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⛅ August News 😎
Book Reading, Scholarship Opportunity, Community Update, Bus Line Survey, and much more!
Interested in getting more involved with Valle de Oro NWR and the Friends?
Last Call: 2024-2025 Opening Doors to Nature Education Scholarship!
Under the Program this year, the Friends will award scholarships in the amount of $500 each. These scholarships will be awarded to undergraduate college students who are currently enrolled in an undergraduate conservation/environmental-focused degree or certificate program. To learn more and apply visit our website at this link. Deadline Aug. 2nd.
Attend Community Updates
Every quarter Valle de Oro hosts a community update at their Visitor Center (7851 2nd St SW) where partners and community members can learn about current projects on the refuge and their progress. We will provide free dinner and opportunities for giving input on our current projects. The next update will be August 22nd from 5:30-7pm.
Advocate for a Bus Line Extension
Would you like to extend the bus line to Mountain View Elementary and/or Valle de Oro? Take this survey by Aug. 31st 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!
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.
This August's Saturday at the Refuge (7851 2nd Street SW) join us for a morning of reading and conversation with local authors Janet Ruth (Feathered Dreams) and Michelle Otero (Bosque Poems). In Feathered Dreams, Janet Ruth--ornithologist, poet, artist, and international birder--shares her love of birds through poem, story, and image. Michelle Otero's Bosque Poems celebrates the importance of water and the bosque to the people of Albuquerque. The event runs from 10:30am to 12:30pm.
We will have signed copies of these books, FREE food, crafts, and a related educational activity.
Thirst for the Outdoors - August 10th
Come share a beer, donate, and learn about amazing outdoor activities in our community at Canteen Brewhouse!
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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