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Last year, volunteers performed more than 298,000 hours of work, equal to 142 full-time
employees. The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission thanks everyone who gives of
their time and energy to support and improve our parks!
We'd especially like to recognize the following volunteers who received the 2006 Volunteer
Recognition Awards for outstanding volunteer service.
INDIVIDUAL AWARDS
Volunteer of the Year:
Ed and Pam Lottero (SeaTac,Wash.) -
Ed and Pam Lottero "demonstrated a deep commitment and dedication to the development,
implementation and enhancement of interpretive service programs at Dash Point and Saltwater
state parks," said Volunteer Services Coordinator Joan Hauser-Crowe. To increase interest
in the Junior Ranger Program, the Lotteros provided beach and forest interpretive walks and
created several interpretive presentations for evening and weekend amphitheater programs.
They also developed a non-profit organization, the Parks Project, which provides support and
consulting services to help parks create interpretive materials and programs.
Lifetime Achievement:
Bob and Mary Feiler (Tillamook, Ore.) -
Bob and Mary Feiler volunteered more than 12,000 hours at Fort Flagler and Anderson
Lake state parks since 2000. Last year, they cleaned up the trails and added garbage
can holders, rest areas along fishing sites and an orientation bulletin board with a
new park map of Anderson Lake State Park. Other significant accomplishments in the
last seven years included completing a 70-foot boardwalk along the lake by themselves,
developing natural and historical interpretive walks and implemented and expanded the
youth Junior Ranger program for kids at the park level.
Lifetime Achievement: Jo and Ole Olsen (Battleground, Wash.) -
Jo and Ole Olsen hiked the trails at Wallace Falls State Park for 11 years, volunteering
more than 7,000 hours. The Olsens volunteered five days a week, assisting with park
operations, reporting trail conditions, handing out maps, picking up litter and making
informational contacts with the public. The Olsens helped in several emergency incidents,
many involving helicopter evacuations from the top of the falls, search and rescue
operations and first aid.
Host of the Year:
Mimi Stieler and Betty Schiemer (Gig Harbor, Wash.) – New hosts Mimi Stieler and Betty
Schiemer performed numerous duties at Sacajawea, Field Springs and Lake Easton state parks.
"Their enthusiasm for volunteering and exceptional customer service made them valuable assets
to these state parks," said Hauser-Crowe. Stieler and Schiemer mowed lawns, staffed the
visitor center, worked in the gift shop, helped with interpretive programs, surveyed park
visitors, measured each campsite for the online reservations system, organized and updated
bulletin boards and filled in at the contact station.
Lifesaving Award:
Ken and Flo Barclay (Renton) - Ken and Flo Barclay attended the 2005 Camporee at Sun Lakes Camp
Delaney Retreat Center. During the defensive driving course, a fellow host suffered a heart attack.
CPR instructor Pam Conley from Eastern Region Headquarters, Ranger John Ashley and the Barclays
were in the facility. The Barclays were first to start CPR with Conley's assistance, and they
continued CPR while Ranger Ashley was located and took over for Conley. The host regained a heartbeat
after 13 minutes, aided by the Automatic Electronic Defibrillator. Park staff report that the Barclays'
quick response to the situation helped them quickly utilize the proper equipment to save the host's life.
Significant Volunteer Achievement:
Jean Dunbar (Port Townsend, Wash.) - Jean Dunbar started volunteering at Fort Worden State
Park in 2005. Dunbar helped expand the success of the annual Wildlife Art Expo by working
with artists and vendors, helping with press releases and mailings; advanced the development
of the park's long-range master plan and development process by attending meetings, conducting
research and updating presentations used at agency meetings and public hearings; conducted a
case study tour of the Golden Gate National Park’s Fort Mason; and met quarterly with Ford
Worden campus volunteer group leaders to coordinate volunteer efforts.
Significant Volunteer Achievement – Youth:
Anthony Gatlin (Kennewick, Wash.) - Anthony Gatlin, 15, played an important role in the 2006
interpretive programs at Sacajawea State Park. Gatlin obtained period clothing from 1805 and
learned skills such as starting a fire with flint and steel, properly displaying period items
such a knives, flags and American Indian trade items. Gatlin was instrumental in several
Bicentennial commemorations. He volunteered to stand watch at the camps keeping visitors
informed, tended the fires, assisted the cooks and helped carry and set up equipment.
Outstanding Contribution by an Individual:
David (Bud) Campbell (Yuma, Ariz.) – Bud Campbell has been volunteering at Yakima Sportsman State
Park for more than 20 years. Campbell has replaced hundreds of picnic tabletops and seats, painted
almost every building in the park, mowed lawns and repaired irrigation systems. Almost 90 years old,
Bud still assists with lawn and park maintenance, visitor contacts and picking up litter.
Scout Award:
Taylor Southern (Yakima, Wash.) - Taylor Southern, with Boy Scout Troop 161, redesigned Yakima
Sportsman State Park’s entrance with a desert-scape theme. Southern designed, mapped, sketched
and diagramed the layout of his project. He coordinated donations of materials, funding and labor.
Estimated cost of the project was $4,300.
Special Mention:
Jeff and Patricia Johnson (Selah, Wash.) – Jeff and Patricia Johnson were camp hosts at Yakima
Sportsman State Park. They were often seen early in the morning picking up litter in the day-use
and camp areas. The Johnsons completed general maintenance, customer service and constructed a
new brochure display.
