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NEWSLETTER: October 2015

In this issue:

Pumpkins in the Park
Water Fest
Rotary PlayGarden Updates
Rotary PlayGarden Awards
Farewell to Phil
Super Guadalupe River Run
Volunteer Corner
Legacy Giving

Pumpkins in the Park - Oct. 10

Pumpkins in the Park, a fun, family friendly harvest fair with a strong environmental education component, is designed to promote awareness of Guadalupe River Park and celebrate the fall season. Join us on Saturday, October 10 from 10 AM to 4 PM for a giant pumpkin patch, a costume parade, tons of free kid's activities, a children's concert and so much more, including. Children's Discovery Museum's costume swap!

Event Sponsors - CEFCU, Children's Discovery Museum, City of San Jose, Cortese Brothers Farms, First 5, Martinelli's, Pacific Gas & Electric, NBC11, San Jose Downtown Association, Whole Foods Market

GRPC Partners - Adobe, Mike & Christy Akatiff, Armanino, Barry Swenson Builder, Blach Construction, Boston Properties, Cosmopolitan Catering, eBay, Samaritan Medical Center, SanDisk, San Jose Sharks, San Jose Water Company, Santa Clara Valley Water District, The Sobrato Organization, Southwest, Swinerton Builders, ValleyCrest Landscape, West Valley Construction

Event Supporters - A Slice of New York, Air Systems Foundation, AJ Auto Detailing, The Alves Family, The Austen Family, The Caputo Family, Sheryl Hinshaw

Water Fest

Our 13th annual Water Festival took place last month, with over 260 5th-grade students from Olinder, River Glen, Alexander Rose, and Franklin schools. The Water Festival is an educational event designed to celebrate our local watershed. Every year, environmental education organizations from around the Bay Area come together at Guadalupe River Park & Gardens to teach local students important hands-on science lessons about water conservation, pollution prevention, the value of water as a natural resource, and how people can affect their watershed.

Many thanks to our volunteers, the presenters from our partner organizations and the Michael Lee Environmental Foundation for underwriting the costs of the festival.

Rotary PlayGarden Updates

A National Geographic story on urban parks will run in the April 2016 issue and feature parks in Korea, the UK, New York's Central Park, and... Rotary PlayGarden!

As of October 6th, the PlayGarden will close at 4 pm and the Thursday drop-in program will move to 3 pm.

During the month of October, the drop-in weekend programs will be on Sunday at 11 am.

If you are interested in booking the picnic area (six tables) or amphitheater for a birthday party or other celebration, you can do so here: www.grpg.org/rpg/picnic

Follow Rotary Play Garden on Facebook for updates or announcements.

Rotary PlayGarden Awards

We can now add award winning to our description of the PlayGarden, which won a Community Impact award at the Silicon Valley Business Journal's Structures Awards on 9/24 and an Engineering News-Record Best Project Award in the Landscape/Urban Development category.

Farewell to Phil

Phil Cornish joined our staff as an administrative assistant in October 1999 and soon made himself indispensable. As our Program Manager, Phil ran our Adopt-a-Rose and Donor Walkway programs, coordinated Pumpkins in the Park, oversaw our volunteer program, and much more. We wish him well in his new role with San Jose's Environmental Services Dept., where he will put his UC Berkeley degree in biological environmental sciences to good use.

Volunteer Corner

EY's Connect Day in the Historic Orchard

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

Apple Computer
California Missionaries
Cisco
Creek Side
Mission Bay
National Charity League
Oak Grove High School
PADPro
Piedmont Hills High School
Presentation High School
San Jose State Resident Advisors
SanDisk Corporation

And that is only the groups! We also appreciate the scores of individuals who come out weekly to make a difference. We logged more than 1418 volunteer hours in August.

Upcoming Volunteer Opportunties

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

Historic Orchard Volunteer Work Day
Sat. Oct. 3rd, 8:30-11:30 am. Sign up.

River Clean Up
Sat. Nov. 21st, 8:30-11:30 am. Sign up.

Meet Volunteer Melanie Dimaano
Melanie, a recent UC Santa Cruz graduate, heard of an internship with GRPC this last summer and jumped at the opportunity. Melanie works with our education staff while balancing a part-time work schedule at a local ice cream parlor. With a love for drawing, she has completed several beautiful craft-related pieces for our education team. In addition to crafting for GRPC, Melanie helps guide some our education programs. She hopes to conduct field research for environmental organizations in the future. Thank you for all of your work Melanie!

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

Upcoming Events

Homeschool Programs

Solar Series

What is solar energy? How is solar energy used? Join us in October for our Solar Series; students will become Junior Solar Scientists while discovering how solar power is used by the wildlife of the Guadalupe River Park & Gardens. Students will be empowered to build a solar car to race in the Solar Derby and use the sun's energy to cook a tasty treat.

Junior Solar Scientists
October 8th

Your Solar Home
October 15th

Solar Power: It's Electric!
October 22nd

Cooking with the Sun
October 29th

More info.

Fall Walking Series

Ages 18 and Up
$30/members, $40/non-members
6-week series starting Saturday, October 10

Join fitness instructors Kristin Strellis and Janet Schumacher Saturday mornings for fun, fitness and friendship along the Guadalupe River trail. Whether you are looking to start a fitness routine or add to your current program, you will be out on the trail and provided with instruction, motivation and accountability. Interval training, safe for all fitness levels, will be used along with additional strength and flexibility exercises.

More info.

PlayGarden Drop-In Programs

Every Tues. & Sun. 11 - 11:45 am
Every Thurs. 3 - 3:45 pm
Free!

Want to learn more about nature and our environment while visiting the Rotary PlayGarden? Join us for our free weekly drop-in programs in the Amphitheater! Topics vary on a weekly basis, and have thus far included: All about Birds, Salmon Survival Game, Parts of a Plant, Salmon Lifecycle, Animal Pelts and Tracks, and Impacts on the Watershed using the Enviroscape model. We welcome all ages and abilities to participate. Follow us on Facebook for updates about the Rotary PlayGarden drop-in program.

More info.

 

Sunday, February 7, 2016

10K, 5K, and 1K kids' run

Earn your guacamole on the Guadalupe!

More info.

 

Legacy Giving

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

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408-298-7657 -- EIN: 77-0166797
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