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Recovery and Adaptation at Woolman

Published: Oct. 22, 2021

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We have been blessed with an early Fall in the Sierra Foothills. Last week, a little higher up in the watershed and a month earlier than expected, there was a nice dumping of snow. The cold nights and warm days have encouraged maples and aspen to burst into color. Sandals have been retired for warm socks and shoes. Hearty soups are replacing salads on my table. Wood piles are becoming organized for easy access. Will we have a normal winter? The climate crisis means dramatic shifts in weather patterns. Normal is not a word we are using much.

At Woolman we are engaged with schools and youth groups to gain insight into their outlook for 2022.  Many want to come to Woolman for the outdoor school and social justice programs.  The news about vaccines and treatments for Covid is promising, especially for youth.  We are learning to live with regional fires.  We are making modifications to the campus to support youth programming with mitigations in place for a range of situations.  We’ve applied for grants to install HEPA filters and air conditioning in all congregant buildings for when we are forced indoors due to smoke and extreme heat.  We have begun erecting large tents for groups that will limit indoor gatherings should there be another Covid outbreak.  

These modifications will also benefit retreat groups.  The Arbor House will be available for renting to smaller groups later this fall, as final touches are completed.  It will sleep 12, it has a new ADA bathroom and it has a wonderful group meeting space for 25.  The Meeting House is getting an ADA bathroom and new technology to allow for hybrid meetings, which is something Grass Valley Friends Meeting needs.

We welcome you to visit campus to see the progress we are proudly making to transform Woolman to meet the current moment of dynamic change. 

And . . . We will need volunteers SOON to help plant trees.

Right now, we have 4,000 conifer seedlings growing in a tree nursery in Davis, California – Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine and Sequoia. They will be ready for planting after the first good, soaking rains, and we will have a two-week window to get all of them in the ground.  It will occur around the first of December if the weather cooperates. 

We need volunteers!  No experience necessary.  All ages! Our registered forester, a forestry biologist, field ecologist, forest silviculturist and our staff are planning big Volunteer Workdays.

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from Marty Coleman-Hunt, Sierra Friends Center (10/20/2021)