GROUP AWARDS
Group of the Year: Grassroots Garbage Gang (Ocean Park, Wash.) -
The Grassroots Garbage Gang (GRGG) was developed by local citizens in the Long Beach Area who
recognize the impact the New Year’s and the Independence Day fireworks debris has on the beaches.
The group cleans the beaches after the events. By 2005, GRGG had added an Earth Day cleanup in
April and participated in the International Coastal Cleanup held the third weekend in September.
GRGG has grown from 12 people in 2002 to more than 300 participants in 2006. Since 2002,
participants have collected more than 50 tons of debris off the beaches of the Long Beach area.
Members also educate beach visitors about the impact of litter on health, safety and the environment.
Significant Group Achievement:
Soggy Sams (Port Orchard, Wash.) – Kitsap County's Good Sam Club (Soggy Sam's) helped Manchester
State Park further its Centennial 2013 goals. Soggy Sam's helped create a self-guided historic
walking tour, dismantled and removed old picnic tables, cleared blackberry bushes, mowed and
cleared brush. They also uncovered three old military housing foundations.
Significant Group Achievement (Youth):
Hyla Middle School Outdoor Class and leader George Gerdts (Bainbridge Island, Wash.) – The
students volunteered at Pearrygin Lake State Park. They reconstructed campfire circles,
constructed and repaired rail fencing, landscaped, installed grass and rehabilitated campsites.
As part of their project in 2006, they installed new benches that surround the rock fireplace
in the east group camp.
Outstanding Contribution by a Group:
Port Townsend Yacht Club members - Since 1990, the yacht club members have organized an
annual spring-clean up at Mystery Bay State Park. They come prepared with rakes, shovels,
mowers and clippers and removed invasive plants, painted rails and protective posts, reset
bumper blocks and spread gravel.
Special Mention:
Centrum (Port Townsend, Wash.) - Several members of Centrum, Fort Worden's arts and education
partner, refurbished six World War I-era housing units and a four-plex in the park.
CENTENNIAL AWARDS
Special Mention:
Centrum (Port Townsend, Wash.) - Several members of Centrum, Fort Worden's arts and education
partner, refurbished six World War I-era housing units and a four-plex in the park.
Henry and Karen Nichols
(Nordland, WA) – The Nichols are members of the Friends of Fort Flagler State Park. They support
the park and friends group with contributions and creating venues to educate the public about
Fort Flagler and other state parks.
Nora Porter
(Port Townsend, WA) – Nora Porter is an at-large member of the Fort Worden Advisory Committee.
Porter assisted with the Fort Worden State Park long-range master-planning concept, which
encompasses partnerships and financial strategies designed to help Fort Worden thrive in the
future. She uses her passion for parks and knowledge of the legislative process to promote
the Centennial 2013 vision.
Sharon Stewart
(Pasco, Wash.) - Sharon Stewart has volunteered more than 10,000 hours since becoming a
host in 1998. In 2006, Stewart:
- Recruited volunteer hosts to staff a Washington State Parks booth at RV shows;
- Recruited volunteers to staff the Sacajawea Interpretive Center;
- Recruited and organized volunteers for three Folk Arts in the Parks events at Sacajawea State Park;
- Organized the Annual Volunteer Recognition awards ceremony and appreciation picnics;
- Promoted the agency’s custom license plate and gathered signatures supporting the Centennial 2013 vision.
Tab Tabacek
(Renton, Wash.) - Tab Tabacek has volunteered 5,000 hours since 2002. Over the last five years, Tabacek:
- Wrote volunteer recruitment articles for Family Motor Home Coach Magazine and RV Magazine;
- Developed a special workshop for the annual host Camporee called "Hosting 101";
- Recruited new Northwest State Park ambassadors and campground hosts;
- Staffed the State Parks volunteer booth at RV shows;
- Promoted the volunteer program by interviewing live with KMPS radio at RV shows and gave phone interviews from campgrounds promoting state parks and giving park highlights;
- Assisted at the annual State Parks’ birthday celebration held at the Capitol;
- Gathered 600 signatures in support of the Centennial 2013 Plan.
Friends of Old Fort Townsend:
(Members of The Friends of Old Fort Townsend have been volunteering at the park since 1998.
In 2006, the friends group:
- Assisted park staff with more than six miles of trail maintenance;
- Split, bundled and sold firewood donating proceeds of more than $1,600 for park trail interpretation and signage;
- Provided materials and partial funding for an interpretive display for the Old Fort Townsend’s 150th anniversary;
- Sold lavender flagstones to make improvements to the park’s kitchen shelter.
Pacific Northwest 4 Wheel Drive Association:
The Pacific Northwest 4 Wheel Drive Association organized Operation Shore Patrol 35 years ago.
Since 1971, they have brought communities, civic groups, private industries and state and local
government together to focus attention on the effects of accumulated litter on human health and
safety, land and water resources and wildlife. Approximately 30,000 volunteers worked 190,000
hours collecting more than 800,000 pounds of debris.
Grays Harbor County Commissioners:
For more than 25 years, the Grays Harbor County Commissioners have supported Operation Shore
Patrol by covering fees for dump boxes and debris disposal. This has resulted in more than $30,000
in savings for Ocean City and Twin Harbors state parks.
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