JULY  |  AUGUST 2013   

  


In This Issue (Links)
New FOSC Staff
Redwood Understory Restoration
Water Quality Testing
Events of Others
Mid-Year Appeal


donate
CREW LEADER TRAINING
Sat., July 13
9 a.m.-noon
Meet at El Centro Trailhead


MEET AND GREET POTLUCK
Wed., July 17
6 p.m.

Dimond Park

 

 

LITTER CLEANUP

 In the Creek 

 Sun., August  18  

10 a.m.-noon 

Meet at El Centro Trailhead 

 

 

RESTORATION WORKDAYS

 

Beaconsfield Canyon

Sat., July 27, August 31  

9 a.m.-noon

  

Bridgeview Trailhead

Sun., July 14, August 11  

10 a.m.-noon

 

Marj Saunders Park

Mon., August 5 

11 a.m.-1 p.m.

    

Shepherd Canyon Park

Sat., August 3

9-11 a.m.

 

Wood Park

Sat., July 20, August 17    

9 a.m.-noon

 

 

 NURSERY WORKDAYS

   

Sat., July 13 & 27,

August 10 & 24

1:30-4:30 p.m.

 

Wed., August 21

1:30-4:30 p.m.

 

 

SEED COLLECTION HIKES 


See calendar for details. 
Tues., July 9 
Thurs., July 25, August 8 
Fri., August 23 
10 a.m.-noon


 MONITORING

   

Aquatic Insect Monitoring in Dimond Park

Sun., August 4  

9 a.m.-1 p.m.
 
Bird Monitoring (start at Sequoia Arena)

Sat., July 20   

8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

     

Water Quality Monitoring

Contact Kimra to volunteer 

 

   

BOARD MEETING
Wed., August 14
7-9 p.m.
Park Blvd. Presbyterian Church


  

 

 

 

    

 

For more information:

 FOSC Calendar 

 

Michelle Krieg 

Restoration & Nursery Manager

510-325-9006 

 

 Kimra McAfee 

Executive Director

510-501-3672

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Photo Credits:

Kathleen Harris
Megan Hess
Michelle Krieg

 

 



Editors:
Kimra McAfee

Sarah Nathe 

 

 



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FOSC logo
Complete your summer with a FOSC event!

Crew Leader Training on Erosion Control
Saturday, July 13, 9 a.m.-Noon
El Centro Trailhead (View map) 

Come learn techniques for installing erosion control blankets, and practice installing blankets along eroding slopes in Dimond Canyon. We will also discuss volunteer management and safety, so this is a great opportunity for those who want to become crew leaders. Please RSVP to Michelle at field@sausalcreek.org or (510) 325-9006.  

 

Meet and Greet Potluck
Wednesday, July 17, 6 p.m.
Dimond Park
This summertime tradition brings together FOSC volunteers, board members, and staff, as well as leaders from other community organizations. We'll be in the picnic area closest to the Scout Hut. Please bring a potluck dish to share and your own reusable place setting. After eating, we can stroll up Dimond Canyon Trail. Download a flyer.
 

 

In the Creek Litter Clean Up 

Sunday, August 18, 10 a.m.-Noon 
El Centro Trailhead (View map) 
The May 19th clean up yielded 250 pounds of garbage, including approximately 500 golf balls and one tire. Come help retrieve more garbage before it flows into the estuary. Wear your grubbies and bring you own boots if you have them. Note that this event is not suitable for small children--12 and older only, please.
Please RSVP to coordinator@sausalcreek.org so we can provide enough boots.

2nd and 4th Saturdays at the Nursery
1:30-4:30 p.m.
We now have a consistent schedule for Saturday nursery workdays, but we will schedule additional Saturday and occasional weekday nursery workdays as needed. Please check our volunteer calendar for more opportunities to propagate, transplant, and keep our nursery grounds in tip top shape.
Michelle Krieg Introducing Restoration and Nursery Manager Michelle Krieg

Michelle stepped into the role of restoration and nursery manager for FOSC in late May. She brings a breadth of experience in habitat restoration, outdoor education, seed collection, native plant propagation, planting, and vegetation removal through her past work with Point Reyes National Seashore, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, Audubon Canyon Ranch, and Save The Bay. She is looking forward to helping expand FOSC educational programs, and to the opportunity to inspire community pride in volunteers as they help to restore the local ecology.
Redwood Understory Restoration by City Campers

If you are hiking in the Joaquin Miller Park redwoods during the week this summer, you may come across a gaggle of elementary school-aged kids examining insects or pulling invasive ehrharta grass. The children are Oakland Parks and Recreation "Touch the Earth" campers, and this summer marks the third summer that FOSC has partnered with city staff to lead the kids in restoration projects. FOSC college intern Linnaea Weld is working with "Touch the Earth" campers two mornings a week in the redwoods, and with the older "Shake, Rattle & Roll" campers down in the Joaquin Miller Park meadow one afternoon a week. FOSC is thrilled to teach the campers "leave no trace" ethics and to lead fun hands-on restoration projects that will improve the habitat value of their summer home away from home.
Water Quality Testing in Sausal Creek

El Centro Trout Pool What is the environmental status of Sausal Creek? Many older Oakland residents can remember wading in the creek when they were young, even catching crawdads to eat. Those days are gone, but we still want a healthy creek to explore and enjoy during the summer months.

Read more... 
Events of Others
 
Attend the San Francisco Naturalist Society's talk, "Beavers of Martinez" (July 11, 7:30 p.m.).

Join San Pablo Watershed Neighbors Education & Restoration Society (SPAWNERS) for a summer nature walk at Briones Reservoir (July 10, 5:30 p.m.), San Pablo Reservoir (August 7, 5:30 p.m.), or Pt. Pinole Regional Shoreline (September 4, 5:30 p.m.).

Volunteer with Volunteers for Outdoor California (V-O-Cal)
in Joaquin Miller Park (July 19-21).

Volunteer with Montclair Village Association on a variety of projects at Montclair Park, including removal of invasive, nonnative species (August 3, 9 a.m.).

Don't miss the first Bay Currents talk, a September-May monthly talks series on Bay Area-related natural history and environmental issues hosted by Friends of Five Creeks. Steve Edwards will launch the series with a visual tour entitled "Late Summer Splendor of the Delta" (September 9, 6:30 p.m.).
Make a Mid-Year Donation
 
Individual contributions make FOSC's environmental education, restoration, and monitoring work possible. Several current donors found the story of our work with Civicorps students in our mid-year appeal letter compelling. We invite you to read this letter and become a FOSC contributor. Thank you to all of our donors--every little bit does make a difference!

2nd Grade Field Trip

To subscribe to this e-newsletter, email
or call (510) 501-3672.
Mid-Year
Donation

Please help us maintain and expand our efforts in the Sausal Creek Watershed by making a donation today!

Donate online or mail this form with your check made payable to:
Friends of Sausal Creek, P.O. Box 2737, Oakland, CA 94602
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