Is this email not displaying correctly? Try the web version.

Home | Education | The Park | Volunteer | Contribute

NEWSLETTER: November 2016

In this issue:

Super Guadalupe River Run

Kick off Super Bowl Sunday with the annual Super Guadalupe River Run at 9 AM on Sunday, February 5th.

Don’t fumble the opportunity to burn some calories. Whether you go long for 6.2 miles or tackle the 3.1 mile quarterback sneak, you’ll earn your game-time guacamole on the Guadalupe. Huddle with family, friends, training partners, neighbors, co-workers to run a 10K or 5K -- cross the goal line to score guilt-free indulgence during the game.

You won’t want to miss the first in our series of collectors’ shirts (graphic above)! Proceeds benefit our education and stewardship efforts.

Click here to register.

Gratitude

Window on the River Park, our annual donor recognition event, was held on Wednesday, October 5th and was generously hosted and underwritten by Adobe Systems, Inc.

We were joined by Councilmembers Raul Peralez and Johnny Khamis. Board Members Erica Carr and Kelly Hattley thanked our sponsors, and President Terry Austen acknowledged the GRPC board.

We greatly appreciate the individuals, corporations, and foundations who provide operating support for our education, advocacy, and stewardship efforts.

Platinum

 

 

 

 

 

Gold

Silver

Acosta Sheet Metal Manufacturing
Air Filter/Control
Armanino
Blach Construction
Boston Properties
eBay Inc.
Heritage Bank of Commerce
Insight Realty
Lewis & Tibbits
Francois & Beth Rodigari
Samaritan Medical Center
Santa Clara Valley Water District
Sharks Sports & Entertainment
Silicon Valley Law Group
A Slice of New York
WHCI Plumbing Supply

Bronze

Robert A. Bothman, Inc.
CH2MHill
Cosmopolitan Catering
Garden City Sanitation
Goodwill of Silicon Valley
Lord & Sons
MacArthur Co.
Mason West
Norman S. Wright Mechanical Equipment
NuSpace
Old Republic Title
Katherine Oven
San Jose Earthquakes
Rotten Robbie
San Pedro Square Market
The Schoennauer Company
Seven Flags Automotive Care Network
Jodi & Drew Starbird
Verde Design, Inc.
Santa Clara Windustrial
Joann Zimmerman

Supporters

Anonymous
Bayside HVAC Products
Bellarmine College Preparatory
The Best Electrical
California Hydronics
Erica Carr
Simon Bloch & Denise Chilow
Conklin Bros.
Evoqua Water Technologies
Feralloy PDM Steel Service
GC Fasteners
Gloria Duffy & Rod Diridon
Heat Transfer Equipment
Richard Peterson & Sheryl Hinshaw
Hoge Fenton Jones & Appel
Hopkins & Carley
Johanson & Yau
Heather & Andy Lerner
MacMillan Properties
Morgan Franich Fredkin Siamas & Kays LLP
Reed & Graham
Salas O’Brien
Santa Clara Valley Contractors Association
Scott Machinery
South Bay Piping Industry

Our heartfelt thanks go out to the sponsors, partners, supporters, contributors, and volunteers who made Pumpkins in the Park a great success! Save the Date for next year - October 14, 2017!

Event Sponsors - Cavalia, City of San Jose, Cortese Brothers Farms, First 5, Martinelli's, NBC Bay Area, Whole Foods Market

GRPC Partners - Acosta Sheet Metal Manufacturing, Adobe, Air Filter/Control, Air Systems, Mike & Christy Akatiff, Armanino, Terry & Carol Austen, Barry Swenson Builder, Blach Construction, Boston Properties, BrightView, Cilker Family Businesses, eBay, Eco Bay Services, Heritage Bank of Commerce, Insight Realty, Lewis & Tibbits, PG&E, Francois & Beth Rodigari, Samaritan Medical Center, SanDisk, San Jose Water Company, Santa Clara Valley Water District, Sharks Sports & Entertainment, Silicon Valley Law Group, A Slice of New York, John Michael Sobrato, West Valley Construction, WHCI Plumbing Supply

Event Supporters - Heritage Bank of Commerce, Joan & Sheryl Hinshaw

Rotary PlayGarden's 250,000th

Staff welcomed Veronica and Eleazar, our 249,999th and 250,000th visitors to the Rotary PlayGarden, on Tuesday, October 25th.

Volunteer Corner

Thanks to groups from SAP (above), Brocade, and SJSU for joining us Friday before Pumpkins in the Park to help with setup.

