Jon saw evidence of building at the primary dam when he went down yesterday morning at 5, and Jean called excited by more work. Tonight things are clearly indicating work on the street side of the primary. Jon says more work this morning. All my fingers are all crossed, and yours should be too.
The term “inspiration” derives from the Latin word spirare which means to breathe. The more remarkable term Inspirare literally means “to breathe into”, which if you think about it is a pretty intimate, life-giving act. Last night’s awards were an example of ‘communal inspiration’. The evening twinkled with hard working stewards who had made a difference and glowed with a healing respect for wild places and wild things.
Shelton Johnson’s speech about growing up in Detroit and finding himself a park ranger in Yosemite was a joy to witness. He spoke elegantly about the way African Americans are unaccustomed to visiting the National Parks and don’t tend to recognize this wonder as part of their cultural heritage. He talked about what it was like to see inner-city kids experience the park for the first time, and to see its ‘wonders mirrored in their eyes’. He talked about the recent Oprah Winfrey visit to the park and how she had come based on a letter he wrote years ago. He felt her camping for two nights represented a watershed opportunity to show African Americans that the parks belonged to them. He talked about the delight he felt in discovering this photo and realizing that, before there were even Park Rangers, the ‘Buffalo Soldiers” were assigned to protect and steward Yosemite.
Shelton’s novel, Gloryland, is a fictional account of one of these soldiers and he fully admits he dreams of it becoming a film. He thinks the best way to reach out and draw people into the story is through the medium of film and he’s doing his best to inspire some greats: he was invited to Sundance this year. I have every faith that his dream will be realized: he is a cheerfully unstoppable force.
Other wonders of the night included the awesome and hard-working Jay Holcomb from IBRRC who spoke with glorious tenacity about the work he has been doing to help oiled birds for 29 years. He was personally working on the gulf oil spill for 4 months, and it was great to see his Herculean efforts treated with respect and recognition. Lindsay Wildlife and Nature Bridge were admirable stewards of the wild world as well, and Mike’s presentation was appreciatively received.
There even special applause when I pointed out the beavers in his DVD were OURS.
There was, of course, one thing that couldn’t be left undone, and I made sure I pressed a copy of Mike’s DVD into Shelton’s hands when he passed by. “Take this back and share with your colleagues.” I said encouragingly, thinking of the beavers building near the golf course at the Ahwahnee. “Leave it in the coffee room and pass it on!”
Inspirare Castorum!
Do these pictures suggest any kind of riddle to you? The old puzzle was a purported favorite of Lewis Carroll and now a standard of teachers everywhere. It’s a great problem-solving challenge and one that’s been much on my mind as we whittle down the hours until Saturday. As with any large scale undertaking, there are last minute changes and scheduling nightmares. Someone has to leave early and someone has to come late and no one wants to perform while the bagpipes warm up.
Never mind. I have it on the very best authority that John Muir himself will be spending some time at the beaver booth. I believe he is fond of our compassion and tenacity, qualities with which he is very familiar. Last year after a successful celebration he and a certain friend of Alhambra Creek spent a delightful evening at the dam watching the entire family with the helpful guidance of our own Cheryl Reynolds. With Muir and two descendents on site, I’m hoping the city manager will have the temerity to repeat his very thoughtful question “How would John Muir feel about planting trees for beavers?” Like all scholarly pursuits, motivated entirely by genuine curiosity and good will, I’m sure he could get an honest answer.
What are you doing, Saturday? I really think you should be there to see how this all works out.
So tomorrow will be the ceremony for the John Muir Association Conservation Award. It will take place downtown, at the Campbell Theatre and be hosted by Lee Stetson, the actor who played the affirming voice of John Muir in the Ken Burns documentary series. Awards will be presented for best organizational contribution (East Bay Regional Parks) best education contribution (David Loeb, publisher of Bay Nature), best business contribution (T. Marzetti Co in Ohio) and best individual contribution (Jeff Alvarez of the Wildlife Project).
Regular readers of this blog will recognize Jeff’s name as the biologist who had volunteered to help us with our interpretive signs grant way back when. Jeff has been an enthusiastic supporter for beavers and Worth A Dam, and will be joining our meeting this weekend to talk about upcoming projects. We couldn’t be happier for him or more excited about our work together. Here’s the press release regarding his much-deserved win:
Named Conservationist of the Year, Jeff Alvarez will be recognized for his lifelong advocacy for wildlife and habitat conservation. Alvarez is the owner and Chief Biologist for The Wildlife Project. His prodigious volunteer work on behalf of wildlife and the environment goes well beyond his business interests. As a volunteer, he has trained professional peers in federal permitting issues for special-status species in order to increase the number of qualified biologists able to work towards the conservation of threatened and endangered species in California . He has lent his expertise, as a volunteer, to assist the Agricultural and Natural Resource Land Trust of Contra Costa County, the Biological Field Studies Association, the Mt. View Sanitation District, and many others. He has created and published techniques for surveying wildlife that minimize impacts on the wildlife. His articles on special-status species have been published in scientific journals, and he shares his expertise by providing gratis presentations on natural history and wildlife management to public agencies and nonprofit organizations. Alvarez is currently fulfilling a ten-year volunteer commitment to assist CASA Avian Support Alliance in Belize with the assessment of reforestation and avian populations. He also assists with wildlife rehabilitation and environmental education, including The Resources of Belize Coloring and Activity Book to be distributed to children in Belize . Alvarez is one of those individuals whose wide-ranging enthusiasm on behalf of wildlife and the environment influences others to care about the natural world around them.
Alright, an award ceremony, a Worth A Dam meeting with brilliant new minds, aren’t you doing anything else this weekend, you lazy beaver advocates? How about a display at the Trail Adventure to benefit Save Mt. Diablo at Castle Rock park in Walnut Creek? Well, okay. We’ll be at the expo from 9-12 where you can learn all about the various advocacy groups in the Bay Area.
The Save Mount Diablo Trail Adventure presented by Chevron offers a Half-Marathon, 10K Run, and Family Hike beginning at Castle Rock Park in Walnut Creek, climbing the fire roads up the slopes of Mount Diablo and finishing at Castle Rock. The event includes post race entertainment by a live band, expo and lunch for all participants.
Save Mt. Diablo is the big leagues in non-profit baseball. It takes big money to save a mountain, especially when you are saving it from being sold for even bigger money. They invited us after seeing how enormously popular our site was at the Flyway Fiesta event. We will be there to talk beavers, make friends and find out some excellent ideas for next years beaver festival! Stop by and say hi!
