Earth Day Follow-up

An incredible 30 or so volunteers, including many Treekeepers, installed 20 oak saplings on Saturday, April 21. The trees were generously donated by Openlands, as part of their initiative to increase the number of native trees in Chicago’s urban forest. Rainbow Beach Dunes is lucky to have such dedicated supporters!

Special thanks to Marion Brown for supervising the trash cleanup at Rocky Ledge, yielding four heaping bags of trash.

**Mark your calendars for the next community stewardship workday: Saturday May 26, 10-12.

Earth Day Events, April 21

Though I know some of you celebrate Earth Day every day, the nationally recognized time to do it is in April. So instead of our regularly scheduled 4th Saturday workday, April’s stewardship opportunity will be on Saturday April 21, 9am-12pm. There are actually two events going on in Rainbow Beach Park during this time.

1. TREE PLANTING
Openlands is donating and planting 10 Black Oaks in the Dunes Nature area (just south of the Field House) and need your help! If you haven’t walked through the Dunes area lately, now’s the time. Meet at the entrance to the Nature Area at 9am. If you have questions about this project or to RSVP, get in touch with Glenda Daniel (gdaniel@openlands.org).

2. TRASH CLEANUP
We will have our annual Friends of the Parks beach cleanup at both Rainbow Beach and Rocky Ledge (79th & the Lake. This is our proposed site for a dog beach). RSVP to marion.brown@gmail.com.

For both events, you can RSVP or just show up! Equipment will be provided, but please dress appropriately for the weather and bring water to drink.

Follow-Up: March Workdays

Trash clean up two weeks in a row means the beach and dunes are looking great, this early spring. It was terrific to see veterans and new faces out for the first workdays of the year.

On March 24th, volunteers joined groups from Urban Sustain and Gary Comer College Prep.

Northwestern Law students did some spring cleaning on March 31.

 

Photo Gallery: March 2012

Chicago saw an abbreviated winter but its effects were still evident at Rainbow: grotesque ice aliens and shifting dune sands among moss and milkweed.