When Kristi Waits moved to Arch Cape in 2023, she began volunteering all over the county as a way to get involved with the community.

Everywhere she went, Waits saw a need for more volunteers, and decided she would find a way to both incentivize and reward volunteers for their work.

With a background in technology, an idea came naturally to Waits — she would develop a web app that would bring volunteers together, connect them with organizations and track their hours, with milestones resulting in prizes along the way. The app, called Waves & Woods, recently launched and currently boasts around 50 volunteers.

“What I really wanted to do was track the hours, but also to ‘gamify’ it,” Waits said. “That’s the whole point … I’m trying to get everyone involved. The volunteers, they’re the number one priority, so the app is built for them to track hours and have fun with it. But then the other piece of that is these organizations, obviously, who need these volunteers. And they’re in the app as well.”

How it works
In the app, users can sign up for an account and search for an organization, with an option to filter by service area or volunteer focus. Waits has listed over 70 organizations to choose from within Clatsop and Tillamook counties, from environmental causes to education to local events and supporting the arts.

When a user selects an organization, they can view all available volunteer descriptions and click a “sign up” button leading to a volunteer application on the selected organization’s website.

Once the user begins volunteering, they can track their hours in the app, making their way through the ranks from Level 1 (up to 9 hours of volunteering) all the way to Level 10 (up to 10,000 hours of volunteering). Along the way, the volunteer can earn prizes by hitting milestones in their hours.

Waits has a small business that specializes in logo wear, so some of the prizes volunteers can earn are various apparel with the Waves & Woods logo. Others are gift cards to local businesses that she’s partnered with.

Waits also hopes to help people get into the habit of entering their volunteer hours with the app’s leveling system — someone who is, say, three hours away from moving up to the next level is likely to be more diligent about recording their hours in the app.

The name ‘Waves & Woods’ reflects the atmosphere of the North Coast — Waits lives between the Pacific Ocean and the North Coast Land Conservancy Rainforest Reserve, so waves and woods are part of her everyday life. She also wanted to make sure the network was relatable and accessible to everyone both in and around Clatsop County.

“I wanted to encompass this area without limiting it, because the truth is, this concept can be applied anywhere,” Waits said. “I live in Arch Cape, so northern Tillamook is right there, and even across the bridge (in Washington) I assume there’s volunteers that come from across the bridge to volunteer here. And so that was the concept  — what identifies this area without limiting it?’”

In addition to the network bringing together dozens of volunteers with a variety of interests in many different focus areas, it also brings together a variety of age groups.

“The current age range of volunteers signed up on the app is 16-82, which is one of the most exciting things to see,” Waits said.

So far, the response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive. When Waits was on the Seaside Chamber of Commerce board in 2024, she presented her idea to Seaside Mayor Steve Wright, one of the app’s first supporters.

“Kristi’s work is a great example of what makes Seaside such a special place,” Wright said in an email to The Astorian. “I have long hoped for a project that would actively connect volunteers with local organizations and then honor them.

“It’s exciting to see that vision being realized. This network will not only strengthen community services but also help create bonds among neighbors as they serve together. I encourage everyone to get involved, have fun with this and make a meaningful impact in our area.”

After her initial presentation, Waits began connecting with the business community in Seaside, networking and gathering local perspectives. She has seen a great deal of support for her concept, spurring her onward.

“Now, what I’m trying to do is get people to use the app so they can actually see it in practice and see how it works,” Waits said. “Everybody is really excited about it … there’s something special about this community, and it’s something that you really want to give back to.”