Friends of
CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK
2004
2004
|
Friends of
CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK
2004 |
|
FRIENDS OF CRATER LAKE NATIONAL PARK ATTENDEES FOCLNP Board Members Present: George Buckingham, Mike Piehl, Donald Rome, John Salinas, Janet Wilson FOCLNP Board Members Absent: Sandie Seifer, Molly Widmer, Tom Dew, Larry Smith Crater Lake National Park (CLNP) Attendees Present: Dave Brennan, Chief National Park Service (NPS) Ranger & Liaison; Pete Peterson, CLNP Naturalist FOCLNP Members Present: Members present: 22 MORNING PROGRAMS General Management Plan Superintendent Chuck Lundy provided a review of the progress towards a General Management Plan for Crater Lake National Park. This is the first time that Crater Lake was seeking to develop a General Management Plan. This will take several years to finalize. Chuck indicated that the forecast for the immediate future is that Park staff would not be increasing and so friends of Crater Lake, like our group which provided some 92 days of assistance, will be invaluable to the Park in assisting them with projects and coverage that they otherwise could not do. CALL TO ORDER George Buckingham, FOCLNP President, called the board meeting to order at 1:00 PM. He welcomed all to the Community House. INTRODUCTION OF BOARD MEMBERS, NPS GUESTS George Buckingham made the following introductions: Pete Peterson, Naturalist for Crater Lake National Park SECRETARY'S REPORT The Tenth Annual Meetings Minutes, October 10, 2002, were distributed. Donald Rome read the report. After noting some corrections, the annual minutes were approved. TREASURER'S REPORT Greg Reddell read the Treasurer's Report on behalf of Sandie Seifer, Treasurer. He distributed the Balance Sheet as of October 1, 2003. After Washington Mutual announced they would charge non-profit organizations fees for their accounts, the Board voted to move the funds to Klamath First Federal.
The membership agreed that the Balance Sheet is solvent and that FOCLNP is in very good financial shape. The members commended the quality of the very readable report. The Treasurers Report was approved as read. MEMBERSHIP - Judy Buckingham The Membership Report since the last annual meeting, October 10, 2002:
Yearly renewal reminders were sent out in early May. We used e-mail to send 42 reminders. 92 hard copies were mailed out. This saved us over $15.00 in postage, not to mention paper and printing costs. The need for new brochures was again pointed out as our supplies are running low. Beverly Paulsen suggested that if each member could recruit one new member a year, we would be in a much better position to assist the park with new projects. The Membership Report was adopted. CORRESPONDENCE - George Buckingham FOCLNP received a letter with a $50.00 contribution from Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Ambrosiero in honor of Lawrence Larry Moran. WELCOME - Chief Ranger Dave Brennan Dave Brennan welcomed the Friends group and provided an update on several projects. ADOPT-A-TRAIL, ADOPT-A-BOUNDARY - Dave Brennan The program grew to 18 participants. Each participant goes through a 1/2 day of training. Based on feedback received, attendees recommended that future participants use a walking stick. The camaraderie with both domestic and international visitors was a key point of enjoyment for the participants. A suggestion was made that a Fact Sheet be produced to provide future invitees with information on the process, possibly posting the information to the Park website. Since participants are functioning as "an arm" of the Park, safety standards must be adhered to, and in particular, radios must be used to report one's presence. Tools and implements need to be distributed to the participants. They should advise the Park the day before their arrival so that the entrance personnel will be appropriately informed. VOLUNTEERISM - Dave Brennan Q: Did the Park get a benefit commensurate with the expense of running these programs? The summer begins July 15; volunteers provided coverage for 32 out of 50 days. Some $10,000 worth of volunteer time was calculated. A key concept of National Parks is to deliver a sense of stewardship (Lundy's aforementioned 92 days of volunteer assistance) and to make a connection with visitors to the Park. This was a very successful project for the Park and for the Friends. Dave will recommend that Housing continue to be provided for Friends, when working on behalf of the Park ($, Days Worked, Stewardship). There was a 4:1 ratio between Friends Service:Expenses for the housing. Dave hoped that the program would grow in future years. East, west, and north boundaries are most important for ensuring the Park's future. The Sky Lakes Wilderness lies to the south of the park. Since vehicles are not allowed, the potential for illegal activity within the park is reduced. FIRE LOOKOUTS - Dave Brennan The plan is to continue this program next year. The Watchman Fire Lookout is a day watch. Mt. Scott is staffed with paid employees. The National Park Service plans a total radio system replacement. Conceptually, Watchman will be kept as a lookout. There has been nearly total turnover in the fire management staff at the Park. Chuck Wells reported