In This Issue:

Super Summer
SGVA Supporters
Interpretive Happenings
Dying Chaparral
 Hello From Dorothy

 

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 1999 May
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4-VICTOR is published by the San Gorgonio Volunteer Association, 34701 Mill Creek Road, Mentone, CA 92359. A non-profit organization in cooperation with the USDA Forest Service, San Bernardino National Forest. The goals of the partnership are to educate the public to preserve and conserve our natural resources.

4-Victor newsletter edited by Teri Cappuccio and Ann Robinson

Portions of this newsletter may have been edited to present material applicable to the general viewing public.

 

 

4-Victor - the Newsletter of the SGVA

AUGUST 1999
Volume 3 - Issue 6

 

Super Summer
John Flippin-Volunteer Coordinator

It is hard to believe we are into the last half of our summer season already. It's really true that time flies when you're having fun. Although our volunteers have been working hard, everyone has been having some great times on the mountain. All the new volunteers are wonderful and the veterans have been getting everyone trained on the job and making everyone welcome.

Our new Barton Flats Assistant Managers, Duane and Billie Walstead, have become our new Barton Flats Managers as our veterans Glen and Marcia Riddle take off for the rest of the summer for family reunions and traveling across the nation. Keeping the Barton Flats Visitor Center running smoothly for the public is one of the SGVA's most important functions. We have been very lucky to have extremely competent, hard working, and very sociable volunteers come along to provide this service. We wish Glen and Marcia well on their travels and look forward to seeing them next year. And we welcome Duane and Billie who are doing such a great job at Barton Flats.

So many things are going so well thanks to so many volunteers. Val and Danny Silva have made the Tulake Volunteer Camp into a wonderfully welcoming environment. Several more volunteers are using the camp this year and many, including myself, are often enjoying Danny's cooking. Val has a bunch of great new equestrian volunteers helping her veterans with trail patrols and other special projects that only our equestrians can do best -- like delivering food, water, and tools to crews deep in the Wilderness.

Sheila McMahon is doing a fantastic job again this year in helping volunteers to provide interpretive programs and staff the Horse Meadows historical/nature site. There are a lot of new volunteers enjoying the pleasures of working at Horse Meadows and they are getting a lot more visitors there this year.

The Wilderness, Santa Ana River, and Bear Creek patrols are running extremely well. You are taking care of the forest and educating visitors very well. We are seeing a lot more dogs on leashes and the number of illegal fire rings is down, even though Wilderness campfires are now prohibited to allow recovery of the natural environment. I would especially like to thank Roger Gossett and Larry Stiles for their help in coordinating our foot patrols. Many trails have received complete surveys by our volunteers, which I’ll talk about more in future newsletters. Also, many of our volunteers are now working with the Forest Service trail crew on Saturdays. Our trail maintenance volunteers are doing a great job on the trails, including clearing the tremendous storm damage on the Momyer and Vivian Creek trails.

I just can't say enough about the essential and outstanding work our 4-Victor editors are doing for us. Teri Cappuccio and Ann Robinson are the best. Help me in thanking them whenever you can. All the hours they spend
getting this newsletter to you are not spent in our beautiful mountains where most of us get to do most of our work, but their time is extremely important in maintaining the great spirit and effectiveness of our organization. By the way, Ann and Teri still manage to often get out on Wilderness patrols.

There are a few other volunteers who also contribute at lot of time outside the forest. I hope you all have a chance to visit our web site managed by Michael Gordon at www.sgva.org. Michael has created a beautiful site and keeps it updated with important information. Along the lines of important information, our own Forest Service Logger, Patti Gossett, keeps an excellent up-to-date log of all your volunteer activities and hours. And Karen Saffle continues to spend a lot of time arranging for and delivering the nature displays to Barton Flats. Karen is also very busy coordinating all of the efforts that go into making our Forest Festival successful. I could go on and on about all the exciting and wonderful things all you volunteers do, and I will go on about it in the future. For now I would just like to say thank you all very much. All of the time, service, and efforts you provide for the forest and its visitors make my job very rewarding.