A hearty thanks to all the volunteer groups that toiled to make GRPG a more beautiful place this past September:

ARM

California San Jose Mission

Cisco Systems

Friends of Children with Special Needs

Hope Services

Intel

Mission Bay

Morgan Autism Center

National Charity League

Notre Dame High School

Piedmont Hills High School Interact Club

Piedmont Hills High School Key Club

PwC

Wells Fargo

And that is only the groups! We also appreciate the scores of individuals who come out weekly to make a difference. We logged over 1,773 volunteer hours in September.

Upcoming Volunteer Opportunties

  • Rose Garden Workdays
    Weds. and Sats. 8:30-11:30 am. More info.

  • Historic Orchard Volunteer Workday
    Sat. December 3rd, 8:30-11:30 am. Sign up.
  • Monthly River Cleanup
    Sat. December 17th, 8:30-11:30 am. Sign up.
  • Opt Outside Black Friday Workday
    Fri. November 25th, 8:30-11:30 am. Sign up.

 

Meet Volunteer Paulen Llagan
Paulen is volunteering with us while recovering from a work injury. She is a key volunteer in helping to cover our front desk, tidying up around the office, and giving lots of love and care to Patch, our office bunny. When she is not volunteering with us, you will find Paulen walking her German Shepherd and Corgi or reading a romance novel. Everyone at GRPC, especially Patch, would like to give a big thank you and round of applause to Paulen for all the wonderful work she does.

So many ways to give:
Adopt A Rose, General Donations,
Rotary PlayGarden,
The Donor Walkway, Memberships,
Endowment, Critter Donations

Upcoming Events

Homeschool Classes

November
World Water

Wonderfully Wet Water
November 7

What's up with our Water?
November 10/11/14

Water Geography
November 17/18/28

Click here for more information on our homeschool program.

Annual Holiday Wreath Workshop

Saturday, December 3rd
10:00 am to 12:00 pm
$35/members, $45/non-members

Get ready for the holidays the old-fashioned way by making your own wreath!  Master Gardeners, led by Milli Wright, will show you how to look through local gardens and parks to find unusual items that can be incorporated into the wreaths. After a basic design lesson, and examples of other clever projects, you will be ready to create your own personal gift for your home. All basic materials will be provided, but if you have some special greenery, lights or ornaments that you would like to incorporate onto your wreath, feel free to bring them along.

Click here to sign up.

Christmas Bird Count

Sunday, December 18th
8:00 am to noon

The Audubon Society's Christmas Bird Count is a census of early winter bird populations. More than 50,000 volunteer observers across the Americas take part in counting birds in their particular area. The result is over a century of data on bird populations from North to South America, which is used by scientists to monitor bird population changes over time.

Please join us to complete the census of birds in the section of Guadalupe River Park & Gardens from Coleman Ave. to Hedding St. No experience is necessary.

E-mail us to sign up.

Giving Tuesday

We have a day for giving thanks. We have two for getting deals. Now, we have a global day dedicated to giving back.

Save the Date! The fifth annual #GivingTuesday takes place on November 29, 2016.

Click here to learn more.

Wildlife Corner

Did you know San Jose is the southernmost U.S. city with a salmon run?

The first storms of the season historically usher salmon into Guadalupe River. Let us know if you spot any!

Green Living

Drought Tolerant Plants & Pruning
Saturday, November 19th
9:00 am to noon

Join BAWSCA and Sherri Osaka to discover how and why drought tolerant plants need less water, and how to plant and care for them. Learn how to prune parts of native plants, such as branches, buds, and roots in order to improve or maintain their health.

Click here to sign up.

Legacy Giving

If you are over 70 1/2 years old and have an IRA account, you can make a tax-free charitable donation of up to $100,000 until December 31.

The advantage is that the transferred amount does not count as taxable income but does count toward your required minimum distribution.

Please note, to qualify as an IRA Charitable Rollover, the distribution must go directly from your IRA custodian to the charity.

Why Should You Include a Charitable Gift in Your Will (Or Living Trust)?

  1. It's simple to do. It can be as easy as including language stating, "I give $20,000 to Guadalupe River Park Conservancy."

  2. You can change your mind. We won't receive the gift until after your death. During your lifetime, you can amend anything you choose, i.e., beneficiaries, amounts, etc.

  3. Tax-wise, it could be beneficial. Gifts to qualified charitable organizations reduce the value of your estate for estate tax purposes.

  4. It's an easy way to support Guadalupe River Park Conservancy, and we'd be grateful for your gift. Bequests of every size build our future financial strength.
Home | Education | The Park | Volunteer | Contribute

438 Coleman Avenue‚ San Jose, CA 95110
408-298-7657 -- EIN: 77-0166797
Copyright 2016 GRPC all rights reserved.