Central Coast Natural History Association to Host Statewide Director of California State Parks
Ruth Coleman, who is the statewide director of California State Parks, will be visiting our local parks on October 16, 2010 to celebrate local private public partnerships which contribute to the vitality of our parks.
Director Coleman will be spending the day meeting the public, docents, volunteers, and park staff and seeing the latest developments. She will be hosted by the Central Coast Natural History Association (CCNHA), a private nonprofit whose mission is to support and fund education and interpretative programs at our local state parks. Starting at 11:00 a.m., she will attend the formal ribbon cutting for the new Marine Mammal Mural at the Museum of Natural History at Morro Bay State Park.
CCNHA has spent the last year raising $12,000 for the mural which has been in the works for five years. "This is just a terrific teaching tool," says Linda Winters, School Group Docent Coordinator. "Every year we teach 7,000 school children, many of whom have never before seen the ocean. For them to see themselves in relation to the size of a whale or elephant seal is really eye-opening."
"Many, many local people donated funds to the mural from $5 to $2,000," says Mary Golden, Executive Director of CCNHA. "This is really a community mural with community support. It will be great to show Director Coleman how much our community supports us." Diane Blakeslee Bocato closed the gap to finish funding with a $1,300 donation. The mural was just completed this fall by noted muralist Kris Doe.
At 2:00 pm, Director Coleman will be hiking the Bluff Trail at Montana de Oro with State Park docents. She will also tour the Spooner Ranch House, a historical ranch house at Montana de Oro that also serves as the visitor’s center for the park. Recently, the Hind Foundation donated $134,900 to stabilize and rehabilitate the structure and the Swift Foundation donated $13,000. "Montana de Oro State Park is really the beloved state park to locals, and the ranch house is one of the last remaining examples of our coastal ranching history on public lands, "says Coastal Sector Superintendent Juventino Ortiz. "The Hind and Swift Foundations working with Central Coast Natural History Association are a great example of how parks, nonprofits, and the private sector merge to preserve natural and cultural resources."
The Hind Foundation grant stabilized the roof and walls of the ranch house, and beautiful new coat of white paint was applied. From this point, renovations to the interior can proceed including restoring the ranch kitchen and a general store, circa 1885. At 5:30 pm, there will be a hosted dinner for Director Coleman featuring chefs providing a "potluck" using local sustainable ingredients including Big Sky Café, Et Viola, The Neon Carrot, and Novo. The dinner will be limited to 50 people at the Museum of Natural History at Morro Bay State Park with a cost of $50. Persons interested in attending the dinner with Director Coleman should contact Mary Golden at 772.2694, ext. 102 or by email.
