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“One of my favorites
1993 The Guest Guide program was
created with the goal of making the zoo
even more responsive to guests’ needs.
Guest guides are well trained, friendly
volunteers who help visitors navigate the
zoo and answer their general questions.
From 1993 to the present, the program
has grown from 10 to 120 guest guides.
2001 The Early Childhood Docent
(ECD) program in the HAMILL FAMILY
PLAY ZOO began to provide volunteer
opportunities for people who are passionate
about early childhood education. In this
award-winning exhibit, ECDs facilitate
nature play for young children and their
families. Today, there are approximately
85 ECDs.
“I have taken photos of people to help them remember the good
2003 Diversity and inclusion took
center stage with the implementation of
the Good Works program. Each semester,
approximately 15 students with disabilities
are placed into the program by the zoo’s local
high school partners. Good Works helps the
students develop job skills by giving them
opportunities to assist with craft preparation,
and the cleaning, organizing, and sorting of
material
Photo caption s and donated recyclables.
20 GATEWAYS | VOLUNTEERS
is Whirl the tiger.”
Tim Adams, Bolingbrook, Guest Guide
After retiring from his job as a senior training specialist for Metra,
the commuter rail agency serving the Chicago area, Tim Adams
had more time to do what he enjoyed—volunteering and wildlife
photography.
During a visit to Brookfield Zoo with a friend in 2016,
he spoke to a volunteer about the program. “I thought it would
be something I’d like to do,” he said.
As a guest guide, Adams points zoo visitors in the direction
of animals, attractions, and restrooms. He answers questions
such as, “Where are the giraffes?” “When is the next Dolphins
in Action program?” “Where can we eat?”
There’s a lot to see and do at Brookfield Zoo. Adams also
dispenses information about Zoo Chat schedules, Animal
Ambassador appearances, and zoo memberships. He makes
himself available to help guests with what they need, he said.
time they had at the zoo.”
Adams especially enjoys photographing wildlife and zoo ani-
mals. “One of my favorites is Whirl the tiger,” he said. A photo
he took of Whirl appeared on Smithsonian magazine’s website
and in one of Tom Skilling’s weather broadcasts.
He has photographed local wildlife—great blue herons, great
egrets, water snakes, painted turtles, and native birds—during his
walks in area parks and forest preserves. He has contributed these
photos and short essays to Brookfield Zoo Volunteers’ Nature Walks,
an online newsletter created by and for volunteers.