Brad Deane
February 2024
For Brad Deane, it all started with an invitation. A friend invited him to join in some trail maintenance on a 3.3. mile section of the Trail near Monson, Maine. In that simple activity, he became an A.T. volunteer.
Before this, he was in his own words “not a hiker.” That doesn’t mean he wasn’t an outdoorsman, being that he grew up in Maine hunting and fishing. However, the A.T. wasn’t something he was deeply familiar with or necessarily concerned about caring for before becoming a volunteer. That has changed now.
Brad is 9 years into his volunteer experience on the A.T. He has moved from being a section maintainer to being a district leader. He is an active and caring member of Maine Appalachian Trail Club, and he is a joy to work with according to all who encounter him.
“One thing that stood out to me throughout the 2023 season was how thoughtful Brad was on every site visit – he frequently shared apples from his orchard or honey from his bees. Brad is also incredibly patient and detailed when explaining logistics for field tasks,” said Leah Beck, ATC’s Maine Regional Manager.
Coupled with his helpful and sunny demeanor, Brad also brings a tremendous amount of local knowledge, personal contacts, and area history to his role. As District Manager, Brad coordinates section maintainers, serves on a chainsaw strike-team to clear blowdowns, and assists with the A.T. Experience Analysis related to visitor use management; he has also led the planning and relocation of the Trail for hiker safety during the Henderson Brook project and supported the work of the Visual Resource Inventory project.
Brad says he is motivated because this volunteer activity gets him outdoors.
“It gets me into the woods. It gives me the chance to meet numerous people, and you’re appreciated by people who stop to thank you for what you’re doing,” said Brad.
Brad says he has always been community-minded, and that the ways he gets to enjoy volunteering with the Maine A.T. Club is a “perfect fit” for him. He describes both helping his community and meeting people from around the world, in the unique way that the Appalachian Trail is capable of making the world bigger and smaller at the same time.
To anyone thinking about volunteering, Brad says “If you’ve never done it, try it. You don’t have to be a hiker to be rewarded by this. You meet people from all over the world when you’re out there.”
The camaraderie of the club and the gratitude of hikers are marks of the experience that Brad says he hopes others can find on their volunteer experience journeys.