Snowy, Small, & Sweet Watershed Wide Event

We had a small but mighty group help us further our watershed enhancement goals at the 11th Annual Watershed Wide Event! The day began with a hearty dusty of snow across the watershed, but some intrepid volunteers still showed up to steward the watershed – we are so grateful to be a part of a community where people will show up on an unexpectedly wintry day to give back! Work parties happened at two sites – Jackson Middle School and Lake Oswego United Church of Christ.

At Jackson Middle School, 4 volunteers joined Westside Watershed Resource Center’s Erik and together they planted 102 native plants! They worked along the community pathway in the SW corner of campus, and also removed some spot invasive weeds from the 1600 sq ft of work area. Last fall, Wisdom of the Elders removed a large thicket of Armenian blackberry from this work area and it’s great to be able to plant as follow-up in the restoration process.

At LO UCC, the work area was near an active restoration project under an OWEB Small Grant; there, 10 volunteers removed 600 square feet of invasive English ivy, and liberated 19 trees from ivy – including a few complete “lifesavers” where ground ivy is removed from a 6-foot trunk radius in addition to the air-gapping. This work is important in improving water quality and wildlife habitat throughout the watershed.

A huge thank you to the many volunteers, partners, and donors that made this event possible, including: City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services, Clackamas and West Multnomah SWCDs, SWNI’s Westside Watershed Resource Center, Jackson Middle School, Lake Oswego United Church of Christ, Spielman Bagels, Grand Central Bakery, and Starbucks Coffee.

Thank you also to the various businesses that donated gift cards for our Pi Day themed raffles! Lauretta Jean’s, Chuckie Pies, Flying Pie Pizzeria, Life of Pi, Pacific Pie Co., Banning’s Restaurant & Pie House, and the Pie Spot. Our volunteers were rewarded for their tenacity with much higher chances of winning!

We would also like to thank other partners who played important roles in planning for our Watershed Wide Event even though the event-as-planned did not come to pass: West Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District, Portland Parks & Recreation, Friends of Tryon Creek, Oswego Lake Watershed Council, Lake Oswego High School, Boonesferry Terrace HOA, and Riverdale High School. We appreciate each of you and look forward to next year!

P.S. You can also check this out (and give us a follow) on Facebook & Instagram!