Friends of Sausal Creek

by Earth Day and Unity, Global and Local

By Kristen Hopper

Typing "Earth Day, history" into my Web search engine, I found one of the original Earth Day Resolutions. This discovery gave me a renewed sense of excitement about Earth Day 2003, fast approaching on Saturday, April 19. Earth Day, I learned, was partially spawned by a proposal to the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. The wording of this "Proposed Earth Day Resolution" is timely and particularly paradoxical 23 years later as our nation's leaders have taken us to war.

"WHEREAS: As earthians we need a day to celebrate our global unity and destiny, and WHEREAS: The observance of Earth Day will alert concern and interest for our planet with its precious treasures of living things and, WHEREAS: Earth Day is to remind each person of his/her right, and the equal right of every other person, to use of this global home and at the same time the equal responsibility of each person to preserve and improve the Earth and the quality of life thereon, BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED: That in the city and county of San Francisco, March 21st (vernal Equinox) be designated Earth Day a special day to remember earth's tender seedlings of life and people; a day for planting trees and grass and flowers, for clearing streams and wooded glens."

As customary, FOSC will be facilitating Earth Day events throughout the watershed as part of the City of Oakland's citywide cleanup. (Call Oakland's Events Hotline at 238-7611 for citywide information.) There will be plenty of tasks to busy the hands of volunteers with all kinds of interests and abilities. Children are welcome but must be accompanied by adults.

For a safe, successful, effective event, team leaders are needed to manage small groups cleaning the creek, propagating plants, and bashing weeds. Please attend the April 16 meeting to determine projects, and/or call FOSC at 501-FOSC to lend your team-leading skills (or with questions).

On the day of the event, go to one of the following four locations at 9 a.m. (team leaders should arrive at 8:30 a.m.):

Barry Place at East 27th Street creek cleanup

1900 Fruitvale Ave. green the Fruitvale in partnership with the Unity Council

Joaquin Miller Native Plant Nursery propagate native plants

Dimond Park (meet at the Dimond Recreation Center, 3860 Hanly Road) weeding, weeding, weeding, weeding, and picking up trash.

I look forward to the inspiration Earth Day imparts to care for "earth's tender seedlings" by tending the banks of our own lovely creek.