I received the current issue of the FOR newsletter today. For those of you who don't get it, it is reproduced here:
RIVER ISSUES June 2008 - Friends of the
Rappahannock News
1. Upcoming
Events
2. Volunteer Opportunities
3. Education Programs
4. Job Opening
5. Don’t Google It. GoodSearch It !
6. FOR in Action
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1. Upcoming Events
Please
pre-register for all events. (540)-373-3448
June 21 -
Family River Safety and Tubing Trip: This is a family fun
event. Learn river safety from our 2007 Volunteer of the Year Awardee
Carol Brooks, and then take a fun tubing trip down the river with our
guides. No flip-flops. Minimum age 8 years old. 12:30-4:30
pm. $15 individual/$30 Family. Backup Date: June 22.
June 28 - River Easement Hike and Float: Fredericksburg’s River Steward, Lee
Sillitoe, will guide us through a city’s riverside land holdings and discuss
the importance of conservation easements and riparian forest buffers. We
will canoe from Mott’s Run Landing and then hike to England Run Falls.
$15 indiv./$30 family. Rain or shine.
July 19 - Lightning Bug Canoe Float: It’s a magical experience to paddle
the glassy river under moonlight. Join our guides as we learn all about
the fireflies that light our way. Minimum age 6 years. Previous canoe experience
recommended. Meet at the City Dock. 7:30–10:00pm. $15
indiv./$30 family. Backup Date: July 26
For more events, check out our full 2008 Calendar at:
www.riverfriends.org/Events/2007CalendarofEvents/tabid/89/Default.aspx
2. Volunteer Opportunities
We
will be filming a short segment for a film contest sponsored by Tom’s of
Maine. The goal is to inspire others to help in their local
community. We are looking for volunteers with acting skills or a desire
to be on YouTube to share FOR's story. Please contact Rebecca at rebecca.kurylo@riverfriends.org
Join
Rappahannock Restore Corps!
Rappahannock Restore Corps is our team of volunteers who help us restore riverine
and riparian habitats through activities such as invasive plant control,
riparian forest plantings, river clean-ups, and trail work. We plan
several of these volunteer workdays each year so you can meet like-minded souls
while contributing to restoring the health and scenic beauty of the
Rappahannock River. Upcoming Rappahannock Restore Corps events:
July
– Trail Work: In July (date TBD), we will need many hands to cut back
vegetation along our public-accessible trails through our River Natural
Area. If interested, contact dan.westerhof@riverfriends.org.
To
learn more about Rappahannock Restore Corps, go to www.riverfriends.org/Default.aspx?tabid=214
or call Dan at 540-373-3448.
ADOPT-A-STREAM in Stafford County
Help keep your local streams and the Rappahannock River healthy and beautiful
by participating in our Adopt-A-Stream program. Adopting a stream entails
picking up litter along a stream twice a year. This is a great service
opportunity for groups such as families, local businesses, organizations,
churches, and scouts. For more information, call Dan at (540) 373-3448.
River Orientation Center Volunteers
We need a crew of new volunteers to help visitors in our River Orientation
Center starting July 1st. Hours are flexible, with a 2-hour commitment
per week. Weekend volunteers are especially needed! Contact Jenn at
540-373-3448.
3. Education Programs
Fishing on
the Rappahannock Summer Day Camp – June 17-19, 2008
It's all about fishing! Learn fishing basics and try your hand at angling
each day. In addition, learn more about fish and river conditions that
make healthy fish habitat. Daily 9 am – 1 pm. Ages: 9-13.
Fee: $90, $80 FOR members
Themed Youth Programs
Register your
youth group for a 2-hour program - Children can explore the wildlife living in
and along the river, work towards scout try-its and badges, interpret the
environment through art, or learn to evaluate river conditions and explore the
river safely.
June 23-27: Scout week
July 7-11: Water Week
July 21-25: Art and River Safety Week
These programs are for groups only. Cost: $6 per child, min. $60 per
program.
To register, education@riverfriends.org
or 540-373-3448.
4. Stewardship Coordinator Job Opening
We are hiring
a 1-year term AmeriCorps intern position! This is a wonderful opportunity
to gain experience in a conservation profession. For details, go
to: www.riverfriends.org –
click on the link on the right that says “Position Opening”.
