Volunteer and Docent Newsletter

Transcription

1 NOVEMBER, DECEMBER VOLUNTEER TRIPS SUSPENDED The traditional dates (the forth Thursday of the month) for Volunteer Trips comes into direst conflict with holidays. As a result the November and December Volunteer Trips will be suspended. Trips will resume in January. -~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~ BECOME A DOCENT At the Tucson Botanical Gardens! The next docent training course at the Tucson Botanical Gardens will be held on Wednesday mornings from 9AM-Noon, starting on February 17, 2010 and ending on April 28, This 11-week course requires a fee to cover the cost of materials. There is a class size limit. Call Ron Bridgemon, , ext. 39, to reserve your space. What does a docent do? Trained docents at Tucson Botanical Gardens participate in specialized training sessions, lead garden tours, present educational outreach programs for adults and children, staff educational carts, implement horticultural therapy programs, teach Gardens signature classes, participate in training and planning for Gardens educational and outreach programs, staff volunteer booths at community events and the information center to provide Gardens and plant information to visitors as a Gardens interpreter. What do docents learn? History of Tucson Botanical Gardens Botany for Gardeners Wildflowers Gardening for Birds and Butterflies Water Resources and Conservation Principles of Xeriscaping Desert Ecology Herb Gardening Ethnobotany Tour Guide and Presentation Skills November 2009 Volunteer and Docent Newsletter NOVEMBER VOLUNTEER MEETING Thursday, November 12, Porter Hall, 9:30AM The next volunteer and VAC meeting will be held on November 12, 9:30AM, in Porter Hall. The speakers for the monthly volunteer meeting will be Mike Hulsey and Elaine Terrell who will talk to us about the new gift shop. Mike is the new Retail Services and Gift Shop Manager. Come learn the new direction of the Gift Shop and hear about the exciting new ways to get involved! -~NOVEMBER VOLUNTEER MEETINGS-~ Tour Guides Meeting Tuesday, November 3, 10AM Volunteer Lounge Signature Presenters Meeting Tuesday, November 3, 11AM Volunteer Lounge Proctors Meeting Tuesday, November 10, 9AM Volunteer Lounge VAC Meeting Thursday, November 10,...following the Volunteer Meeting Butterfly Magic Orientation There are two upcoming orientation sessions for Butterfly Magic volunteers one on Saturday, November 14, 2PM and one on Saturday, December 5, 2PM. Both will be in the Education Building Classroom. Volunteers who have not already attended an orientation can choose one of the above dates. Please call Sarah Max, volunteer coordinator, at , ext. 24, or volunteer@tucsonbotanical.org to reserve your spot! 2150 North Alvernon Way, Tucson, Arizona

2 LUMINARIA NIGHTS December 4, 5, & 6 th from 5-8PM --VOLUNTEERS NEEDED-- My name is Joan Ardern, coordinator for this year s Luminaria Nights at the Gardens. Every year, we rely greatly on the services of volunteers to make this a truly unforgettable event. There are a variety of tasks to be accomplished everything from luminary bag preparation on the Wednesday prior, to volunteer check-in each night of the event. If you are interested in being a part of this year s Luminaria Nights, please sign up with Sarah Max. This year promises to be quite a success; we have scheduled twenty-four different entertainment groups. All the musicians we ve contacted love this event and look forward to participating again this year. I am impressed with how well the Gardens has done in creating the aura that surrounds this event. We are now in the process of confirming food vendors. Trader Joe s will participate again this y e a r, p r o v i d i n g h o t c i d e r a n d cookies. Confirmation is pending from three other food providers. Next, we will establish the support system for this event. This is where you come in; your active participation is key to making this event a success. As in the past, TEP, Assisteens and Citi Group will provide volunteers to support the Gardens. There will also be special food donors providing food for the volunteers each night a small way of saying thanks for your time and service. Once again, if you are interested in participating in this fantastic event, check with Sarah Max for the job list and sign up today. Please join with us to kick off the holidays with a fun evening at the Gardens. I look forward to meeting you all! SELECTED ADULT EDUCATION CLASSES FOR NOVEMBER AROMATHERAPY FOR HEART AND HOME Friday, Nov. 13, 10AM-NOON Join Janice Ward, of WiseWoman Aromatherapy, as she discusses the ways and methods of using aromatherapy in your life and in your home. Come smell, touch and sense the healing, calming and awakening qualities of pure essential oils that come from nature. You will take with you some tools on how you can use aromatherapy in your daily routine, for a calmer, more grounded sense of well-being. Everyone will make a roller ball perfume essence, custom oil in a beautiful bottle that you can tuck into purse or pocket, and use often on your pulse points, to calm, revive or balance yourself, any time you need it. $25, $20 members THE NATURAL HISTORY OF BELIZE Thursday, Nov. 19, 6-8PM Belize, a small country at the base of the Yucatan Peninsula, is a naturalist s paradise. Home to an extraordinary array of birds, mammals, reptiles, insects, and other wildlife, Belize is a great destination for ecotourists. This travelogue will highlight just some of the animals that inhabit this wonderful country. Join Jeff Babson, owner of Sky Island Tours, for an armchair journey to Belize. $14, $7 members THE PHENOMENON OF MATA ORTIZ Monday, Nov. 23, 6-7:30PM Learn about the phenomenon of Mata Ortiz pottery as Ron and Sue Bridgemon present the highlights of this ceramic revolution. Learn how this fine-art pottery was developed and discover the ever changing styles being created by new and established potters. $10, $7 members ~~ ADOPT A BUTTERFLY ~~ Adopt a Butterfly is now available for purchase on our website, you can either download the brochure and mail it in with a check or cc# or purchase directly from our site with a credit card by clicking the butterfly photo. It will be available year round. Anyone interested in adopting please go to: There will also be a link from the Butterfly Magic page: 2

