— from Mary Gropp —
The Orcas Island Youth Conservation Corps began its fourth summer season last week, with a series of crew training days. Fourteen Island youth, between the ages of 12 to 16, gathered for the initial training day, hosted by Coffelt Farm. All crew members participated in training of the safe and correct use of basic hand tools, and in group and team-building exercises. After touring Coffelt Farm, the crew made inroads on a patch of thistles growing along the field’s edge.
The Orcas Island Fire Department provided First Aid and CPR training for the crew on our second day. This training is not only a valuable life skill, but also helps to reinforce the OIYCC focus on safety and accident prevention when working with tools in the field. Our final training day consisted of identification of common noxious and invasive weeds, and training by Bureau of Land Management on the use of GPS technology to map weeds at our work site. The crew finished up by picking up garbage on the Eastsound beach.
OIYCC provides training and hands-on experience for Island youth in outdoors stewardship and conservation work. Our crew will be working on public protected lands around Orcas through the first week in August.
This week’s partners included Coffelt Farm Stewards, San Juan County Land Bank, Orcas Island Fire & Rescue, San Juan County Noxious Weed Board, and the Bureau of Land Management. Watch for our 2016 blue OIYCC t-shirts around the island this summer.
