Moss Creek Nature Club Savannah NWR Outreach Program & Pinckney Island NWR Tours November 8, 2017 Nancy V. Fernandez John Petraglia Urban Outreach Coordinator VP, Friends of the Savannah Coastal U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Wildlife Refuges, Inc. Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex Project Leader – Pinckney Island NWR Programs & Accessibility Tours
Agenda U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service Savannah NWR Nancy Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges Pinckney Island Accessibility Tours John Outreach on Pinckney Island NWR Nancy & John Page 2
Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex Page 3
Who are we? • Department of the Interior • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service • National Wildlife Refuge System • Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex – Pinckney Island NWR – Tybee NWR – Savannah NWR – Wassaw NWR – Harris Neck NWR – Blackbeard Island NWR – Wolf Island NWR Page 4
Market Hunting Page 5
Plume Hunting Page 6
The First National Wildlife Refuge: Pelican Island NWR • Established 1903 • Near Sebastian, FL • Protect Birds (Pelicans, Egrets, Herons, etc.) Paul Kroegel Page 7
National Wildlife Refuges “Wildlife First” Page 8
Urban Wildlife Conservation Program Atlanta Botanical Garden Los Angeles River Urban Wildlife Refuge Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge Page 9
Urban Outreach Page 10
POC Outdoors POC Outdoors Snoqualmie NF Grand Teton NP Pinnacles NP Santa Cruz Camp Loma Mountains Mar Page 11
Making New Connections Volunteers In Medicine at HHI Page 12
Unity in the Community Back-to-School event Our first meeting July part of Downtown Trip 4 Us 2017 Page 13
Pollinator Gardens Page 14
Pinckney Island NWR Savannah NWR Wassaw NWR Page 15
Pinckney Island NWR • Pinckney Island is between the mainland (Bluffton) and Hilton Head - 4,053 acres • Most heavily visited of the Savannah Refuges Visitors (approx. per year): 230,000* * Based on traffic counter Pinckney Island History NWR Page 16
Pinckney Island NWR Map 14 Miles of Trails Bluffton Hilton Head Haigh Landing Page 17
Pinckney Island Trails 14 miles of hiking trails on the refuge & nine recommended hikes • Ibis Pond - 1.2 miles (1.9 km), round trip; one and a half hours • Shell Point - 4.6 miles (7.4 km), round trip; four hours and 15 minutes • Wood Stork Pond - 2.7 miles (4.3 km), round trip; two and a half hours • Osprey Pond - 3.0 miles (4.8 km), round trip; three hours • Nini Chapin Pond - 3.6 miles (5.8 km), round trip; three and a half hours • Bull Point - 5.0 miles (8.0 km), round trip; five hours • Dick Point - 7.4 miles (11.9 km), round trip; six and a half hours • Clubhouse Pond - 6.2 miles (10.0 km), round trip; five and a half hours • White Point - 7.8 miles (12.6 km), round trip; seven hours Page 18
Visitor Accessibility & Programs Pinckney Island NWR The Friends Website http://www.coastalrefuges.org/ Page 19
Friends of the Savannah Wildlife Refuges • Non-Profit Organization - 501(c)(3) • All Volunteers • Membership - 950 • The Friends manage the Savannah NWR Visitor Center nature store, The Gator Hole. Yearly sales are approx. $40,000 – $50,000. The majority of the revenue is donated to fund refuge projects. Page 20
Friends Services • Public outreach and education • Fund raising to support the refuge • Staffing & Operation of Savannah NWR Nature Store • Refuge maintenance and improvement • Advocating for the refuges at all levels of government • Funding a building on the Savannah Refuge for children environmental education Kingfisher Discovery Center • Pinckney Island Nature Tours Page 21
Community Foundation Grant • Grant for $37,000 • The grant is to facilitate educational experience and outdoor activities including shuttle and bike tours, and other events . • Provide accessibility to the refuge for the elderly, the very young and mobility impaired. • Our grant activities are consistent with unfunded Refuge plans for Pinckney Island. http://www.cf-lowcountry.org/ Page 22
Community Foundation of the Lowcountry • The CF has invested more than $54 million in our Lowcountry area since 1994. • The CF provides the largest source of unrestricted philanthropic resources dedicated to our area: Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper Counties. • The CF started with funds from the sale of the original Hilton Head Hospital. • We cannot say enough about this amazing organization. Page 23
Grant Equipment • Grant Amount $37,000 • Equipmen t – 15 Seat Electric Shuttle – 15 Bicycles – 15 Binoculars – Trailer to transport bikes – Brochures & Advertising – Tent, table, chairs and more Page 24
Equipment Page 25
Guided Tours • Weekly Shuttle Tours • Group Accessibility Tours • Bike Tours • Registration Required https://coastalrefuges.org/PI Page 26 26
Shuttle Tours – Public Tours Including the Accessibility Challenged – Accredited Docent Commentary – Loan Binoculars – 1.5 hours – Free – Donations Suggested Page 27 27
Accessibility Tours – Groups with Members with Accessibility Challenges – Tours arranged with the Groups Organization – Seabrook, Tidepointe, PEP Page 28 28
Roving Docent • Docent Commentary • Answer Questions • Unscheduled • Various Location: Ibis Pond Butterfly Garden Starr Pond Page 29 29
Status • Volunteers - 40+ • Public Tours - Once a week since January 2017 • Group Accessibility Tours - 1 or 2 per month • Bike Tours - Starting soon • Tour Participants – Jan-Sept - More than 800+ Page 30 30
Volunteer Organization • Executive Committee • Equipment Maintenance • Docents • Shuttle Drivers • Visitor Assistants • Publicity, Donations, Membership Consider Volunteering Page 31 31
Community Outreach • U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Friends are working together to do local outreach on Pinckney Island NWR. • Inviting the Hispanic community: shuttle tours, bike tours, walks, … • Volunteers are needed for strategy, Spanish speaking, planning, etc. Please volunteer. Page 32 32
Volunteers, Donations & Friends Membership Membership & Donations https://coastalrefuges.org Interested in Volunteering? Contact - John Petraglia johnpetr17@gmail.com 631-338-6098 Page 33 33
Questions Page 34 34
Thank You John Petraglia Nancy V. Fernandez Friends of the Coastal Urban Outreach Coordinator Wildlife Refuges U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Savannah Coastal Refuges johnpetr17@gmail.com Complex nancy_fernandez@fws.gov Page 35
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