3 SONORAN BUTTERFLY PROJECT The Sonoran Butterfly Project is up and running! Thanks to donations from the Stonewall Foundation and the Wallace Research Foundation, we are sending butterfly kits out to local classrooms so children can have the experience of rearing Painted Lady or Gulf Fritillary butterflies from larvae to adult butterfly. Rick Small, Youth Education Specialist, is coordinating this project. We have had a tremendous response to this offer for city wide classrooms. Teachers are excited to have this resource available in their classrooms. So far we have distributed to over 50 classrooms and are in the process of ordering our third batch of larvae. With the help of the funding we already have, we have been able to offer a discount tour rate for classrooms participating in the Sonoran Butterfly Project to tour the Butterfly Magic Exhibit. ~~ BUTTERFLY EXHIBIT MAINTENANCE ~~ Come as you are and enjoy the butterflies and the flight exhibit in a calm, no-visitor, setting. We will dead-head flowers, remove spider-webs (one of the reasons for our butterflies not lasting as long is the spider webs), remove dead leaves (though NOT deadleaf butterflies!), clean the exhibit s entrance and exit, and do some more basic maintenance tasks to keep the exhibit looking clean and inviting. Please bring your own water bottle. Feel free to bring your favorite pair of scissors for deadheading. If you don t know about deadheading, don t worry. We ll give you instructions. Show up prepared to get dirty. Contact Elizabeth for more information at , ext. 38, or bly@tucsonbotanical.org. Exhibit Maintenance Dates: 7-8:30AM or 9AM Saturday, October 24 Saturday, October 31 Saturday, November 7 Saturday, November 14 Saturday, November 21 Saturday, November 28 Saturday, December 5 Saturday December 12 A BIG THANK YOU...to all of you who have helped in preparing the butterfly exhibit this year, and, now, a big thanks to those who have been volunteering up to now. We can t do it without you! We hope that we are providing an opportunity for you that suitably rewards you and keeps you coming back for more. Butterfly Shifts Available in November and December! If you have completed the Butterfly Magic volunteer orientation and would like to cover a shift in the Butterfly Magic exhibit for November or December, please contact Sarah Max, volunteer coordinator, at , ext. 24, or volunteer@tucsonbotanical.org. Exhibit Update We have had already many different species in the exhibit and more continue to arrive. We expect to routinely have about species at any one time and between 300 and 400 butterflies. Our emphasis right now is on the American butterflies (or Neotropical butterflies). However, we don t turn out great opportunities and recently (Oct 16, as of this writing) we had the opportunity to receive pupae of the Cairn s birdwing. We hope these will emerge next week. We may get more Cairn s birdwing pupae throughout the year, even outside of Australia month (December), depending on availability through London Pupae Supply. Some of the species we have in the exhibit that are also Arizona species include the Giant Swallowtail, the Buckeye, the Painted Lady, the Three-Tailed Swallowtail, the Pipevine Swallowtail, the Queen, the Monarch, and the Gulf Fritillary. Check the website for pictures of these butterflies! Saturday and Sunday Activities (tentative dates at this time, so please check website close to event time): Bugging Out with John Rhodes, Sunday, November 29 About Butterflies, Saturday and Sunday, November 7 & 8 and 14 & 15 Origami Want to Try It?, Sunday, November 15 Currently being confirmed are activities and displays dealing with invasive species, bats, bees, desert tortoises, desert ecology, and growing your own edible plants (designed for children of all ages). Check the Gardens web site for more details, as these activities will changing with the season. S E A B A - S o u t h e a s t A r i z o n a B u t t e r f l y Association). Meeting is open to the public and members are welcome to attend and learn more about butterflies. Meetings are the 3 rd Tuesday of the month; 7-9 PM at Tucson Botanical Gardens. 3

