Volunteers are needed to help visitors to Green Lake Park follow the nesting cycle of bald eagles. Photo credit: shannonkringen

Seattle Parks and Recreation shares the following information about the city’s Volunteer Naturalist program:

Do you love sharing nature with others? Are you interested in learning more about the flora and fauna of Seattle’s many public green spaces and parks? If so, you are the perfect candidate for the Seattle Volunteer Naturalist program. Volunteer Naturalists participate in 10 weeks of training and commit to providing 12 programs a year at Environmental Learning Centers and in parklands near schools throughout Seattle.

Seattle Parks and Recreation’s Volunteer Naturalists provide hands-on learning opportunities for school groups and nature programs for families and adults at Discovery Stations, destination locations throughout parks that present visitors with a theme and natural objects that help them discover their backyard parks. For example, volunteers would have a spotting scope at Bald Eagle nest locations and at Green Lake Park so visitors could follow the nesting cycle of Bald Eagles or Pied Billed Grebes. Another is a station at Me Kwa Mooks Beach or Discovery Park Beach with shells and information about intertidal creatures. One could be a Forest Station to introduce people to the many plants, mammals and birds that make the forested parklands home.

Volunteers’ backgrounds are as varied as the students they teach – the common thread is their desire to share nature with the greater Seattle community.

The goal of the Seattle Volunteer Naturalist Program is to enhance, promote and foster appreciation of nature by connecting citizens and students with their Seattle parklands, by providing educational opportunities for all.

Training begins on March 8, 2012. Deadline for applications is February 10, 2012.  For more information and to get an application, please email Penny Rose at penny.rose [at] seattle.gov or call her at 206-386-4250.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2012.

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Post tags: parks and rec, volunteer

photo credit: bitmask

From the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT):

The Seattle Pedestrian Advisory Board is accepting applications for new members to help make walking in Seattle safer and easier. The volunteer board, which was created by Seattle City Council in 1993, plays an influential role in implementing Seattle’s Pedestrian Master Plan. The board advises the Mayor and City Council, participates in planning and project development, evaluates policies and makes recommendations to all city departments including the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT).

Board members serve a two‐year term, with an opportunity to serve a second term. They are frequent walkers of a variety of ages, levels of mobility, and walks of life, and from areas throughout the city. Members must be Seattle residents, and may not be city employees. The group meets the second Wednesday of each month from 6 to 8 p.m. at City Hall on Fifth Avenue between James and Cherry.

According to Jon Morgan, chair of the Pedestrian Advisory Board “”Everyone is a pedestrian, and serving on the Pedestrian Advisory Board is a great way to make a difference in Seattle’s walkability. Members have a chance to learn a lot about walking and what’s going on in the city, and to apply that knowledge working with other smart, dedicated, interesting pedestrian advocates.”

Mayor McGinn and City Council are committed to promoting diversity in the City’s boards and

commissions. Women, youth, persons with disabilities, sexual minorities, and persons of color are encouraged to apply. Interested persons should submit a resume and cover letter explaining their interest via email by January 20, 2012 to Brian Dougherty at brian.dougherty [at] seattle.gov.

For more information, call Brian Dougherty at (206) 684‐5124, or send e‐mail to the address above.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: local politics, volunteer, walking

At its Nov 22 meeting, the Friends of Green Lake decided to cancel the Dec. 3 work party because there is not a significant accumulation of milfoil.

 Members also decided to gather more data about the discharge of groundwater and surface water from the Green Lake Village development (former Vitamilk Site). FOGL is concerned that the planned discharges to the stormwater system will further decrease the input of clean water to the Lake.   A few more volunteers are needed to collect algae samples and/or do microcystin analysis (contact Gayle Garman at friendsofgl [at] gmail.com).   The Mayor’s office noted that revisions to Seattle’s Shoreline Master Plan, including Green Lake, are available for public comment until Dec. 9 here. FOGL will not meet in December.  The next general meeting is January 24, 2012 (fourth Tuesday).  

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: friends of green lake, volunteer

Photo credit: Allison Harger

Friends of Green Lake (FOGL) meets at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2011 at The Hearthstone (6720 E Green Lake Way N). All are welcome to join the meeting.

The meeting will include:

• a summary of monitoring data collected over the summer
• planning for a Dec. 3 shoreline milfoil clean-up
• discussion regarding impacts of the Green Lake Village development on Green Lake’s water quality and a FOGL response
• reports on Saturday workparties
• reports on recent algae scums
• demonstration of a new microcystin analysis kit
• discussion regarding nutrient sampling over the winter
• discussion about whether to start a birders group

Friends of Green Lake is an IRS approved non-profit association of volunteers that works to protect Green Lake and its watershed.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: friends of green lake, volunteer

Kristy is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory, an advanced reporting class in which students produce news stories and packages for local neighborhood and ethnic newspapers and online sites.

