Congratulations to Graduates of Maintenance Class Series
Story from: Taylor Monson, Training Section
 Graduating Intermediate Carpentry Skills, Group 45. Photo from Ricky Roldan, Training Section.
Congratulations to the individuals who recently completed the Intermediate Carpentry, Electrical, and Plumbing Skills maintenance classes at the Chuck Combs Training Annex.
After attending the basic level classes in the fall, Parks staff had the opportunity to take what they learned to the next level in their journey through the Maintenance Class Series for the department.
Training classes for our Maintenance Program have concluded for the 2021-2022 training year, but classes will commence again in fall 2022. Keep an eye out for these, and other classes on the 2022-2023 training schedule that will be added to FOCUS in the coming months.
For any questions regarding Maintenance Training classes, please contact Training Specialist Ricky Roldan at ricky.roldan@parks.ca.gov.
 Graduating Intermediate Electrical Skills, Group 43. Photo from Ricky Roldan, Training Section.
 Graduating Intermediate Plumbing Skills, Group 41. Photo from Ricky Roldan, Training Section.
Hollywood Star Visits Will Rogers State Historic Park
Story from: William J. Hamm, Angeles District
 Actor Kurt Russell stands inside the historic ranch house main cabin next to a statue of Will Rogers at Will Rogers State Historic Park. Photo from Robert Lynden, courtesy of Cowboys & Indians magazine.
The glossy western lifestyle magazine Cowboys & Indians was scheduled to shoot its April-May cover at the Historic Ranch House at Will Rogers State Historic Park in the Pacific Palisades. It was a secret who would be featured for the cover until the day of. The special guest turned out to be actor Kurt Russell star of "Tombstone," "Guardians of the Galaxy II" and most recently "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood."
Kurt is a big Will Rogers fan. Beside following in his footsteps as a popular actor, he has great respect for Will’s role as a humanitarian and philanthropist. One thing Kurt won’t follow is Will’s polo career. While he is an accomplished horseman, Kurt never caught polo fever.
Kurt Russell and his wife, Goldie Hawn, reside in neighboring West Los Angeles and frequently brought their future movie star children Kate Hudson and Wyatt Russell to the park when they were young. In fact, Kurt so greatly admired the historic ranch house design that when he was building his Aspen vacation house, he modeled the second story that overlooks the living and dining rooms after the balcony in the Will Rogers Ranch House.
Will Rogers would be proud that today’s Hollywood still shares in the tradition of celebrating his historic homestead.
Trione-Annadel State Park Launches Fourth Grade Field Trips
Story and photo from: Alexis Jones, Bay Area District
 Supervising Ranger Alexis Jones (left), Interpretive Specialist Dave Duplantier (middle) and Interpreter II Christen Bechart in front of a West Sonoma County school bus during the inaugural fourth grade field trips at Trione-Annadel State Park.
With funding from Friends of Trione-Annadel (FOTA), the designated nonprofit supporting Trione-Annadel State Park, State Parks employees launched a brand-new field trip for all fourth graders attending school within the Santa Rosa City School District.
Supervising State Park Peace Officer (SPPO) Alexis Jones, Interpreter II Christen Bechart and Interpretive Specialist Dave Duplantier, all from Bay Area District, led almost 750 fourth graders through the park over a three-month period. Beginning in March 2022, they led two to four classes a week on a two-hour hike. Topics included uses of native plants and animals in the park, the original peoples who inhabited Sonoma County and the importance of maintaining open spaces for future generations. The general outline for the field trips was written by SPPO Ranger Cecilia Rejas.
The students saw newts, deer, turkeys, various birds, frogs, squirrels and even a baby rattlesnake! Many of the students had not been to Trione-Annadel before the field trip and were excited to spend the morning in the park, capped off by having their lunch in the shade of the trees at the Warren Richardson trailhead.
The field trip was the first field trip many of the students had been able to go on in over two years, due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Students were all given a reusable CamelBak water bottle, donated by CamelBak and facilitated by FOTA. A huge thank you to FOTA for providing the funding for the inaugural year of this amazing fourth grade program!