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Their Support Enables Us To Serve

Without the monetary support of the following SGVA organization members this year, we would not be able to provide half the services we do. Our great appreciation goes to:

Alpine Meadows Camp
Center for Reuniting Families

Azalea Trails San Gorgonio
Girl Scout Council

College Camp University
Religious Conference at UCLA

Camp Conrad-Chinook
Diabetic Youth Services

de Benneville Pines Camp
de Benneville Pines Camp, Inc.

Camp Metoche
First Missionary Baptist Church of Bellflower

Mile High Pines Camp
Brethren in Christ Church of Upland

Camp Morning Star
Benevolent Enterprises, Inc.

Camp Norris
Boys & Girls Clubs of Pasadena

Pacific Pines Camp
Seventh Day Baptist Church
of Riverside

Camp Paivika
Crippled Children's Society

Camp Pine Mountain
Boys & Girls Club of San Gabriel Valley

Camp Round Meadow
YMCA of Metro Los Angeles

Santa Ana River Cabin Association

Camp Sky Meadows
First United Methodist Church of Pasadena

Camp Ta Ta Pochon
YMCA of West San Gabriel Valley

Camp Wasewagon
Camp Fire Council of the Foothills

We look forward to the continuing SGVA membership of these organizations as together we provide the public an enjoyable, safe, and meaningful forest experience.

 


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Interpretive Happenings
Sheila McMahon-Interpretive Program Leader

Notes from Horse Meadows

The big news for the month of July was our successful Alice Krueper Memorial Walk held July 17. It was extra special this year because Harry Krueper was able to spend time talking with visitors and giving truly knowledgeable answers to questions such as: When did they close the Poop Out Hill road? Which is shorter -- through Dry or Dollar Lake? When was the area made a Wilderness?

There were nine hikers from the Pacific Crest Trail Association. They were able to share experiences they had working with Alice on maintaining the trail.

Alice and Harry’s son, Ron, and many of his family members were able to come and pose for a family picture. All visitors were treated to water and sweet, fresh oranges from the Messner grove. Several visitors said they are looking forward to next year’s Memorial Walk.

A New Interpretive Speaker

John Wegner gave a program to a group of about 30 people of all ages at Council Camp recently. He discussed people, bears, and shrews. He said the audience was great and had many questions and contributions to the discussion. Thirty more people are now excited and interested in learning about our wildlife! Good work, John!!

 

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Dying Chaparral
John Flippin-Volunteer Coordinator

Many volunteers on patrol have noticed the scattered dieback of chaparral vegetation, especially in manzanita and ceanothus. According to Jim Allison, San Bernardino National Forest Pathologist, this dieback is caused by the fungus Botryosphaeria dothidea. This fungus has caused branch dieback and cankers on more than 50 plant species native to California. Researchers have found there is a positive correlation between plant water-stress (drought) and an increase in disease severity (such as we are having now).

 

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Hello From Dorothy

Many of our volunteers know Dorothy Fotheringham. After Dorothy retired from the Forest Service, she and her husband Lee were instrumental in refurbishing and reopening the Barton Flats Visitor Center in 1987. After serving as the volunteer Barton Flats Station manager for 11 years, Dorothy retired from this volunteer job to move up north with her family.

Dorothy recently sent a "hello" letter to all her Forest Service friends from her new home in Takotna, Alaska. After living near Seattle for over a year, Dorothy is now with her daughter Mary who is the house parent for the Takotna Charter School boarding home where they usually have a bunch of teenagers running around.

Dorothy says in her letter, "We spent yesterday at Spirit Camp with all the school kids in Takotna. The only way to get there is a two-hour boat ride, but with Nell's husband driving the boat, it was fun. I learned how to make a birch bark basket. We had a great time with dinner cooked in a pit (roast beef, ham, and potatoes). Today we are back at home; it is very quiet around here now with all the kids gone for the week. Hope you are all fine and enjoying life. Sincerely, Dorothy."

 

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