4 The Volunteer Advisory Committee (VAC) met on October 8, 2009 and welcomed two new members for two-year terms. Paula Burns replaces outgoing Grounds Representatives Joe and Joyce Petska, and Julie Church is the new Adult Education Representative replacing Cricket Miles. Open issues discussed at the meeting began with the move of the Library from the Resource Center back to the former location in Porter Hall. The Grove Shop will move to the larger space of the Resource Center. The new shop name is Friends House Garden & Gifts and has a scheduled opening for Thanksgiving weekend. The former Grove Shop is scheduled to become a tea house. Seven Cups Tea House has been talking to the Gardens about fusing our Zen Garden and Grove of Peace and Harmony with their Chinese Tea House. There s a lot of work ahead (health department permits, etc.), but with luck the venture should open later this year. Tucson Botanical Gardens received a grant from the Arizona State Forestry Division for TreeConnections. In partnership with Tucson s Midtown Neighborhood, project staff and volunteers will inventory the Gardens nearly 100 trees and evaluate and develop new tree signage and associated educational materials as well as volunteer-led tours and programs focused on urban desert trees. An overhaul of the native crop gardens is in the near future. The new garden will represent both prehistoric gardens of the valley and more modern native desert trees. As a way to introduce this new garden and help direct visitors around the construction, a new Ethnobotany tour is in the works to be offered Saturday afternoons. If interested, contact Ron Bridgemon for more details. Why were the paper tubes collected in the last couple of months? Butterfly Affaire, held Oct. 11, was created as a green event. All the paper tubes collected were turned into napkin rings by board member Anna Marie Patti. Then the designs punched out of the tubes were used to decorate recycled baby food jars used for votive candles. The dinnerware was compostable bamboo with table decorations of living plants (grown on site by Jamie of the grounds staff) in recycled containers. The beef supplied for the meal was provided by Langdon Hill (Bernice Porter s grandson) from his sustainable ranch along with local wine and other food to create a wonderful meal. A new Yearbook is being created and will be available in the Volunteer Office to familiarize everyone with all the new staff. Each listing will offer a picture, the position, extension number and of each staff member. Volunteers wishing to offer scheduled garden tours and special group tours should attend the Tour Guides meeting Tuesday, November 3, 10AM, in the Volunteer Lounge. Excerpts from the VAC Meeting 4 The Butterfly Exhibit opened Monday, October 12. The system for signing up to work the exhibit and the emergence room has changed. If you have not already volunteered but wish to volunteer, contact Sarah Max at volunteer@tucsonbotanical.org or , ext. 24. You also may have noticed the large touch screen in the Volunteer Office. It is being phased in for volunteer hours. Currently only those volunteering for the Butterfly Exhibit have the PIN number required for use. The Friends House Garden & Gifts Shop volunteer shifts will be three-hour shifts beginning Thanksgiving week. New merchandise, including a new ladies butterfly shirt with TBG on it, will be available. Plants will always be available for sale at the main gift shop and possibly the Friends House shop. The goal is not to have a full-fledged nursery operation, but rather to have a reasonable supply of interesting plants each season. The Gift Shop is also now stocking Talavera pots. The overriding goal of Mike Hulsey, Retail Manager, is to reduce inventory through creative pricing rather than by sales, e.g., some slow moving things may be re-priced and moved to the Friends House shop. Mike, with the UA s retail program, has started a new program. A group of students has been challenged to find new local products in three categories: food, music, and gifts. They will then pick one and negotiate a supply contract with the vendor. A special sale will be held featuring their selected products. The Wednesday Grounds Crew moved Edna s Shed to the area near the Herb Garden. The brick work at the former site is completed. The openness created by the space where it used to be provides a nice view into the large window of the Butterfly Exhibit. Volunteers also assisted in giving the shrubs in the greenhouse a good haircut to facilitate better walking paths as the Exhibit opens. Those in wheelchairs or walkers as well as school groups will find it much easier to get around the exhibit. The long awaited relocation of the donated 25 ft. boojum tree is scheduled to take place soon with the help of volunteers. A new initiative to try to eliminate the many Gardens hoses by utilizing hose carts is in the works. Juliet Niehaus once again oversees the program and we welcome her back. With her oversight the program is moving into new areas in conjunction with existing programs. Assisted Living organizations are increasing and the Supportive Horticulture Program which now works with three high school groups and two day programs is continuing. The new programs include a project with Catholic Services to include the feeding center. Another new program is designed for veterans in transition. All of these programs are currently done with nine long time docents and three new additions. Docents interested in the new opportunities available in Horticultural Therapy should contact Juliet Niehaus at horttherapy@tucsonbotanical.org. (continued, next page)

