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Life Members | |
The Friends group deeply appreciates the contributions made by the following individuals who have achieved Life Member status:
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Dr Roy and Lynda Baker
Dot Bambach and Matt Ryan
Dr Robert and Terri Beard
John and Nancy Davis
Pat and John Metz
Dr Steven and Beth Roth
Allyn Schneider
Diego Shen Shields
Dr Richard and Leslie Shields, Jr.
Martha and Olvis Spencer
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Life Member status is attained by donating $500 or more to the Friends Group in any given year. |
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Our Business Sponsors
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Georgia Emergency Associates
Water-Dog Outfitters
Georgia Ornithological Society
Colonial Coast Birding &
Nature Festival
St. Joseph's/Candler Health System
Ogeechee Audubon Society
Swamp Girls Kayak Tours
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Authors Wanted:
We are planning to publish a Friends Group brochure that explains what we are and what we do. If you are involved in volunteer activities, or have strong opinions about issues facing the Refuge system, please take the time to write an article for the brochure or for this e-newsletter. Just send it to webmaster@coastalrefuges.org.
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Thanks to new and renewing members!
Your Friends group recently received membership renewals from: John and David Faucette, and a generous contribution at the Sponsor level from David and Lisa Fleming from Water-dog Outfitters.
New members include:
Chris and Ward Milner
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How about you?
It's not too late! If you haven't renewed your membership for 2011 you have now been placed on inactive status. To return to Active membership, all you need to do is send in your renewal, or go to our website and renew using PayPal.
Not a member? Choose your membership level from the list below and send in your check. Membership dues and donations are tax deductible.
Giving a gift membership is also a great gift idea.
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Individual $15 per year.
Family $25 per year
Supporter Level $100-249 (with one year family membership for each $100)
Sponsor Level $ 250-$499 ( with one year Family membership for each $100)
Patron Level $ 500-$999 (includes Life membership)
Benefactor Level $1000 or more (includes Life membership)
Download our membership application HERE.
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Friends:
Spring is here! It's a great time to get out and enjoy your refuges. Just be sure to take your sun block and favorite insect repellant. Please feel free to forward this to friends and associates by clicking on the "Forward email" link at the bottom of the page. |
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Volunteer Appreciation Day
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Riding into the sunset at Savannah NWR
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(Photo courtesy of Tracy Toogood)
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On April 16th, the US Fish & Wildlife Service showed their appreciation to all the volunteers from the Savannah Refuges Complex with a dinner, awards ceremony, and a sunset hayride through Savannah NWR. This event covered the years since the last award ceremony in 2008. More than 60 volunteers and staff enjoyed a catered dinner while hearing refuge updates and anecdotes about the volunteers from Jane Griess, Monica Harris, Russ Webb, Amy Ochoa and others. After dinner (paid for by your Friends group) came the awards ceremony with pins and certificates distributed to those volunteers who had surpassed milestones in hours contributed during the past three years. The highlight of the evening was the naming of the Volunteers of the Year. Mary Moffat received the 2008 honor for her enormous efforts with the Colonial Coast Birding Festival. Dave Chafin won his second VOTY award in recognition of his tireless efforts educating almost 10,000 school children in 2009 about the amazing reptiles that inhabit the low country. Twila Gray and Sharon Lindsay were named co-winners for 2010 in recognition of their prodigious efforts at Pinckney Island NWR and Harris Neck NWR respectively. All their names will be added to the Volunteer of the Year statuette on display at the Savannah NWR Visitor Center. (The complete list of award winners can be seen HERE.)
Following the awards, we piled into three wagons and headed out into the sunset for an after-dark tour of the refuge. It was a perfect night (except for the mosquitoes), with a full-moon and lots of the refuge's denizens on display.
It was a most pleasant evening, and we look forward to it becoming an annual event again. Thanks to all the efforts of the F&WS staff to make this event a memorable one and to our RV volunteers who assisted in the planning and made the beautiful table settings of local wildflowers.
If you have any photos of the evening you would like to share, please send them to webmaster@coastalrefuges.org.
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Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive to Reopen
It's been a long time...
 We've all come to hate the fences and "Closed" signs on our favorite wildlife drive. Those fences and signs are about to come down, however, and Laurel Hill Wildlife Drive will reopen to the public on Saturday, June 4th. Festivities are being planned, including guided tours on the drive and activities at the Visitor Center. Details will be published as they are available. If you are interested in helping out with the activities, let us know at webmaster@coastalrefuges.org . ------------------------------------------------------------------- |
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Earth Day Savannah 2011
 | | Refuge Ranger Amy Ochoa displays a corn snake (Elaphe guttata guttata) from Dave Chafin's collection. Photo from The Savannah Morning News |
April 23rd was Earth day at Savannah's Forsyth Park, and the F&WS and your Friends group were there. Amy Ochoa helped with the critters and answered questions about the refuge system. Dave Chafin displayed a portion of his reptile collection to a fascinating public. Rick Shields explained the role of the Friends group, distributed membership applications and collected donations.
We talked to hundreds of people about the refuge system and the Friends group while collecting $50 in donations and selling more than $130 in items from our book and nature store,The Gator Hole.
Thirty people signed up to be on our e-mail list to receive updates about the Friends and the refuge system (welcome to those who signed up and are receiving their first newsletter!)
These events provide a great opportunity to spread the word about the Friends and the refuges, our nation's
"Best Kept Secret". If you know of any other festivals that we should be attending, please let us know.
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Harris Neck Land Dispute Update
House Resolution 610 died in committee as the Georgia legislature adjourned their 2011 session without taking action on it. HR 610 was introduced with six sponsors calling on the state of Georgia to recognize the Harris Neck Land Trust as the legal entity attempting to force the return of the land at Harris Neck to its previous owners.
Your friends group is on the lookout for any further activities surrounding this issue and will keep you informed.
To read the resolution, click HERE. If you want more information you may go to our website and click on the Harris Neck Resource Page.
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Conserving the Future: Wildlife Refuges and the Next Generation
A National Conference
  Fish & Wildlife staff and a Friends group representative will attend a conference in Madison, WI, in July 2011 dedicated to developing a new Vision for the National Wildlife Refuge System. A Vision Statement has been developed over the past year that will serve as the working document for the conference. The conference and the process are co-sponsored by the US Fish & Wildlife Service and the National Wildlife Refuge Association. Check out more about the conference HERE Conference organizers have promised an extensive "virtual" experience for those not attending the conference in person. Watch your e-mail for details on how you may participate.
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A Multi-media Contest for Youth!
If you know any youth, please encourage them to get involved and submit their entries by May 27, 2011.
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Focus on Friends
Around our region...
The Southeast Regional Office of the US F&WS puts out a quarterly bulletin called "Focus on Friends" that details activities of other Friends groups around the southeast. Click HERE to see the latest and access the archive of previous issues.
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The full gallery of winning and "runner's up" images are now available to view in NWRA's 2010 Refuge Photo Contest Gallery!
Click HERE to see the amazing selection of images featured in the gallery.
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Rich Shields
President
Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges, Inc. |
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