Whether he’s cleaning the beach or coaching on the field, Robinett’s motivation for volunteering remains the same: “I do it for my kids. They see me volunteering, and my purpose is to serve as a role model for them, to better their lives, better themselves, and better their community.”
A Forestry Planner out of Hastings by day, Cory Robinett spends his free time volunteering for the Alliance for the Great Lakes Lake Michigan Federation. At first, he was just looking for an opportunity to get involved during college. Eighteen years later, he’s still volunteering to clean up the beach at Hoffmaster State Park in Muskegon during the annual Adopt-A-Beach™ event. Now, his primary motivation to volunteer is to set a positive example for his kids.
As Beach Captain, Robinett spends hours promoting the annual event and recruiting individuals who are interested in clearing the beach of harmful debris. Volunteers work in pairs to collect trash and tally their findings. The trash is then weighed, calculated and the results are sent into the Lake Michigan Federation to be added to the annual report.
“You quickly learn that this is a long, ongoing process. Beaches change over time and the level of the lake has an impact on how much trash turns up. The most common trash we find is cigarette filters and pieces of plastic,” Robinett said.
In addition to the yearly Adopt-A-Beach event, Cory and his wife stay involved with their four children’s activities year-round. Robinett volunteers as a coach for his son’s t-ball team, and his wife has volunteered to coach their daughter’s softball team and Odyssey of the Mind team.
See how Consumers Energy employees are giving back to the community by following #CEVolunteers on Twitter and Facebook. Learn how we’re caring for the communities we serve at www.ConsumersEnergy.com/sustainability.
