Volunteer Spotlight: Trish Price

Trish’s Journey: From Bike Advocacy to Community Organizing

As the community of Davis faces shifting dynamics in volunteerism, Trish Price, an inspiring super volunteer and advocate for sustainability, shares her experience with Cool Davis. As a part of our ongoing volunteer recruitment efforts, I sat down with Trish, a long-time volunteer also of Bike Davis fame, to chat about the current volunteer landscape and opportunities in Davis. Her story offers valuable insights into giving back, especially in a town where community spirit is strong but volunteer availability is sporadic. Trish has been volunteering on and off with Cool Davis since 2014, when she became involved through her commitment to Bike Davis—

“I started volunteering to feel like I was a part of Davis — to have a voice in the community.”

Her kids were in school, and her schedule allowed her to volunteer often. For Trish, the Yolo Interfaith Alliance for Climate Justice was also a positive experience, to see all sorts of people working together to address a common issue. She said that as an Aggie alum, she’s always been concerned about climate change and sustainable living, leading her to become involved with community-based organizations today. If you are interested in becoming a volunteer as well, your availability is not an issue! Check out our flexible volunteer roles here.

Volunteering in Davis

In addition to biking around town, Trish also owns an electric vehicle, and has been with Cool Davis on 3rd Saturdays at the Davis Farmers Market to display her Mini Cooper SE. Some of her favorite volunteer activities in the community are related to transportation, including the Picnic Day Parade, Loopalooza, and Fridays for Future. I asked Trish to explain how she views the volunteering scene in Davis—

“In Davis, people think there are a lot of people volunteering, but this is a myth— an urban legend. Every organization is struggling for talent right now, and this has been the case.”

People in Davis may assume the “aging demographic and student volunteer requirements” would fulfill local volunteer needs, but this is not always true. Especially with lingering effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, people coming out in droves to donate their time just isn’t as consistent as it used to be. Cool Davis has struggled with this aspect of community organizing post-Covid, and Bike Davis is also strongly encouraging people to get involved as well. In fact, Bike Davis is currently seeking Board Members, communications, website, and tabling volunteers— please contact them if you are passionate about promoting bicycle safety and guiding advocacy! Trish speaks to the dip in community involvement, as well as a great reason to get involved:

“In a University Town people can get siloed. People here are very driven and focused on their work [however] volunteering takes you outside yourself. It makes you a part of the community in a very meaningful and satisfying way.”

This sentiment is certainly true for many volunteers, and guides me in my service to Cool Davis as well. One of the many rewarding aspects of community organizing was also mentioned by Trish, in regards to the “spontaneous aspect of events, and people doing things organically”. Feeling connected to others and getting into the volunteer flow is an outstanding way to give back to the community, as well as yourself. Thanks to amazing volunteers like Trish, Cool Davis is able to make much more of an impact in reducing household greenhouse gas emissions through improved outreach capabilities. If you think this would be fulfilling, please consider becoming a Cool Davis or Bike Davis volunteer. From all of us here at Cool Davis to you Trish, THANK YOU!!!

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This is the second article in a series of volunteer narratives that will be posted to the Cool Davis website! I’m Maddie Davis, an AmeriCorps Neighbor-to-Neighbor Fellow, focused on building organizational capacity and community engagement. Stay tuned and keep an eye out for future volunteer spotlights!