State Parks and City of Oxnard Collaborate for the Great Community Campout at College Park
Story from: Katie Freehling, Office of Community Involvement
 The evening sun shines through giant manzanita trees onto a field of tents provided by the Office of Community Involvement. Photos from Marisue Eastlake, city of Oxnard
Years ago the city of Oxnard was breaking ground on College Park, a project made possible with funding from California State Parks’ Office of Grants and Local Services (OGALS). Since then, the park has served as a community hub for family gatherings, weekend sporting events and countless other recreational activities. Today, the park is continuing to fulfill its mission to serve as a safe place for the community to gather and grow. On this particular bright and clear Saturday afternoon, families gathered for the Oxnard Great Community Campout - a collaboration between the city of Oxnard and State Parks’ Office of Community Involvement (OCI).
OCI has fostered a strong relationship with Oxnard through Outdoor Recreation Leadership (ORL) and Outdoor Youth Connection (OYC), trainings that equip community leaders and young people with skills and resources to increase access to the outdoors for their communities. The City of Oxnard has sent numerous staff and students to ORL and OYC, over the years, and the Great Community Camp Out was in part inspired by their experience camping with the OCI team.
Members of the community were invited to come camp with their neighbors at College Park. No gear? No problem! Our team partnered with the city to provide tents and sleeping bags to families who needed equipment. Slowly, the soccer fields were transformed into a community camping oasis. Toddlers and teenagers enjoyed a variety of activities hosted by city of Oxnard including games, face painting and crafts. Meanwhile, adults relaxed and got to know their fellow community members. Shouts of joy and laughter could be heard throughout the afternoon. As the sun set, campers filled up on s’mores and cozied up with their family and friends in front of an inflatable screen for an outdoor viewing of The Little Rascals, before drifting to sleep beneath the stars.
The Great Community Camp Out is an example of access in action, and the impact Community Engagement Division (CED) programming has had, and continues to have, on communities across California. Oxnard and the OCI team supported nearly 20 families to experience the magic of the great outdoors. Through thoughtful design, the city showed their community camping is a safe, fun, and affordable way to enjoy the benefits of nature. For some families, this was their first-time sleeping in a tent or roasting a marshmallow, and if smiles are any indication, it won’t be their last.
|
Washoe Earth Day Brings Together State Parks, Environmental Partners and Washoe Tribe Communities
Story and photo from: Kaytlen Jackson, Sierra District
 Sierra District Tribal Liaison Scott Green and State Park Interpreter I Kaytlen Jackson.
The Washoe Environmental Protection Department (WEPD) hosted Washoe Earth Day at the Stewart Community Center in Carson City, Nevada, on Saturday, May 7.
The event brought together many environmental partners and all four communities of the Washoe Tribe to learn about climate resilience, wildlife and environmental stewardship. Staff from the Sierra District and the Sierra State Parks Foundation (SSPF) hosted a booth to share information about bears and other wildlife that call our parks home, as well as about the prescribed burning program at our Lake Tahoe state parks. Kids were excited to spin the trivia wheel and answer questions to win a prize!
Thank you to Rhiana Jones and the WEPD for hosting this event and to Sierra District and SSPF staff for coming together to make it a success!
 College Students Learn About Ecological Restoration at Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area
Story from: Ben Wagner, Oceano Dunes District
 Cal Poly San Luis Obispo students with State Parks Resources staff in a 15-month-old restoration project. These students are excited to learn more about ecological restoration at Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. Photo from Sam Alvarez, Coastal San Luis Resource Conservation District.
The Oceano Dunes District Restoration Program hosted two groups of students from California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), San Luis Obispo (SLO), for a tour of recent habitat restoration projects on May 11 and 13. These students are part of a course called “Native Plants for California Landscapes,” which introduces horticulture and landscape architect majors to techniques used in our region to restore habitats and ecological functions using locally collected native species.
Local plant material is used at the district to restore many acres of foredune and dune scrub habitat within Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreation Area. Our techniques have been developed over many decades of trial and error. The program works with the Cal Poly SLO Horticulture Department and our local Resource Conservation District to grow out container stock of over 120,000 native plants each year using seed and cuttings collected on site. American Conservation Experience and California Conservation Corps crews then assist with project installation in areas that are targeted for restoration. We use rice straw and sterile cereal grain to stabilize the active dune surface, followed by planting of the native container stock and seed to reestablish healthy habitats within this dynamic environment.
The students learned about the challenges in restoring active dune areas and saw some of the adaptations that dune plants have to the constant movement of sand in this environment. The students were impressed with the size and scale of the projects. They all came away with an appreciation for our work and the challenges we face in implementing restoration projects in this harsh environment.
Thanks to our partners at the Coastal San Luis Resource Conservation District for their help with transportation and logistics for this site visit.