that during his watch some 167 visitors came up to the lookout, some from other countries. One of them reported, "Don't lose this precious place". Fifty-five visitors came up one Saturday to the Mt. Scott Lookout. Most like to chat and to take in the incredible views from the lookout. LOST CREEK BEAR PROOF LOCKERS - Dave Brennan This 2-day project to install bear proof food lockers at Lost Creek Campground took place in August 2003. It was an incredible success. There was great participation by FOCLNP, rangers and maintenance staff. To locate the sites for lockers, we also consulted with campground users on how they would use the site. From start to finish, some 16 food storage lockers were sited, moved by tractor, and subsequently secured. A grown person can fit inside and still get out safely (a legislative requirement put in place to assist people locked in car trunks and the like). PROJECT PARK - Dave Brennan Project Park is about to begin on Mazama Village. This is the area most susceptible to a catastrophic fire, known as a crown wildfire, since it contains both a wild and urban interface. The Hazardous Fuels Reduction Project around Mazama Village spans some 270 acres. The public, Zanterra, and Park Staff will all participate in the project. The Lodgepole Pine trees in the campground area have gone through 100 years of fire exclusion, creating a very unsafe set of conditions. REPORTS FRIENDS BROCHURE & NEWSLETTER - George Buckingham We have incompatible software in that MS Publisher, used for the Friends Brochure, and Home Publishing Software, used for the newsletter, do not communicate with one another. PARK PRIORITIES - George Buckingham George and Tom Dew met with the Chuck, Dave and other park staff in April. The attendees brainstormed for volunteer type projects, which would provide high value to the park and for which we could provide support. GENERAL AGREEMENT - George Buckingham The General Agreement between CLNP and the Friends was published in our last newsletter. It provides a framework for a "Parks in charge, support group" model. Our focus will be on projects that the Park wants us to do. LICENSE PLATE PROJECT - George Buckingham The License Plate project across the state has been very successful. More than $550,000 in revenues will go to the National Park Foundation's Crater Lake Trust Science & Learning Center Endowment Account. This will provide a stable source for operating funds for the center. WINTER RIM DESK Pete Peterson, CLNP Ranger with the Division of Interpretation & Cultural Resource Management, spoke about the staffing needed from Thanksgiving to March. The principal role is to answer questions. There were 9 attendees last year; it is important to encourage others to join. Training will be given on November 22 for 4-6 hours. Training will be given on the Uniform, Radio, Easy / Difficult questions to expect. There is no conflict with the Ski Patrol. Martha Hess - contact her at (541) 594-3092 - is the contact for housing for volunteers wanting to spend a weekend doing Winter Rim Desk coverage. ADOPT-A-HIGHWAY - Greg Reddell The Friends section is 3.2 miles in length, beginning at the south entrance into the park near the scenic turn-off and heading south towards Klamath Falls. The program was re-adopted for next year. NOMINATING COMMITTEE - Donald Rome Two nominees for the FOCLNP Board, John and Greg, introduced themselves. John Salinas (Grants Pass): John served as an interim Board Member since mid-year. He agreed to serve a 3-year term, ending in 2006. Greg Reddell (Klamath Falls): Greg agreed to return to the Board after the required 1 year time off of the Board for a 3-year term, ending in 2006. Nona Donahue ( Rogue River): Nona agreed to serve a 3-year term, ending in 2006. Larry Smith (Jacksonville): Larry, having completed one term on the Board, agreed to serve a 2-year term, ending in 2005. Two vacancies occurred this year: Janet Wilson retired from the Board after serving two full terms. Molly Widmer resigned from the Board. The New Board Members were approved unanimously. There will be three Board positions open in 2004, as the 9-Member Board has returned to staggered 3-year rotation terms. DIRECTIONS TO THE BOARD - From the Membership Members were provided a list of volunteer opportunities to sign up for interested activities, to add suggestions, or give comments. The concessionaire, Zanterra, wants both the Lodge at Crater Lake and the Mazamas to be good neighbors with us. A request should be made to FOCLNP historian, Lois Soulia from Roseburg, to provide a brief written report on what her activities have been. CRATER LAKE, THE MIRROR OF HEAVEN - SOP-TV Southern Oregon Public Television (SOP-TV) produced a director's cut viewing of the DVD for Crater Lake, The Mirror of Heaven. It was shown to the Annual Meeting attendees. ADJOURNMENT George Buckingham adjourned the meeting at 3:50 PM. The next Board Meeting will be held on January 24, 2004 in either Medford (Red Lion Inn) or the Jacksonville (Library) area. Details will be forthcoming. The minutes were compiled by D. Rome, distributed to all FOCLNP board members on 22 December 2003 and revised for submission to the membership on 11 February 2004. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||