From our blogs

Adam Champoux was named 2017 Volunteer of the Year at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Credit Colter Cook.

by Ceal Craig

On Saturday April 1, 2017 I joined the staff of the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge and the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society to welcome and thank a large number of refuge volunteers at the annual volunteer appreciation luncheon in Fremont.

The San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Complex Volunteer of the Year was Ken Roux, a retired member of law enforcement who supports the Environment Education Center Marsh-In summer camp every year by providing security during the overnight sleepover. Ken also trains interns, conducts interpretive programs, and volunteers at several special events.

Volunteers who contributed many hours and in unique situations were recognized as well: Larry Rosenblum was named Rookie Volunteer of the Year, and the Environmental Education Restoration Crew was named Team Volunteers of the Year.

Volunteers who contributed many hours and in unique situations were recognized at the 2017 Annual Volunteer Appreciation Banquet held at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Credit Colter Cook.

Mary Deschene, the Society’s Program Administrator, recognized Adam Champoux for his work in the Fremont Nature Store.

I am always inspired and encouraged by the many volunteers, young and old, singles and families, who give their most precious gift to us: their time and labor. Thank you all!

Join the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society in our first in-house feature length documentary on the sandy shores of Costa Rica.

Date: Saturday, July 15 2017, 1pm - 3pm
Location: Environmental Education Center, Alviso
Reservation: Go to https://eecdocumentary.eventbrite.com

In the documentary Why Just One? the Sea Shepherd crew tackles a vexing paradox: trying to prevent the poaching of sea turtle eggs in Costa Rica when the activity is legal in one beach town, Ostional, on the country’s Pacific coast. This legal loophole fuels and enables egg poaching throughout Costa Rica.

In Why Just One?, Sea Shepherd explores the widely accepted statistic that just one in one thousand sea turtle hatchlings survive to maturity.

This is a one hour film appropriate for ages 10+, or at your own discretion. A brief Q&A will follow the showing.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Opportunities: Summer 2017 at the Environmental Education Center (Alviso, California).

If you have an interest in wildlife and their conservation, enjoy working with people, and are enthusiastic and dependable, the Environmental Education Center’s Volunteer Program is for you! As a volunteer, you’ll receive on-the-job training from staff and other volunteers in the project area you choose.

Project areas are: restoration projects, information desk on weekends, interpretive programs, school field trips, and citizen science/community service.

Prior to volunteering at the Environmental Education Center, you must attend a Volunteer Orientation. You can also attend the orientation just to see what opportunities there are, and if it is the right fit for you.

by Ceal Craig

Thirty years ago when Refuge Naturalist John Steiner, Dr. Chris Kitting, and others organized the Society, they were focused on raising funds to save the Fremont Pumphouse and support the newly formed San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The Society accomplished those early goals and much more over the past years.

Funded by the City of San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley Urban Runoff and Pollution Prevention Program, two Society employees were hired to staff the Environmental Education Center (EEC) in Alviso, and offer public programs and field trips for schoolchildren.

The Society has also provided funds to help kick start the Bair Island restoration project, to build the EEC boardwalk, and to support many other projects these past three decades.