Office of Community Involvement Hosts Three Outdoor Recreation Leadership Programs
Story from: Lashonta “Nikki” Gordon, Office of Community Involvement
 Participants, Gail Harris and Linna Herrera-Guzman, put their minds at ease and their bodies in motion kayaking at Castaic Lake State Recreation Area. Photos from Office of Community Involvement.
March and April were busy months for the Office of Community Involvement (OCI). In just one months’ time, the team hosted three Outdoor Recreation Leadership (ORL) trainings, giving 76 community leaders from 26 organizations, the opportunity to disconnect and heal from the many challenges from the last couple of years. ORL has a unique mission, to teach organizations outdoor skills they can impart on the communities they serve, and to use camping and nature as a means of promoting physical, emotional, and professional development. The three day, two-night interactive training is designed to facilitate meaningful experiences in parks that influence long-lasting connections to the outdoors.
OCI relaunched ORL (after a 2-year hiatus due to the pandemic) in the quiet, majestic, forest of the Humboldt Redwoods State Park (SP) on March 25 – 27, 2022. The sheer majesty of the towering redwoods, vibrant ferns, fresh smell of the forest, and the light trickling of the nearby Eel River provided the perfect backdrop for the participants to relax, relieve stress, and focus the mind. Participants learned how to use, care for, and store equipment for maximum safety and comfort along with learning how to plan, implement, and evaluate a successful overnight camping trip.
A second training was held on April 5 – 7, 2022, at Castaic Lake State Recreation Area (SRA). With its various hiking trails, large green spaces, and outdoor kitchens, equipped for preparing and cooking full meals, it was the perfect location to host a three day, two-night camping trip. From the beginning of the training to the end, participants were immersed in team bonding experiences and challenges that turned strangers into friends. There’s something inherently special about camping, it is an outdoor experience that allows us to experience nearly all the wellness benefits of nature and outdoor recreation, and when executed successfully, can inspire, transform lives, and spark positive community development.
OCI’s third training was held at San Luis Reservoir SRA, April 12 - 14. Participants worked together to prep and cook simple but delicious meals on cast iron griddles, maximizing flavor with spices and herbs. During downtime, participants kayaked, swam in the clear teal water of the lake, chatted about plans for their communities, and immersed themselves in the natural world. At night, participants sat around a campfire that served as a time of reflection, and the dark night sky offered opportunities to view constellations not visible at home, creating special memories before snuggling up in their sleeping bags and slowly drifting off to sleep.
ORL participant Sadhbh Flynn, who with her newfound bravery, shared her passion for music by singing a beautiful song at closing campfire, while playing the ukulele. That’s just one example of how ORL uses the power of the outdoors to offer a rare opportunity for reinvention. For some, training reveals camping can be more than just an escape, it can be a healing experience — a place where your life is defined by the active pursuit for a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. Anyone that you ask has a different motive for camping, but our hope through ORL training, is to bridge the nature gap and increase the overall wellness of individuals across California.
ORL provides a foundation of discovery and exploration that is key to becoming a successful outdoor recreation leader; it challenges, empowers, and transforms all who attend. Participants leave training with a newfound confidence in the outdoors, that will carry far beyond the boundaries of camp, and a two-year certification to take others camping via FamCamp® — a premiere camping access program that provides no cost campsites and equipment for community use.
To learn more about OCI, visit: www.parks.ca.gov/oci or contact us at: OCI@parks.ca.gov or (916) 920-8888
 Photo 1: Class photo at Humboldt Redwoods SP on the last day of training. Photo 2: State Parks Deputy Director of the Community Engagement Division, Sedrick Mitchell, leads ORL participants in an activity of self-discovery at Humboldt Redwoods SP. Photo 3: Participants, Ruth Sanchez, Sierra Marinos and Jessica Hauck, work together to set up a tent, during a demo session, at San Luis Reservoir SRA. Photo 4: Participant, Ruth Sanchez, taking in a beautiful sunrise at San Luis Reservoir. Photos from Chinh Nguyen, Katie Freehling and Lashonta “Nikki” Gordon, Office of Community Involvement.
 Left: State Parks Program Manager of the Office of Community Involvement, Dolores Mejia, leads ORL participants in a community building activity called Speedball at Castaic Lake SRA. Right: Participants enjoying unstructured aquatics time on the second day of training at San Luis Reservoir SRA. Photos from Chinh Nguyen, Katie Freehling and Lashonta “Nikki” Gordon, Office of Community Involvement.
|
