| News - Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Volunteers plan new EcoCenter
About the author: Menlo Park parent Carol Broadbent Fields is a marketing consultant and member of the board of the Environmental Volunteers. Previous, she was co-president of the Menlo Park-Atherton Edeucation Foundation and helped establish its Endowment for Excellence in Teaching.
By Carol Broadbent Fields
The Environmental Volunteers (EV) organization has embarked upon the most ambitious initiative in its 36-year history: restoring the historic Sea Scout building at the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve as a new community center for environmental education.
The nonprofit officially kicked off its capital campaign June 1 at its annual party held at the Ladra home in Atherton. Executive Director Allan Berkowitz and Campaign Chair and EV board member Susan Hansen told a crowd of hundreds of supporters and community leaders that the EV had reached the half-way mark of its plan to raise $4 million for expanded science programs and to establish a new community center — called the EcoCenter — by the fall of 2009.
The EcoCenter campaign will restore the historic Sea Scout building, designed in 1941 by famed local architect Birge Clark and funded by Bay Area philanthropist Lucie Stern. The EcoCenter will feature sustainable construction and innovative "sea-worthy" design enhancements that will preserve the nautical look of the structure that has made it a beloved landmark for thousands of Bay Area residents.
"It's the ultimate recycling project," said Mr. Berkowitz, executive director of Environmental Volunteers. "We are reusing an entire building and incorporating green construction elements such as the lighting, heating, and ventilation systems, enabling our new home to serve as a demonstration of our mission to inspire environmental stewardship."
The EcoCenter campaign will also restore a broken juncture in the 400-mile Bay Trail that encircles the San Francisco Bay, making the EcoCenter a destination for Bay Area hikers and bikers.
The campaign includes $800,000 earmarked for new education programs to help the Environmental Volunteers meet the growing demand for its classroom and field-study services.
Every year, 200 trained volunteers deliver 500 hands-on science programs to more than 10,000 elementary school students at 80 schools in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Oak Knoll and Encinal schools in the Menlo Park City School District and the East Palo Alto Charter School are three of the top 10 schools this year, ranked by number of EV services used.
"With education budget cuts and growing enrollment at many schools, there is no more important time for the EV to grow to ensure that our local schools stay strong," said Ms. Hansen, board member and campaign chair.
The EV expects to deliver 550 classroom science programs and field trips for 375 teachers next year. In April, the EV "sold out" all of its services for next year in less than one hour, a new record and an indication of the high demand for its programs.
Led by a $1 million grant from the Packard Foundation, the EcoCenter Campaign needs the community's support to reach the goal of $4 million by 2009. A groundbreaking ceremony is set for Sunday, Sept. 14, and construction will begin in October after the breeding season of the endangered clapper rail bird.
INFORMATION
To learn more or to make a donation online, go to www.EVols.org. Allan Berkowitz, the executive director of Environmental Volunteers, can be reached at 961-0545
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