Passport in Time, YCC volunteers visit Savenac Nursery

Keeping the Savenac Nursery in Haugan in pristine condition comes mostly from volunteers, with the bulk of help from Passport in Time.

This is a volunteer cultural heritage resource program initiated by the Forest Service, but now has sponsorship assistance from the Bureau of Land Management, state parks and Historicorps.

"The goal of Passport in Time is to preserve the nation's past historical locations with the help from the public. These folks contribute to maintenance, cleaning, landscaping and some environmental and historical research on the restoration project”, said Heather Berman, the Recreational Specialist with the Superior Ranger District. “Projects vary at each location around the country. Some refurbish cabins. Some have ground clearing. Log barn preservation and excavating around old charcoal kilns. There have been exploring Chinese mines and many sites’ archeologists need help. These are all on public land,” she explained.

The Savenac Nursery needs assistance every year and has become a popular return-summer for Passport in Time because of the beautiful place that it is, but also the people they work with who are local.

“We painted the main shop on two sides. We’re reflooring the west side of the first floor of the bunkhouse. We redid the furniture. Sanded it, stained it, lacquered it. We replaced the handrails here at the Packing Shed and the admin building. And a large variety of landscaping and miscellaneous projects," is what Berman said was accomplished knowing that she had forgotten other jobs.

Repairing what the snow has done has been a challenge but staying on top of it annually and not letting years go by has been the answer. Berman oversees the Passage in Time project each year at Savenac Nursery along with Erika Scheuring. Scheuring started with the Forest Service in 2003 and eventually moved into the Heritage Program as an archeologist which she has a master’s degree.

“My first degree is Recreation Resource Management. I’ve always been interested in having people connected to the woods. From recreation to archaeology is to connect people back to the landscape. That’s been my passion my whole life,” she said.

Garrett O’Day is a student at Superior High School but spending the summer with the Youth Conservation Corps and was one of several students that spent the week working the property.

“We started with a meeting Monday morning and then jumped into retreading and building a new trail around Savenac for the people to walk on. We expanded and made it wider so people can walk side-by-side which makes it more accessible to the public,” he shared. “It was a fun week working with volunteers from all over. Next week we (YCC) will be working with Timber and Trails, I believe. We’ve been jumping around different departments and getting a feel for what each department does,” O’Day said.

The YCC is funded thought the Forest Service as they hire teenagers each summer to help with job crews on their list of projects. However, Wednesday was a History Tour of the Ninemile Remount Depot for the YCC so they could catch their breath.

“Let’s see, we have eight YCC and their two crew leaders. About six college students and three kids under 12 with a parent on site along with the Passport in Time volunteers. A YCC Advance Crew from Plains worked in the bunkhouse. Bartlett Tree Services from Spokane handled the 2 projects from the east and west arboretums,” Scheuring said when asked about the groceries needed. “This year it was 50 pounds of ground beef, 40 pounds of pulled pork, 30 pounds of porkchops and this year I changed the menu a bit and purchased 10 pounds of hotdogs.”

All volunteers are fed breakfast, lunch and dinner plus snacks (homemade cookies) at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.

It breaks Scheuring’s heart to have to turn any Passport in Time volunteers away but this year Savenac had 60 applicants and only 30 could be accepted. Specific skills were needed such as window glazers and advanced carpentry. Electrical and plumbing are needed almost every year so the more experience a volunteer has, the more in demand they are at every project site from coast to coast.

At 16 years old, Felix Bacon from Missoula said that he basically grew up during the summers at Savenac as his mother, Sydney ‘Syd’ Bacon is also an archaeologist for the Lolo National Forest. She was heavily involved in Passport in Time which is how Felix developed a deep love of the place.

“When she was up here, we’d come up as a family and camp. I was a little kid so I’d just kind of run around and play in the pond. I just have so many memories of this place and think it’s so cool that people are taking care of it,” he smiles. “Not only the volunteers that spend a week, but the communities of Haugan and DeBorgia are proud and help here, too.”

He was up for the annual celebration and saying hi to so many Forest Service employees that he’s come to know.

Scheuring and Berman strategize what is needed for this workweek and the State Historic Preservation Office participated this year after a tour of the property and facility. The property is very popular for weddings, reunions and retreats and their website explains the upcoming closures.

A furnace from World War I or World War II that runs on diesel is going to be replaced. A new well is going to be placed on the property itself as the current one is under I-90 and under the St. Regis River. It is in the middle of a subdivision surrounded by private property so this might be an epic task.

Following the customary recap of the week with laughter and applause along with hugs, handshakes and even a few tears, everyone went under the trees by the kitchen and thoroughly enjoyed a delicious turkey dinner on the freshly painted picnic tables.