of animal and plant life, as well as helping with event planning,” Holste said.
Holste says the program isn’t just a benefit for the parks themselves.
“Particularly during this time where it’s been really difficult for young people to find work during the summer months, the State Park Youth Corps came through with that benefit for about 1,000 young people,” Holste said.
Holste says Missouri youths interested in working for the program can start applying online on February 1st. He says the work will be done between April and November. Holste says the Corps members can get paid for work of up to 400 hours for the program.