5. Don’t Google It. GoodSearch It!
What if
Friends of the Rappahannock earned a penny every time you searched the
Internet? GoodSearch.com is a Yahoo-powered search engine that donates
about a penny per search to the charities its users designate. Just go to
www.goodsearch.com and be sure to enter
Friends of the Rappahannock as the charity you want to support - click
“Verify”, then search the internet! So, don’t Google it. GoodSearch
it. And, be sure to spread the word!
Another
neat way to raise money online: GoodShop.com is a new online shopping
mall which donates up to 37% of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds
of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and
Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop. Check it out!
6. FOR in Action
FOR
Receives Funding from the Chesapeake Bay Funders Network!
We were just
awarded a $60,000 grant to continue our “capacity building initiative” for the
2nd year. What does this phrase mean?? In the for-profit world,
this phrase is analogous to “organizational development.” Essentially,
capacity building is focused on developing the skills, tools, and resources
that an organization needs to be more effective in achieving their
mission. For this CBFN grant program, last year we developed a strategic
plan and a fundraising plan, doubled our membership, and initiated fundraising
campaigns through the mail; this year, we are expanding our fundraising
programs and developing staff and Board leadership skills.
River Hero
FOR Executive Director, John Tippett, received the prestigious River Hero award
in May from the River Network. Read more about this in our River Views
summer newsletter, due out in early July.
Chesapeake Forest Conservation Summit
FOR Programs
Manager, Jenn Allen, joined participants from over 50 Bay-related organizations
in a two-day summit to explore strategies for advancing local and regional
collaboration on forest conservation to improve the water quality of the
Chesapeake Bay. To learn more about the State of Chesapeake Forests, go
to: www.na.fs.fed.us/watershed/pdf/socf/Table%20of%20Contents&Prologue.pdf
Advocacy
News
John Tippett and
Jenn Allen participated in a two-day retreat with Virginia Senators to educate
the Senate finance committee about the importance of dedicating state funding
for water quality improvement. John also continues to work hard on the
statewide technical committee revising stormwater regulations.
(Stormwater is the rainwater that runs off of developed/paved lands, and if not
properly managed, it can carry pollution to our waterways.)
New Staff!
Bernadette
Downing will be joining us on June 23rd as our new AmeriCorps intern serving as
our Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator over the next year!
We
have a new intern from Randolph Macon University. We welcome Laura
Wilson. She will be updating our website, so check in to see the
wonderful changes.
River Guide Training
On May 24-25,
fourteen volunteer river guides participated in a weekend-long intensive
training on improving their paddling skills, learning about river safety, and
practicing river rescues, taught by the American Canoe Association. Why?
To ensure that our river guides are prepared to safely lead the public on our
canoe interpretive trips each summer!
Rappahannock Restore Corps Volunteers in Action
Thank you to
our volunteers Eileen, David, Karl, Jen, Karen, Jackie, Janet, and Mary for
helping remove Oriental bittersweet and multiflora rose from the FOR nature
area on May 31. By removing these invasive plants, we made room for
native plants to grow, helping to protect the health of our riverside forest.
City Easement Float
John Tippett
and Rebecca Kurylo joined elected officials and staff from City of
Fredericksburg, Stafford, Spotsylvania, Culpeper, Orange, Department of Game
and Inland Fisheries, Virginia Outdoors Foundation and the American Canoe
Association for a celebration of the River Easement on May 30. We floated
down a 10-mile stretch, reminding us of the precious resource we are protecting
– and - 60% of the canoes flipped over because of swift waters and
horsing-around!
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Keep Our River Healthy!
Do you want to learn about what YOU can do to help our river???!!!???
Visit our website for many tips on pollution prevention and water
conservation:
www.riverfriends.org/Programs/Advocacy/KeeptheRiverHealthy/tabid/73/Default.aspx
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Donate and Join http://www.riverfriends.org
Volunteer Opportunities http://www.riverfriends.org/Volunteer/tabid/193/Default.aspx
2008 Event Calendar http://www.riverfriends.org/Events/2007CalendarofEvents/tabid/89/Default.aspx
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