Dear Friends,
It’s not often we get to celebrate new beginnings and major milestones, so it’s important we grant them thoughtful acknowledgement and celebration when they come around. And luckily at YES, we’ve had our fair share of both in the recent weeks. From finalizing the purchase of our office building--solidifying a homebase in the heart of Richmond for our community of staff, board, volunteers, and families--to welcoming in dozens of new and familiar faces for a new season of youth and adult cohorts, YES has had many reasons to celebrate.
Before getting swept up in the adventure, excitement, and learning that this new chapter brings, we are taking a step back to reflect on the fun we’ve had on our way to this point. At the center of this reflection, as it often is, is the invaluable support we, and our families and participants, continue to receive from YES volunteers. One YES veteran in particular stands out when I consider just how far our organization has come, and I am excited for you to read a bit of her story here. Another stand-out of the season we are leaving behind is not quite a YES veteran, but has had a major impact, nonetheless: Nature Day Outings. As our programs kick into full gear and the weather gets cooler and wetter, we are taking a quick break from the weekend days spent with families and friends in our Richmond parks to turn our attention to our upcoming Winter Camp and various hikes, backpacking, and camping trips. Read on to learn about the impact Nature Day Outings have had so far, why we can’t wait to welcome them back in the spring, and why if you weren’t able to make it to one in Wildcat Canyon Regional Park, it’s certainly worth the short trip.
Milestones and new beginnings are made all the more special and celebratory with a consistently supportive community such as ours.
Thank you for being here,
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Eric Aaholm, Executive Director |
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YES Community Highlight:
Ofelia Corona
If you’ve ever attended a YES Family or Summer Camp, you likely have a personal story about a dedicated, unselfish volunteer shaping your experience--and that volunteer may likely be Ofelia.
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Ofelia began volunteering with YES in 2008 and has been a constant figure in our programs ever since. Whether she’s helping wrangle our very youngest camp goers or sharing her experiences with the Adult Leaders cohort, Ofelia radiates warmth and energy and her commitment to connection is infectious.
YES’s work building community wellness and connectedness in Richmond is what motivated Ofelia to get involved, but what keeps her working with YES is a deep sense of community and support; “YES has helped me and my family through some difficult times in the past,” she reflected, “there was never a doubt in our minds to reach out to YES for moral support.” This experience motivated Ofelia to provide that support for other families and community members who need it now, she says.
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And there is certainly no question that she’s done exactly that. Ofelia treats everyone with unparalleled dignity and kindness--from the three-year olds she works with at Family Camp to the companions she's seated with on the bus rides to Loma Mar. Not only has Ofelia made a tremendous impact herself, but her passion for bringing children and families closer to nature has sparked a chain-reaction in her own family. So if you spot Ofelia at a YES event, you’re likely to spot any of her three daughters or her husband, Jose, close by.
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YES has used the connection between mental well-being and time spent in nature to drive our programs and community engagement for over 20 years, but when the pandemic prevented us from hosting backpacking trips and family camps, we had to reimagine how we could encourage Richmond families’ safe connection with the outdoors. This is how the newest feature of our family programming was born.
In August of 2020, YES launched Nature Day Outings with the goal of creating an accessible, engaging, and educational environment for youth and adults alike to claim their space in and enjoyment of our local parks and natural spaces. On a couple of Saturdays each month, attendees make their way through staff, volunteer, and youth leader facilitated stations to get their blood pumping and their mental muscles working. Whether they’re staring down their target in pop-up archery, exploring creek-beds and examining critters, racing their family members while strapped to resistance parachutes, creating art projects, or learning about the effects of the climate crisis, families are given the opportunity to enjoy being outdoors without the excluding pressures of conquest and exertion.
Since the inception of Nature Day Outings only 15 months ago, over 560 participants have come out over the course of 14 events to join YES in reimagining what it means to enjoy nature in a safe and connected environment. While we can’t wait to welcome back the energy and love of families at Nature Day Outings next Spring, we trust that, armed with their own knowledge and excitement, families will continue to explore our local parks as their own facilitators.
There's still one Nature Day Outing left this season! Come join YES families at Point Pinole Regional Park on Saturday, November 13th and experience the fun for yourself--tap the button below to learn more and reserve your time slot.
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Parks We Love:
Wildcat Canyon Regional Park
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Richmond is surrounded on three sides by a richly diverse and beautiful coastline--but what happens when you go to the Eastern borders of the city? There, you run into a very different kind of natural paradise.
Wildcat Canyon Regional Park occupies the ancestral homeland of the Huchiun, a Karkin-speaking Ohlone tribe. The park sprawls across nearly 3,000 acres of ridges and waterways to cover much of the hills we see from the city, before meeting up with Tilden Park to the south. Whether you’re hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, or just looking for an easy paved path for a quiet stroll, Wildcat Canyon has something for you. The best part? The park is accessible by public transit, making it a destination for anyone who wants a quick break from the city.
We at YES are especially big fans of Alvarado Park, a smaller picnic area in the park’s north end, for its accessibility and capacity to bring folks together. Beyond its running stream, sturdy picnic tables, and rich biodiversity, Alvarado Park serves as the perfect setting for a useful California history lesson. The park’s unique masonry and stone structures were constructed in the 1930’s by the earliest California Conservation Corps, earning Alvarado Park a place in the National Register of Historic Places.
Don’t take our word for it--come check it out for yourself! You could easily spend an entire afternoon traipsing through the 25+ miles of hiking trails Wildcat Canyon offers, but the park is just as good for a quick picnic lunch and breath of fresh air.
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The Media That's Teaching Us |
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Do you have a book, podcast, movie, article, or any other piece of media that you've learned from recently? Send us an email and you might see your recommendation in the next YES newsletter!
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YES Nature to Neighborhoods | (510) 232-3032 | www.yesfamilies.org |
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