LAB ALIVE and Academy of Champions have approached DLWPF with a request to form an alliance based on our common interests of education, youth, and the environment. This presentation is to explain the value of such an alliance in maximizing resources, grant opportunities, and educational opportunities for all ages.
Mr. Yerzy is the recipient of both the 1996 Christa McAuliffe Educator of the Year award and the 1996 Utah Society of Environmental Education--Educator of the Year award.
Ms. Johnson has been commissioned by Granite School District to expand her pilot Career Development program to include all thirteen junior high schools in GSD.
If you have been by Decker Lake lately you will notice at least two things. 1) The pelicans are back! And 2) The dirt is on its way out! It has been an incredibly busy and exciting month! One were ten pelicans are sunning themselves, great huge ones and some pretty small guys. They all looked pretty content despite all the commotion on the north shore.
It is hard not to notice all the activity centered around moving Pond #1 out. The job has begun and will continue for a couple of months. One truck can make about eight (8) runs to the landfill in a day. With four trucks hauling,we are able to move about 3,000 cu. yds a week. According to Larry Steinbach, the County's Supervisor on the job, about 5,000 cu. yds. have been moved out. The County has enough money to move half the spoil, but the Preserve needs all the spoil removed to move forward with the Wetlands theme. See Adopt-A-Plot for one idea for raising the necessary funds.
If you noticed some soil being dumped at Decker Lake you weren't seeing things(see The Great Land Swap).
Adopt-a-Plot allows you to help move dirt at decker lake:
Help clear the way for Education and Wetlands! Please make checks payable to WFRC&D/Decker Lake. All contributions are tax-deductible. Mail the check to
DLWPFThis provides the community-at-large a way to participate in developing the Preserve in a major way. One of the dump trucks and two pup trailers) carries twenty cu. yds of dirt. The cost of the rig and driver for a haul to the landfill is about $60. Every time we make a run, it clears another 10' x 10' plot of wetlands. So...if you really like the educational wetlands theme, here is an opportunity to show support. Gather friends, relatives, fellow workers, and join together to send one more truckload down the road and free up another plot of wetlands. DLWPF's alliance with Wasatch Front Resource Conservation and Development Council (WFRC&D) provides the necessary 501(c)(3) making all contributions tax-deductible.
If DLWPF had a Volunteer of the Month program this month's award would definitely go to Jon Bertrand. Jon is one of the behind-the-scenes people who keep DLWPF rolling along. Whenever DLWPF wants to know what the community thinks about an issue, Jon surveys the CIRRIS Systems group where he works and makes sure DLWPF receives the info. As if that wasn't enough, at the May Member meeting Jon walked in with a printout of the new DLWPF home page which he set up in his spare time! Our new address is Thank you, Jon!!
Another Accolade holder is Earl Jackson. Earl is now the Extension Program Coordinator and will be the liaison for research information between the seven Dept of Natural Resources divisions, including State Parks & Rec, Water Resources, & Wildlife Mgt. When given his choice of favorite projects to keep on his plate, Decker Lake was #1 on his list! (YES!) DNR will hold an Open House on July 10th to show off their new building and Earl will have his new digs decked out for the occasion! If you talk to Earl, you will feel his enthusiasm bubbling over. Congrats, Earl!
In April, DLWPF submitted an application for matching funds from the Utah Non-Motorized Trail fund. This week we learned we made the short list. Dianna and John Knudson of State Parks spent over an hour talking about the Decker Lake trail.
Will we get funded? Even John cannot tell us that yet, but he was encouraging. Apparently our weakest piece is how we link into the Redwood Trail system. The grant requires actual linkage with an existing trail system and the roads between Decker Lake and the Redwood trailhead are not marked for bike lanes. Since the roads are within WVC, DLWPF will be working with the City to get written assurances that sidewalks or bike lanes will be in place by the time the DL trail is completed. Of course, DLWPF will do our part in helping with volunteer effort.
If we receive funding and the link to the Redwood trail-head is established, we will have a beautiful trail from DL all the way to Oxbow Park along the Jordan River. It will be possible to hop off 33rd by Oxbow and shortcut your way along the river all the way to the WVC arena or Decker Lake. If you haven't checked out the Redwood trail, take an afternoon and enjoy the stroll. The County has done a great job! It is one of the longest, most serene stretches of trail available in the Valley. Thanks SL County Parks & Rec!
DLWPF is being recognized for moving the Decker Lake restoration work forward. Where possible, we have supported existing programs like Adopt-a-Waterbody and given others, like We All Live Downstream, added visibility.
Because of our philosophy of reducing duplication and our success with business and government partnerships, other groups are becoming interested in joining forces with us. It is up to DLWPF to carefully assess these alliances, keeping in mind our mission and goals. We are a strong organization, and we want build on those strengths and often sharing resources broadens our base. We also lack in certain areas and alliances must be carefully chosen to fill in those gaps.
Two organizations have approached DLWPF with a desire to combine resources. Extensive discussions have been going between Dianna (DLWPF Chair), Bob Yerzy (LAB ALIVE Director) and Vicki Johnson (Academy of Champions Coordinator)to determine if, and where, there is a match-up.
In brief, LAB ALIVE shares a mission statement almost identical to DLWPF. Bob and Canyon View Elementary are constructing a simulated wetlands at 8050 S and Wasatch Blvd for use as an outdoor science lab (sound familiar?). LAB ALIVE is also a community organization, like DLWPF, and is dealing with many of the same challenges and benefits as DLWPF.
Vicki Johnson began a career development program at Valley Junior High and has been asked by Granite School District to implement the program in all GSD junior highs. The GSD-sponsored "Academy of Champions" brings corporate America into the classroom and places the students on the job while earning school credits. All three organizations have great strength, but we often need what the other has and can build even stronger bases by sharing resources and networking. We just need to figure out how to coordinate our efforts. For details, be sure to attend this month's Member meeting on Wed, June at 5:30 at Franklin Quest.
One of the ways DLWPF and LAB ALIVE have worked together this month is in sharing each other's dirt. Sounds a bit bizarre, but LAB ALIVE needed some of DL's clay to line their wetland pond. Since we have far more than we need. We were glad to share!
The KOPE Kronical, a newspaper "by kids, for kids, about what kids are doing to help the environment and their community", wants to feature Decker Lake and the restoration project in their semi-monthly newspaper. In the spirit of KOPE (Kids Organized to Protect the Environment), DLWPF is looking for a young person to be the DLWPF reporter. The reporter will work with one of the adult DLWPF volunteers to decide topics and submit articles. If you are that young person (age 5-17), or know of such a young person, contact
DLWPF at 977-4999.The LAB ALIVE group is organizing a CLEANUP of their site. If you have the evening free, please pitch in and help. It won't be long before we are asking for help...
Decker Lake Wetlands Preserve Foundation