Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve - Volunteer (U.S. National Park Service)

No matter what your skills or interests, there's probably a place for you in the VIP (Volunteer In Parks) program at Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve. Current Jean Lafitte VIP projects include

Helping with children's programs
Cooking or craft demonstrations
Operating boats for ranger-guided bayou tours
Teaching Cajun dancing
Firing cannons during the annual Battle of New Orleans commemoration
Carpentry and landscaping projects
Working with the park libary and museum collections
Trail maintenance
Assisting with visitor center operations

A local chef and summer camp kids pat out beignet dough

Volunteers like this local chef share Louisiana cuisine during cooking demonstrations

For more information, call the site where you would like to work (see park home page for site list) or e-mail the park. Your volunteer job may require training, which will be provided by the park, and uniforms may be provided for long-term volunteers.

Project days which require little training and a minimum time commitment are regularly scheduled at some Jean Lafitte sites. Volunteers might help staff a park booth at a festival, dig out invasive plants, or take photographs during an event. Group projects can also be arranged.

Jean Lafitte's volunteers make a difference every day: in 2008, they donated nearly 12,732 hours of work (and had a good time doing it!).

Equal Opportunity Policy: Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Park and Preserve is committed to a strong nondiscrimination policy respecting its employees and volunteers. Its policy is to provide equal opportunities for all and to eliminate discrimination based on sex (including sexual harassment and sexual orientation), race, color, national origin, religion, age, and disability.