 Despite the heat, volunteers were out across the city pulling weeds, picking up litter, removing stickers and graffiti and making Clearwater more beautiful with each project. This past month, they also served at Ross Norton Recreation Center’s Back-to-School event, helping children receive free supplies and prepare for a successful school year. Clearwater volunteers truly are the best!
Adopt-a-Park, Street or Trail Program
 Want to adopt?
The city partners with volunteer groups to help keep our city parks safe, clean, and beautiful. Any community organization, group, family, or individual that wants to make a difference in their community can participate in the Adopt-a-Park program.
Special Thanks to our Adopt Groups
 |
|
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium cleaned Lake Belleview.
The Clearwater Marine Aquarium Conservation Council helped remove stickers and graffiti from Pier 60 Park and beyond.
Island Estates Civic Association cleaned the Clearwater Memorial Causeway.
Special Events and Athletics Staff cleaned Seminole Street.
|
 The first time Lani Walker remembers visiting Moccasin Lake Nature Park, she was 8 years old and carried around a miniature dollhouse. By the time she was 12, she was a registered volunteer at the park. From ages 14 to 19, Lani worked under a master falconer doing bird shows at Renaissance fairs. Now, she helps her mom, Barbera Walker, run Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue and the Birds of Prey Program at Moccasin Lake Nature Park, an entirely volunteer-run program that rescues, offers sanctuary and provides permanent care for a variety of raptors.
Lani’s spirit and personality are saturated with a passion for birds of prey. Regular visitors to Moccasin Lake Nature Park know this spirit well and look forward to seeing her transport birds to their perches for sunbaths, enrichment and feeding. She volunteers upward of 40 hours a week, dedicated to ensuring the birds that live at Moccasin Lake have the best life possible. “Every bird we have has to be there,” she said, referring to the birds that have experienced trauma or injury too profound to survive in the wild. Her favorite part of volunteering, she said, is “not only saving birds but giving birds lives where they thrive in human care.” She is deeply driven to provide training and enrichment to ensure the birds live fulfilled lives regardless of their injuries.
Despite her busy schedule with Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue and the birds at Moccasin Lake, Lani is also pursuing a communications degree at St. Petersburg College. But the birds that need her help don’t take days off. One day, on her way to class, she received a call about a baby bird that needed rescuing. She carried out the rescue on her way to campus. The bird needed to be fed every 45 minutes, so she couldn’t leave it alone during class. The tiny bird made it through most of the class unnoticed, until a collection of chirps revealed its presence to the professor, who laughed and allowed Lani to keep the bird in her office for the rest of the day.
Lani isn’t just a bird person. She is also a people person. Most days of the week, you can find her and other volunteers chatting with park visitors and educating the public about birds of prey and the rescue program. She is passionate about spreading awareness and educating people on safety information. She hopes to “normalize raptors” in society so they become “as popular as horses.” Children and families visiting Moccasin Lake are often delighted after talking with Lani and seeing the birds. For example, Sir Galahad, a screech owl and her favorite little owl, she said, has “helped people to not be scared” of raptors, making him, in her opinion, a “good first experience with birds” for young children.
So the next time you visit Moccasin Lake Nature Park, be sure to say hello to Lani and the other incredible volunteers. Take time to learn about Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue and the birds at the park, and thank the team for rescuing, rehabilitating and caring for dozens of raptors.
Visit the following links to learn more about Moccasin Lake Nature Park and the Tampa Bay Raptor Rescue:
|
