Prez Gary opened with the Pledge of Allegiance.
Guests: Eleanor, Jenny and Eric.
Today’s Program
Jenny Heckeroth, Executive Director of the Mendocino Area Parks Association (MAPA), shared information about Standish Hickey park.
Jenny believes that being out in nature can transform and save a person. Camping played a huge role in Jenny’s life, as well as her mother’s life. In the mid-1980s, Jenny did a 6-month through hike of the Appalachian Trail, from Georgia to northern Maine. Her belief is strong that our national and state parks are absolutely necessary for the well-being of our communities.
MAPA found a way to keep Standish Hickey park open during the budget crisis of 2011. MAPA has run Standish Hickey for the past 6 years (located about 1 mile north of the junction of Hwys 1 and 101 at the north end of our county). The park will soon be given back to State Parks.
MAPA is dedicated to protecting our parks, even if State Parks does not have the funding to do so. MAPA started out in 1984 to provide education services in our parks. They operate 4 visitors centers in 4 of our state parks, and do park improvement projects. They raise funds through donations of a % of visitors’ room rates, voluntarily donated; special events; gift shops, and other donations.
Why should we care about our parks? In CA, $92 billion/year is spent on outdoor recreation.
This weekend there is a special MAPA event, an Ocean and Seafood Faire (which includes a cook-off), at Noyo Headlands Park this Saturday from 11am to 4pm. You can buy 10 tickets for $50, gets you options for tastings, wine/beer, t-shirts, and more. This is a new event to replace their traditional abalone cook-off.
We shared happy dollars, birthdays, and announcements.
Today’s raffle winners: Matt (who won two tickets to MAPA’s weekend event), and our guest Eleanor (who didn’t draw the joker…).
