This week we'll be sharing a 3-day series with 90 kids and faculty from the French American School of Puget Sound based on Mercer Island. Middle school teacher, Mason Donald reached out at the start of the year and asked if we could design a series that might touch on water, interactions with the environment and community that would tie in with his interdisciplinary "Ocean of Knowledge" curriculum for the school year. We've been batting around field trip ideas for the past couple months and have just settled on three distinct visits that tie into areas that we spend a lot of time in that we'll share with 3 groups of 30 students over the course of the week.

On Tuesday we'll talk beaver habitat with PA Adams and show the kids their lodge system, dams and fallen trees in the woods, and how integral the animals are to the health of the wetland environment. We'll then spend some time cleaning the park of garbage and removing invasive species where appropriate.

I anticipate this series will be an energetic and joyous opportunity to share these special areas that we spend so much time working in and enjoying. What better way to ensure that the next generation picks up the mantle than by sharing our love of nature and community with them. I'm welcoming all of you to join us on these daily trips and add your own personal stories and love of where we live. It should be a very memorable week, and hopefully the start of a new offering to our work.

We’ll gather at Dragonfly Pavillion, so park on any of the surface streets that border the park.

Dragonfly Pavillion