November 2, 2020
We were thrilled to be chosen as the "Round Up at the Register" nonprofit at Moonflower Community Cooperative this month. The round up started yesterday and will run until close of business on the 14th. When you make a purchase, you will be asked if you want to round up to the dollar. This is a great way to raise money to help us further our projects in the community. Moonflower is an amazing partner and we love them!
We were thrilled to be chosen as the "Round Up at the Register" nonprofit at Moonflower Community Cooperative this month. The round up started yesterday and will run until close of business on the 14th. When you make a purchase, you will be asked if you want to round up to the dollar. This is a great way to raise money to help us further our projects in the community. Moonflower is an amazing partner and we love them!
Orchard cleanup, take two
One of our projects is called "Volunteer Vacation". People visiting Moab can spend an hour or two helping us with a variety of projects. The Howard family from the Salt Lake City area wanted to help us with the last huge and abandoned camp in the old orchard between the hospital and the Grand Center. And it was a doozy!
We saved all items that could be recycled, and had to put the rest in a landfill-bound dumpster. But now, that area is looking so much better!
One of our projects is called "Volunteer Vacation". People visiting Moab can spend an hour or two helping us with a variety of projects. The Howard family from the Salt Lake City area wanted to help us with the last huge and abandoned camp in the old orchard between the hospital and the Grand Center. And it was a doozy!
We saved all items that could be recycled, and had to put the rest in a landfill-bound dumpster. But now, that area is looking so much better!
Good friends are a great gift!
My friend Holly came to visit recently. Not only did she expertly help roll barbed wire I needed removed from the property where I live, she also got a start on picking up some of the hundreds of pieces of broken glass on the back part of the property. As if that wasn't more than enough, she helped me with the annual autumn ritual of removing cans and bottles flung under trees and bushes in the canyon that become visible as the seasons change. Here she is, pictured with a bunch of containers that we had to go to great lengths to remove. These were from past the Powerdam structure to the confluence. THANKS HOLLY!
My friend Holly came to visit recently. Not only did she expertly help roll barbed wire I needed removed from the property where I live, she also got a start on picking up some of the hundreds of pieces of broken glass on the back part of the property. As if that wasn't more than enough, she helped me with the annual autumn ritual of removing cans and bottles flung under trees and bushes in the canyon that become visible as the seasons change. Here she is, pictured with a bunch of containers that we had to go to great lengths to remove. These were from past the Powerdam structure to the confluence. THANKS HOLLY!
October 4, 2020
We were honored to be invited to be one of the nonprofits meeting with some addiction medicine fellows, their attending, and an administrative staff member on Sept. 24. We showed them the remnants of a homeless camp near the hospital while talking about the challenges in this community, and then found a few of the homeless hanging out on the Parkway. The fellows got to meet and talk with them. Here is some information about their visit to Moab from our addiction specialist psychiatrist, Dr. Lauren Prest:
"University of Utah Addiction Fellows will be visiting Moab to better understand our community needs and discuss how they might be helpful or contribute to your work. Ultimately, these fellows are looking to spend a significant amount of their training working with rural populations, so I am so grateful for your willingness to meet with them! Their training year would begin in 2021, so this visit will be an opportunity to give them a tour of the work you do and consider ways an addiction trained doctor might contribute to your work."
It is exciting to see this field of medicine growing, as addiction rates are soaring. We hope some of the fellows come down to Moab when they are done their training.
We were honored to be invited to be one of the nonprofits meeting with some addiction medicine fellows, their attending, and an administrative staff member on Sept. 24. We showed them the remnants of a homeless camp near the hospital while talking about the challenges in this community, and then found a few of the homeless hanging out on the Parkway. The fellows got to meet and talk with them. Here is some information about their visit to Moab from our addiction specialist psychiatrist, Dr. Lauren Prest:
"University of Utah Addiction Fellows will be visiting Moab to better understand our community needs and discuss how they might be helpful or contribute to your work. Ultimately, these fellows are looking to spend a significant amount of their training working with rural populations, so I am so grateful for your willingness to meet with them! Their training year would begin in 2021, so this visit will be an opportunity to give them a tour of the work you do and consider ways an addiction trained doctor might contribute to your work."
It is exciting to see this field of medicine growing, as addiction rates are soaring. We hope some of the fellows come down to Moab when they are done their training.
For this month's diary, I am going to let a few pictures tell the tale of a thousand words, with just a few of mine.
September 5, 2020
Moab Solutions has been part of the Mill Creek Community Collaborative for two years. The group is reaching out to the community to get reactions and comments on the four plans that were developed during that time. Consider taking the survey and sharing this with your friends. Make your voice heard!
Moab Solutions supports Option A, which offers the most protection for the canyon. With some small measures put in place, this option could be an example of how to protect land and educate visitors as to why numbers must be limited, say by the number of parking spaces, for example.
I fear that there is a plan in place to connect the in-town parkway with the Nature Conservancy Preserve on one side, and the Powerdam section of the canyon on the other, which would cause grievous harm to all three areas. Connectivity isn't always a good thing! (Recently it came to light that there was a plan in place to "develop" the parkway into an "outdoor recreation corridor" with multiple bike skills areas. The horrific phase one has already destroyed a special part of the parkway. We brought the greater plan to light and presented it to the public, many of whom were horrified and heartbroken. Now it may not be so easy for the county and the city to install more of these monstrosities, to the determent of the land.)
We need to educated folks about the fragile nature of desert ecosystems, so that people get more out of their experience, and learn how to enjoy the land without harming it.
Link to the options and link to the survey mentioned in the poster below.
We had a mini work party in the canyon last Tuesday the 1st. Sandy Freethey, trail worker extraordinaire, met me and Sam to help us maintain a trail and block some user made trails. That tumble is almost as big as Sandy!
Sandy Freethey with a tumbleweed used to block a user made trail.
Tragic Update on the BSPark.....
Well, despite all of our efforts, including an offer to redo the grading plan by a licensed grading contractor and permaculture expert, the original horrible plans went ahead and it is a huge disaster. Protected trees are being irreparably harmed, and the entire area desecrated. And we ask, FOR WHAT?
I have not been able to go anywhere near that area, nor look at photos. I am heartbroken and very disappointed with the city, for allowing this to take place. Let's not have a repeat!
Well, despite all of our efforts, including an offer to redo the grading plan by a licensed grading contractor and permaculture expert, the original horrible plans went ahead and it is a huge disaster. Protected trees are being irreparably harmed, and the entire area desecrated. And we ask, FOR WHAT?
I have not been able to go anywhere near that area, nor look at photos. I am heartbroken and very disappointed with the city, for allowing this to take place. Let's not have a repeat!
Don't destroy this!
We lost another great one. Dean Nebergall, pictured here with Breezy, (with Carol Hoggard - who passed away 7/5/19 - in the background), passed away on 12/6/19. One of the kindest humans to walk the earth, we send love unending to Dean and to those who love him.