Community Poem, Latino Conservation Week, Volunteer Opportunities, and much more!
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🌈 September News 🌧
Community Poem, Latino Conservation Week, Volunteer Opportunities, and much more!
Last month we came together for a book reading with authors Michelle Otero (Bosque Poems) and Janet Ruth (Feathered Dreams) and created this community poem:
TO LISTEN, SOMETIMES IT’S BETTER TO CLOSE YOUR EYES birds singing 🐦 chirps—twerps—cheeps tiny whistles squeak—creak—flutter—flap one cliff swallow speaks to another as they fly chitter of swallows feeding babies 🐛 baby swallows cry from perilous perches above our heads chuck-chuck call of a solitary yellow-headed blackbird begging cries from a fledged house sparrow the hot silence of a summer day at noon 🔅 interruptions that are also part of our lives the hum of the highway 🛣 Rail Runner rumbling south the whizz of bicycle wheels 🚲 plane roaring overhead—the complaint of birds back to what the refuge offers— grasshopper buzzes from the top of a reed 🦗 plops when it lands on the brown earth bubbling, burbling water emptying into the pond 💦 crunch of gravel beneath our feet murmur of bees in sunflowers 🌻 the silence of folded butterfly wings 🦋 a scurrying lizard 🦎 the glistening whisper of a dragonfly dry whirr of cicada wings and as we open our eyes onto this silence awash in sound that fills our ears and soothes our hearts— patter of small feet 🧒 sounds of laughter the wonder of a child
Meet your Board:
Fiore Bran Aragon
Hola! I’m Fiore Bran-Aragon (she/ella), an immigrant, latine community advocate, originally from Nicaragua and transplanted to Tiwa, NM since 2019. I have 9 years of experience as an educator, international education advisor, and storyteller, and I am also a Yoga teacher and co-founder of Kula Yoga ABQ. An outdoor and conservation enthusiast and a birder, my love for my immigrant community and for birds made me gain interest in VdO and the Friends, because of their focus in centering BIPOC communities in conservation and environmental justice work. I have a background in Social Sciences and Project Management.
Join our Board of Directors
Looking for a way to be more involved in your community? Would you like to learn more about how nonprofits or wildlife refuges work? You’re in luck! We are recruiting dedicated folks with experience in: Fundraising, Membership Recruitment, Communications, Managing Finances, and Technology.
Advocate for a Bus Line Extension to Mountain View
Would you like to extend the bus line to Mountain View Elementary and/or Valle de Oro? Take this survey by Sept. 15th and share your feedback! Trouble coming up with feedback? We've got talking points ready:
The proposed bus line plan excludes industrial workers in Mountain View (MV) and the South Valley who lack transit options to their jobs. MV Elementary lacks a transit stop, posing challenges for low-income families getting children to school. Valle de Oro National Wildlife Refuge is inaccessible via public transit, crucial for MV residents lacking local parks. Despite being underserved, MV receives minimal public transit, despite ABQ Ride receiving funds for disadvantaged communities.
Join our Refuge Development Committee
Did you know that the Friends support habitat restoration, art, and education on the refuge? The Refuge Development Committee works to support Valle de Oro projects including trail development, habitat restoration, the construction of a Nature Play Area, Outdoor Classroom, extending the bus line to improve access on the refuge, and so much more! For more information contact: Annie Montes at annie@friendsofvalledeoro.org
Join our Education Committee
Our Education Committee focuses on providing free programming for the community including every single student from Mountain View Elementary School! For more information contact: Joan Morrison at joan@friendsofvalledeoro.org
Get involved with Environmental Justice
The Environmental Justice Air Monitoring Network (EJ Air) is a community-led atmospheric monitoring program developing an accessible high-quality picture of pollution impacting those who live, work, play, pray, go to school, and learn throughout the environmental justice communities of the Mountain View Neighborhood, the broader South Valley in Bernalillo County, New Mexico and the Pueblo of Isleta. Do you want to provide input for air pollution monitoring in Mountain View, the South Valley, and Pueblo of Isleta? Fill out the short surveys below!
Click HERE to register for the Sept. 14th Birding and Breakfast. All other events do not require registration.
Haga clic AQUÍ para registrarse para el desayuno y observación de aves del 14 de septiembre. Todos los demás eventos no requieren registro.
Mountain View Garden Clean-up & Harvest Festival
Sept. 28th & 29th
Saturday September 28th from 8-9am there will be a community clean-up event in preparation for the annual Harvest Festival at the Mountain View Community Garden (117 North St SW, Albuquerque, NM 87117). If you would like to participate, please reach out to Genevieve Chavez-Mitchell at gmitchell551@gmail.com. The following Sunday the 29th is the Harvest Festival at the community garden where folks come together to share food, listen to music, and play. Bring a potluck dish to share! This year's festivities will run from 3-6pm.
See our Summer Calendar for more Upcoming Events
Our Fall Calendar is coming soon!
Volunteer Opportunities
The Albuquerque Backyard Refuge Program is seeking volunteers for our bi-annual Build Your Backyard Refuge day at Valle de Oro! Are you interested in assisting with providing the community with plant giveaways and other important habitat building resources? Reach out to Laurel Ladwig at laurel@friendsofvalledeoro.org
The refuge needs your help with our Nature Store, managing invasive plants, and planting native species. Help us continue to transform our wonderful urban refuge. Many hands make light work! For more information on how to volunteer contact our Volunteer and Youth Employment
The Nature Store is powered by volunteers. Interested in helping out? Contact Kathleen at naturestore@friendsofvalledeoro.orgor sign up online here. Don't worry- we'll provide all the training you need.
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