Volunteer lifeguards?
That may not be too far off the mark, as cash-strapped cities across the nation are getting creative to maintain services in spite of cutbacks. In Albermarle County, Va., officials have asked volunteers and jail inmates to help care for public parks.
According to local reports, the volunteers are helping to build a trail network for hikers, bikers and horseback riders at Preddy Creek Park, and due to budget constraints the project would not be completed without their help.
The same is true in Des Moines, Iowa. City leaders there established a volunteer program by which locals pitch in to help maintain local cemeteries and recently held an open house to recruit new volunteers.
