Volunteer
Join us on the snow as an instructor for alpine skiing, snowboarding, Nordic skiing, or snowshoeing. If summer is your season, volunteer as a cycling guide, paddle instructor, or assist with our other recreation programs, including golf, climbing, and pickleball. We are always looking for volunteers to help with our equipment, in the office, program photography, and more. Share your skills and passion for the outdoors to help our students access and enjoy the sports you love.
Ready to volunteer?
Reasons to Volunteer
Have Fun
Develop Skills
Make Friends
What does our community have to say?
Getting Started in Adaptive Sports
Join the Fun and Make a Difference!
Building confidence, community, and joy
Activities
- Snow Sports
- Biking
- Climbing
- Court Sports
- Golf
- Paddling
- Hiking
Volunteer Roles
- Instructor/Guide
- Program Host
- Equipment Maintenance
- Office Support
- Photographers, Videographers, and Artists
- Event Crew
- Junior Volunteer
- Internships
Your Time Has Power!
Use It To Create Joy, Confidence, And Connection. Volunteer With Us.
Volunteer Requirements
All Volunteers must be 18 or older (or a part of the junior volunteer program) and are required to have a background check and applicable abuse training. In addition, instructors and certain activities have extra requirements and trainings as noted below.
Winter Volunteer Instructor Requirements
If you are passionate about skiing, snowboarding or snowshoeing, volunteer with Maine Adaptive and pass on your love of snowsports. Instructors are paired with participants to teach and improve skills in their chosen snow sport like alpine, nordic, snowboarding, and snowshoeing.
- Must be 18 years or older, or part of the Junior Volunteer program
Be an intermediate or better skier or rider
Provide your own equipment
Complete annual online abuse prevention trainings and a background check every other year.
Volunteer training includes two main clinics: FUNdamentals and Adaptive 101.
- FUNdamentals focuses on teaching skiing movements and safety, enhancing effectiveness as snow sports instructors.
- Adaptive 101 covers common disabilities and how to adapt instruction. Volunteers can choose between sessions on equipment or cognitive adaptations.
Training Requirements:
- Returning Volunteers: Must attend the FUNdamentals clinic and either an Adaptive 101 session or a discipline-specific clinic in January.
- New Volunteers: Required to attend FUNdamentals, one Adaptive 101 track, and New Volunteer Orientation. Discipline-specific clinics in January are optional.
- Pleasant Mountain Volunteers: Specific training on January 3rd or 6th, combining FUNdamentals and Adaptive 101, with additional training options at other locations.
- Nordic-Snowshoe Volunteers: Special training at Quarry Road Trails on January 2nd, focusing on the Nordic program.
This new structure aims to better equip volunteers for adaptive instruction in snow sports.
All winter on-snow volunteers are given a lift pass to use on the day they volunteer if they don’t have their own season pass.
Summer Volunteer Instructor Requirements
Must be 18 years of age or older
Cycling – must have own bicycle and helmet
Golf & Tennis – have a basic knowledge of the sport
Paddling – know basic strokes and safety skills and have your own kayak & PFD
Complete annual online abuse prevention trainings and a background check every other year.
A variety of Volunteer training is offered at the start of the summer to refresh instructors
The program consists of two preseason training sessions and then volunteering on snow beginning in January. This program is offered during the winter (January – Early April) at Sunday River, Sugarloaf, Pleasant Mountain and Pineland Farms and in the summer months at a variety of locations dependent on the sport. The volunteer days consist of training sessions and working with participants. Junior Volunteers will work with Maine Adaptive volunteers who have expertise in the different phases of adaptive skiing and disabilities. Junior Volunteers will learn how to use adaptive equipment and understand the aspects of different disabilities and disability etiquette. Most sessions will pair the Junior Volunteer with a seasoned volunteer and participant in a full day lesson.
Day lift tickets/trail passes are provided by the host resort for anyone without a season pass. Clinics are led by Maine Adaptive staff and experienced volunteer instructors. As an added bonus, the program can cover community service requirements for most high schools.
Junior Volunteer Criteria
Must be 16 years of age before the program begins.
Must provide own equipment for the sport of choice.
Must be an intermediate level skier/rider to volunteer for the winter program.
Must have intermediate skill level in chosen summer sport.
Must make a commitment to a minimum of six days of volunteering.
Must complete Maine Adaptive paperwork and have parent signature on release form.
A willingness to learn and support participants with a wide range of ability and skill level in order to gain an understanding of disabilities and adaptive equipment.
Wanting to further your education and training by working directly with people with disabilities in a recreational setting, managing recreational programs, or operating a nonprofit organization? Maine Adaptive offers unpaid internship opportunities year-round in programming, operations, development, communications, marketing, finance, and management.
Maine Adaptive staff will work with an intern’s academic advisors to define the objectives of the internship and the scope of the intern’s role.
Submit an application, or contact us for more information!