5 Volunteer Advisory Council Meeting (continued from previous page) Joan Ardern will run Luminaria Nights in December. There are already musicians signed up to participate, but we are still looking for more food vendors. If you have a recommendation for great portable foods to include in the event contact Michelle Conklin. Youth Education is beginning to gear up with the assistance of Rick Small and Justin Bramhall. Rick has volunteered at the Gardens previously on Youth Education, and Justin is part of the new staff. If you are interested in helping meet school tour groups or the new Signature Class for kids, contact Sarah for times. The next VAC meeting is Thursday, November 12, following the monthly Volunteer Meeting. Everyone is invited to attend. Upcoming special events include the Home Garden Tour (known as the Ultimate Home Garden Tour) scheduled for Saturday, Apr. 10, 2010, and will be limited to 81 participants who will be provided with a guided bus tour. There will be 3 buses, each with a step on guide. Four fabulous gardens will be on the tour. Lunch will be provided at Hacienda Del Sol, with committee members joining the paying tour members. So far 7 homes have been previewed, with two identified as definite and 2 as possibilities. The committee has leads on others to visit. The Green Living Festival is scheduled for Saturday, April 24, 2010, at the Gardens from 8:30AM-2PM. Bookman s is sponsoring this event, and Tamara Jones, their Tucson Community Relations person, is working with the Gardens committee. The event will concentrate on the following areas in which there will be numerous activities, presenters, and programs for both adults and children in each category - Energy, Environment (which will include Transportation), Food, Green Building Maintenance, and Water. Elaine West, Chair, VAC THE SCARECROWS ARE AT THE GARDENS! Youth Education Volunteer Meeting Thursday, November 5, 9AM Education Building The Youth Education Department is being revitalized with fresh, new energy! We are looking for your support to help out with the future of this department. If you have an interest in teaching kids and helping them see the wonder of the natural world, your attendance in this meeting would be much appreciated. We will discuss some upcoming events (i.e., Homeschool Day, on Nov. 11), as well as ideas for the future. If you are not able to attend this event, but are interested in helping out with our youth education programs, please contact Justin Bramhall at , ext. 27 or education2@tucsonbotanical.org. ~~ BUTTERFLY TALKS ~~ Butterflies of Australia Talk November 18, 3PM OR November 23, 9AM This talk will introduce you to the butterflies of Australia that we expect to have in the exhibit during December. Butterflies of Africa January 4, 2010, 9AM OR January 6, 2010, 3PM This talk will introduce you to the butterflies of Africa that we expect to have in the exhibit during January. Butterflies of Asia February 1, 2010, 9AM OR February 3, 3PM This talk will introduce you to the butterflies of Asia that we expect to have in the exhibit during February. Butterflies from Around the World March 1, 2010, 9AM OR March 3, 3PM This talk will review the butterflies that we expect to have in the exhibit in March and April a wide selection of butterflies from around the world. 5

6 2150 North Alvernon Way Tucson, Arizona Tucson Botanical Gardens Volunteer Advisory Council Members Elaine West, Chair Colleen Babcock, Jill Jackson-Mandel and Loveda Petrie, Vice-Chairs Julie Church, Adult Ed. Representative Jo Ann Alldredge, Gift Shop Representative Cynthia Reiners, Youth Ed. Representative Paula Burns, Grounds Representatives Hope Keimon, Special Events Representative Violet Formisano, Butterfly Magic Representative Susan Meere, Horticultural Therapy Representative Solveig Palenek, Member-at-large Suzanne Seville, Recorder Sarah Max, Staff Representative