Thank you to the 140+ volunteers who participated in our September 8 Coastal Cleanup event! Our volunteers split into three groups and thoroughly cleaned the riverbanks around Sycamore Island Ranch, Riverside Golf Course, and 5 miles of the river channel above Highway 41. Volunteers included students and faculty from Bullard High School, Clovis West High School and Duncan Polytech. The United Way sent out Volunteers from HSB Beneficial and California CPAs as part of their annual "Day of Caring." Alliant University sent students from their S.T.O.P mentoring program, and many river stewards also participated in the cleanup. At the end of the day, our volunteers collected approximately 50 bags of trash, numerous large items like a metal chair frame and long posts wrapped with barbed wire, and several hundred acorns for fall planting at Jensen River Ranch.

 

Special thanks goes out to our volunteer site captains Dave and Chris Erickson; our corporate sponsor REI for providing T-shirts, drinks and snacks for our volunteers; and to the statewide sponsor of California Coastal Cleanup, Whole Foods.

 

Carrie is a student at Fresno Pacific University studying with Professor Michael Kunz, and first experienced the San Joaquin River last year as part of a class service project. Carrie is passionate about restoring the river and providing outdoor recreation for our community.

 

Craig Seber is a student at Fresno City College studying under former River Parkway Trust River Guide Rodney Olsen. Craig plans to pursue a doctorate in biology with an emphasis on ecology and conservation. He has already gained a great deal of practical experience in stream restoration by working summers with the Forest Service learning and using the Rosgen channel typing system.

 

The Trust still has openings for additional college interns with interest in natural resource conservation and volunteer recruitment. Intern positions are part-time, seasonal positions which will end in May 2008. The Trust offers competitive hourly pay based on experience. Check our website at www.riverparkway.org for complete details or contact Watershed Program Director Sharon Weaver at (559) 248-8480 ext. 105.