Letter From Rainbow Springs State Park

Thank you for your interest in Rainbow Springs State Park located in Dunnellon, Florida and the Florida Park Service! It is people like you that make a difference in the natural and cultural resource as well as the visitors’ experience. The mission of the Florida Park Service is to provide resource-based recreation while preserving, interpreting, and restoring natural and cultural resources. Rainbow Springs State Park has received your application. Depending on the other parks or areas you listed on your application will determine the parks that receive your application. This letter is only from Rainbow Springs State Park. If you are interested in a particular park I recommend that you make direct contact with the Volunteer Coordinator from your desired park.

There are 2 categories that we place resident Volunteers into here at Rainbow Springs State Park. The first are resident Volunteers that are placed in the campground as Camp Hosts. And the second are Park Hosts that are placed in the volunteer village at the headsprings area of the park.

If you are interested in becoming a Camp Host here are some general Rainbow Springs Camp Host details:

The most important host duty is cleaning and maintaining the bathroom facilities which includes toilets, showers, sinks, mopping floors, etc. Other duties would include site checks, cleaning out grills, general maintenance like weed whacking, mowing and trimming shrubs when necessary, informing campers of the park rules and regulations, helping campers when needed, and checking the river front and road sides for litter. Hosts are provided with the following tools that must be shared-a golf cart, cleaning chemicals and supplies, and needed hand tools.

Hosts are required to document and volunteer a minimum of 24 hours per week. The minimum stay is 2 months. Hosts camp in the campground loops with visiting campers. The sites are gravel pads with the following-fire ring, grill, picnic table, 20/30/50 amp electric, sewer, and water. You are provided with Volunteer t-shirt and some laundry is provided. You can check out the campground at ReserveAmerica.com.

Park Hosts are similar to Camp Hosts but they are assigned a campsite in the volunteer village at the Head springs area. They are also required to document and volunteer a minimum of 24 hours per week. The minimum stay is 2 months. These sites also have fire ring, grill, picnic table, 20/30/50 amp electric, sewer, and water. Park Hosts are assigned maintenance type duties which includes cleaning the facilities at the headsprings.

There are no available camp host/park host sites except for the summer and fall of 2014 and spring and summer of 2015. You are welcome to email me to discuss possible future openings.

I hope that this email has helped to answer some of your questions. I know there may be more; please, send your questions my way. Again, thank you for your interest in both Rainbow Springs and the Florida Park Service. I look forward to working with you.
Thank you,