Michael Sanders, Grand Master Mason of Washington

With more than 5 million members, the Freemasons are one of the world’s oldest fraternities. Their origins are unknown, their rituals secret, and their lavish lodges are in almost every major city. For centuries they have raised eyebrows and inspired conspiracy theories for their clandestine meetings.

Now members of the Green Lake brotherhood want to modernize, open their doors and discuss their Masonic spiritual teachings. Instead of the secret society of the past, the Masons want to become a contemporary society with secrets. So who are they and what do they do?

It is believed freemasonry harkens back to 1717 at the Goose and Gridiron in London, where men from four lodges gathered to form the Grand Lodge of England. Their order grew and their influence spread from England to Europe to America.

Today in Washington state there are 170 Masonic lodges. The earliest, St. John’s Lodge, dates to 1858, only a few years after the first Seattle settlement. In Green Lake, if you walk under the Lodge No. 149 archway and through the oak doors at 307 NE Maple Leaf Pl, you will find men who band together as brothers, bonded by a common fraternity.

While the brotherhood is steeped in history, some of the members are decidedly modern, one pulling out a smart phone to check the news prior to a dinner of grilled steak, green beans and salad soaked in dressing. There is boisterous laughter and the ting of knives sawing through meat and hitting plate. At the moment, the atmosphere feels more like a fraternity gathering than a secret society. Only when the Grand Master Mason of Washington enters the room, and some of the men stand for him, does the recognition that this is an organized society snap back into place.

The current Master Mason is a small, almost elfish man, who holds a lot of power within the Washington Masonry.

“I am the ultimate authority,” says Michael Sanders, the Grand Master Mason of Washington, sitting down at the table. “Everybody in the lodge can say they want to go right, but if the Master says no, then they are going to go left.”

The elected title holds a lot of responsibility, but one that lasts for only a year. Sanders officially joined the Masonry brotherhood 30 years ago, inspired in part by his grandfather and uncles who were Masons. He then spent 12 years in various lodge positions before reaching his current title of Master Mason.

Over the years, he has seen the popularity of the fraternity diminish, their secrecy eroding public awareness of who they are and what they stand for.

“We have had 50 years of Masons holding everything really close and not telling anybody who we are,” says Sanders. “We’ve got to break that cycle. I would like to see every good man out there join the fraternity.”

So far, the Green Lake Lodge has about 150 members, with 40 who actively participate. The majority of them have white hair, which is one of the reasons they are seeking a younger generation of Masons to uphold their traditions.

“That’s always the goal, to attract younger members,” says Michael Cuadra, the Treasurer. “We’re only starting to get more knowledge out there about what masonry really is.”

To join, you must be a man of at least 18 years old, able to read and write, and believe in a Supreme Being. Apart from that, Masons vary in age, culture and beliefs: there are doctors and plumbers, young men and old, Catholics and Jews. They all, however, believe in tolerance, liberty, charity, knowledge and moral uprightness without arrogance or condescension.

“We are taking their good qualities and expanding them by constantly reinforcing time-proven principles of morality they hear in our ritual,” says Sanders. “They become better members of their community. Better husbands. Fathers. Employees. Employers. And citizens.”

As Freemasons like to say, they are taught through “a system of morality veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols.”

The most common of symbols is the letter G in the middle of a square and compass. Each member wears a golden ring carved with the emblem as a reminder of their brotherhood code: the G for Geometry and God (any of your choosing), the square for virtue, and the compass for the strength to “circumscribe desires and keep passions within due bounds.”

“We are also a charity organization,” says Glenn Bailey, Worshipful Master of Green Lake Lodge. They are open to being approached by organizations asking for volunteers as long as “people come up to us in the proper way. Then we would be more than happy to review it.”

The Worshipful Master sits on the East side of the ceremonial room, directs all the business for his lodge, and presides over the rituals and ceremonies. The office is an elected position, although the previous year’s Senior Warden is usually the next in line to occupy the title. The designation “Worshipful” does not mean the Masons worship him; rather it is a title out of respect similar to calling a judge “Your Honor” or a mayor “Honorable.”

Worshipful Master Bailey is particularly proud of the charitable works the Green Lake Masons participate in.  Currently, the lodge is helping sponsor the 35th Pathway of Lights, the annual lighting of the path around Green Lake. Other volunteer work includes raising funds for college scholarships, painting basketball courts, and funding the  “Bikes for Books” reading program at the Green Lake Branch Library.

“The kids get really excited about reading the books,” says Bailey. “They know if they do well and read a lot of them, they have a chance of getting a bike. If they read 10 books, they get 10 tickets. If they read three books, they put in three tickets for the lottery.”

“And that’s only our lodge,” says Cuadra. “Greenwood Lodge does a lot of stuff for the Greenwood district. Eureka Lodge does science and education for Seattle schools, so they sponsor science fairs.” Each lodge engages with the community in a different way, depending on their focus or community location.

