Sometimes a missed opportunity leads to a new possibility. An idea sparks. While on vacation near Acadia National Park, Gail Licciardello missed a ferry. It was a gorgeous summer day, and as she waited, a tour boat with park rangers and passengers docked. The group had been taking in the wonders of Northeast Harbor on a Ranger-led cruise.

Gail watched, and thought, “I could do that.”

And she did, leaving her job as an Occupational Therapist for a summer to be a park ranger, first at Acadia National Park, then the following year at Grand Teton National Park.

Initially, the National Park Service passed on Gail’s application. She describes herself as being “obsessed” with the idea of becoming a park ranger, and so asked advice from actual rangers she met in her travels. She applied again and was hired. Her persistence led to unforgettable experiences:

Acadia was beautiful, but in the Tetons I thought I’d died and gone to heaven! The Park Service always needed extra eyes to go up in the planes and spot for fires. One day, after I was off duty, someone asked if I wanted to go up over nearby Yellowstone [National Park] and be that set of eyes. It was just incredible. Yellowstone is like another planet. Geysers and mudflows. I had never seen things like that.

Gail grew up in Methuen and North Andover, Massachusetts, of Sicilian, French Canadian, German, and Greek heritage. She spent childhood summers fishing and boating at her grandparents’ camp on Chestnut Pond in Epsom, New Hampshire. Her love of being outside in nature continued into adulthood with travels to many national parks and the Maine coast and islands.

Gail first visited the Wells Reserve in the late 1980s, before her park ranger adventures. She remembers spying a nude beachgoer through her camera! The reserve was younger and a bit more informal then. Over the years, Gail returned occasionally to walk the trails.

I didn’t visit a lot at first. Then, my cat of 14 years died. I buried him at my parents’ house in North Andover and called off work. When I got in my car, my mother asked where I was going. “I don’t know,” I said. Then I drove to the Reserve. I walked for a couple of hours. It is a very calming, peaceful place.

Gail lives in Eliot, and volunteers at the Reserve as both a docent and a ranger. In September, she helps at the Laudholm Nature Crafts Festival. She became a volunteer in 2021.

When COVID hit I thought, “I’m going to lose my mind.” I need to be outside more and that’s one of the reasons I started volunteering.

Gail does the valuable work of engaging students and visitors in guided walks on Reserve trails. These volunteers are called docents. Gail did not know how to lead these walks at first. She attended volunteer training and learned as she went. In 2022 she achieved an additional level of excellence as a Certified Interpretive Guide.

As a docent, I always learn something more about the marsh and the ocean, or how to teach. I learn in this beautiful environment. To love nature, you have to be kind to it. Sometimes you don’t always know the best way to be kind to it. That is what I am learning here at the Reserve.

Gail sees the students learning and getting excited, too.

The kids are so much fun. It is enjoyable to help them learn about the natural world. They are excited to be here, either because they love nature or because they hate math! [As a docent volunteer] I better understand the importance of science and the incredible work scientists do in their research on the sea and the marsh. Some kids are really into that. Maybe they will grow up to be scientists one day.

Volunteers like Gail have something to teach all of us. Learning can be a lifelong adventure. We can get good at things we’ve never done before. We can follow what sparks our interest and enrich our lives.

The Reserve needs more docent volunteers like Gail! Training begins in April. If you enjoy learning and being outside, then take one step. Fill out a Volunteer Application and email it to Lynne at lbenoit@wellsnerr.org, or join us for a New Volunteer Information Session on Wednesday, March 5th from 12-1pm on Zoom. We'll update you on the Reserve’s volunteer opportunities, and share all the ways our wonderful volunteers work to support and inspire us!

You can register for the Zoom presentation here. We look forward to meeting you and learning more about your story!