“We could literally change the world if we could just get out and bring people through these doors,” says Sanders, walking into the ceremonial room. “I think that with all my heart.”

The wood doors close and with them the ritual secrets.

©UW News Lab for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: building community, Green Lake masons, volunteer

SPU crews are responsible for nearly 80,000 storm drains. By helping them keep neighborhood storm drains clear of debris, you can help keep the water flowing and prevent flooding.

The Adopt-A-Drain Program is active during the month of November, Seattle’s peak leaf-falling season. During this time SPU provides residents and business owners with free cleanup supplies – rakes, bags, gloves, shovels, brooms and dustpans.

To reserve your supplies, contact SPU at (206) 233-7187 or adoptadrain [at] seattle.gov. You can also use this online form.

Supplies can be picked up at SPU’s warehouse at 3633 East Marginal Way S on Thursday, October 29, 2011, 9:00 a.m. to noon.

More information about the program, via the Seattle Channel:

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: seattle public utilities, volunteer

The Northwest District of the Design Review Program covers the area of the city north of NW/N 80th St and and west of Aurora Ave N.

There are also openings on the Southeast Design Review Board, the Southwest Design Review Board and the East (Capitol Hill/First Hill/Central District) Design Review Board.

According to a press release sent by the mayor’s office today (Monday, October 24, 2011), the Design Review Program was established in 1994 to provide an alternative to prescriptive zoning requirements and foster new development that better responds to the character of its surroundings. Boards evaluate the design of development projects based on citywide and neighborhood-specific design guidelines.  The boards review mixed-use developments, multifamily housing, and commercial projects above a certain size threshold.

The volunteer positions on the Design Review Board will be available Wednesday, April 4, 2012 when retiring board members’ terms expire. 

Applications [PDF] are due Friday, December 9, 2011.

Board members are appointed by the Mayor and City Council and serve two-year terms.  Members serve on one of seven boards that review projects in the city’s major geographic districts. Each board is composed of five members who represent:

• Design professions
• Development interests
• General community interests
• Local business interests
• Local residential interests

Applicants should have:

• Knowledge of, or interest in, architecture, urban design and the development process;
• The ability to evaluate projects based on the city’s design guidelines;
• The ability to listen and communicate effectively at public meetings;
• A passion for design and community development; and
• The ability to work well with others under pressure.
• Prior experience with community or neighborhood groups is a plus.

Board members must live in the city of Seattle. The local residential interests representative must act as an ambassador to at least one community group or association (e.g. a community council) that operates within the board district.

Acting as an ambassador may be easier for the board member if he or she lives or works within the district they are serving, but residency in a district is not a requirement to serve as a local representative.

Board members should expect to work 12-14 hours a month attending and preparing for board meetings, which are held twice a month in the evenings. Board members are expected to attend at least 90 percent of the meetings.

For more information, contact Shelley Bolser, Design Review Program Lead, at shelley.bolser [at] seattle.gov.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: architecture, local politics, volunteer

Participants will weed a restoration site on the Green Lake shoreline, just north of the the Green Lake Pitch & Putt golf course (5701 East Green Lake Way N). Blackberry roots and other weeds need to be removed.

Volunteers should dress for the weather. Hiking boots and thick gloves are recommended. If you have weeding tools, you are asked to bring them.

For more information about the work party, contact Denise Pardi at friendsofgl [at] gmail.org.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: friends of green lake, gardening, volunteer

The North Helpline Food Bank feeds the hungry and provides emergency assistance to residents of zip codes 98125, 98133, 98155, 98177, and 98115.

For more information about collecting donations while you trick or treat, contact Food Bank staff at (206) 367-3477 or foodbank [at] northhelpline.org.

Flier courtesy North Helpline Food Bank. Click to enlarge.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: food, halloween, lake city, volunteer

Erika Campbell sent us the following note from The Hearthstone (6720 E Green Lake Way N):

Mother Klatches – you know who you are! Joggers or walkers with baby strollers doing your daily constitutional around the lake for good health and camaraderie. Why not throw a little community service in the mix?

The Hearthstone Retirement Community is looking for a group of friends who would like to conclude their walk around the lake with a short visit to our residents to give manicures! Imagine one mother corralling the kids with the help of host ‘grandmas’ while the other mothers knock out a half hour of buff and shine.

We’re looking for a small dedicated group to visit perhaps twice a month. Who knew community service could be so fun!

Pleasecontact Donna Leggett or Erika Campbell at (206) 525-9666 or hssocialservices@hearthstone.org.

The Hearthstone is a My Green Lake advertiser.

©Amy Duncan for My Green Lake | Seattle's Green Lake Blog, 2011.

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Post tags: advertiser, older adults, the hearthstone, volunteer