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Every year since 2004, hundreds of swimmers gather in beautiful Virgin Islands National Park for the Beach-to-Beach Power Swim. Many participants have been introduced to the park and its marine resources through this event and keep returning year after year, planning their annual vacation around the swim. Now in its 14th year, registrations were at an all-time high, with a record 343 swimmers registered. On Sunday, May 28th 2017, conditions were near perfect as 305 swimmers along with around 130 safe- ty and support volunteers, as well as numerous spectators, gathered at Maho Beach for the start of the 14th Annual Beach-to-Beach Power Swim. This year spectators were in for a thrill as the top male finishers battled it out in an all- out sprint from the final buoy at Oppenheimer to the finish line at Hawksnest, making for the most dramatic finish to date. First place winner Matthew Mays barely edged out past winner Rex Tulius by only one second! And third place finisher, Hardy Lussier, was only six seconds behind Rex. august 2017 www.friendsvinp.org The Friends of Virgin Islands National Park advances the protection and preservation of the natural and cultural resources of Virgin Islands National Park and promotes the responsible enjoyment of this unique national treasure while educating and inspiring adults and children to be stewards of the environment. Please remember to reuse and recycle whenever possible. what’s inside! 2017 Power Swim Recap Tidings Notes Message from the Supt. VINP Sea Turtle Monitoring Program Friends Summer Intern Friends Summer Trail Crew Earth Day Recap Archaeology Update VIERS Eco Camps President’s Message Upcoming Events Preserve. Protect. Educate. DRAMATIC FINISH WOWED THE CROWD AT THE 14TH ANNUAL BEACH TO BEACH POWER SWIM CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 A stylish group of swimmers traveled from Florida and New York to compete in the power swim. THE FIRST PLACE WINNERS: Short Course: (Women) Rachel Bello, 20:07 (Men) Brent Mays, 21:05 Short Course:* (Women) Julie Marie Olson, 25:10 (Men) Adam Thill, 25:19 Intermediate Course: (Women) Leighton Rainer, 54:16 (Men) Bryan Mason, 56:07 Intermediate Course:* (Women) Emily Luscz, 53:44 (course record) (Men) Jay Fowler, 1:01:19 Long Course: (Women) Marina Falcone, 1:18:15 (Men) Matthew Mays, 1:10:58 Long Course:* (Women) Chelsea Baranowski, 1:26:22 (Men) Matthew Rasmussen, 1:20:27 *Assisted Class
Transcript
Page 1: DRAMATIC FINISH WOWED THE CROWD AT THE 14TH ANNUAL … · CROWD AT THE 14TH ANNUAL BEACH TO BEACH POWER SWIM CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 A stylish group of swimmers traveled from Florida

Every year since 2004, hundreds of swimmers gather in beautiful Virgin Islands National Park for the Beach-to-Beach Power Swim. Many participants have been introduced to the park and its marine resources through this event and keep returning year after year, planning their annual vacation around the swim. Now in its 14th year, registrations were at an all-time high, with a record 343 swimmers registered.

On Sunday, May 28th 2017, conditions were near perfect as 305 swimmers along with around 130 safe-ty and support volunteers, as well as numerous spectators, gathered at Maho Beach for the start of the 14th Annual Beach-to-Beach Power Swim. This year spectators were in for a thrill as the top male finishers battled it out in an all-out sprint from the final buoy at Oppenheimer to the finish line at Hawksnest, making for the most dramatic finish to date. First place winner Matthew Mays barely edged out past winner Rex Tulius by only one second! And third place finisher, Hardy Lussier, was only six seconds behind Rex.

august 2017

www.friendsvinp.org

The Friends of Virgin Islands National Park advances the protection and preservation of the natural and cultural resources of Virgin Islands National Park and promotes the responsible enjoyment of this unique national treasure while educating and inspiring adults and children to be stewards of the environment.

Please remember to reuse and recycle whenever possible.

what’s inside! 2017 Power Swim Recap

Tidings Notes

Message from the Supt.

VINP Sea Turtle Monitoring Program

Friends Summer Intern

Friends Summer Trail Crew

Earth Day Recap

Archaeology Update

VIERS Eco Camps

President’s Message

Upcoming Events

Preserve. Protect. Educate.

DRAMATIC FINISH WOWED THE CROWD AT THE 14TH ANNUAL BEACH TO BEACH POWER SWIM

CONTINUED ON PAGE 7

A stylish group of swimmers traveled from Florida and New York to compete in the power swim.

THE FIRST PLACE WINNERS:Short Course: (Women) Rachel Bello, 20:07 (Men) Brent Mays, 21:05Short Course:* (Women) Julie Marie Olson, 25:10 (Men) Adam Thill, 25:19 Intermediate Course: (Women) Leighton Rainer, 54:16 (Men) Bryan Mason, 56:07Intermediate Course:* (Women) Emily Luscz, 53:44 (course record) (Men) Jay Fowler, 1:01:19Long Course: (Women) Marina Falcone, 1:18:15 (Men) Matthew Mays, 1:10:58Long Course:* (Women) Chelsea Baranowski, 1:26:22 (Men) Matthew Rasmussen, 1:20:27*Assisted Class

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2 august 2017

MESSAGE FROM THE ACTING SUPERINTENDENT BY JAYNE SCHAEFFER

Good Day Friends!

As I type this, Carnival St John has just completed and summer has officially begun! Summertime is the time of youth programs in the Park. The Friends sponsor summer camps for students held annually at VIERS, the Friends Summer Trail Crew Program is off to a good start, and the learn-to-swim program is underway. This year the Park rekindled its

Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) program. 2017 is the first of five years that the Department of Interior dedicated funding for hiring crew leaders from the Student Conservation Association (SCA) to lead the YCC team throughout the summer. Park staff have created a National Park Service immersion program for the team. In addition to working on projects throughout the park, the team members will be learning about the NPS with an eye on the types of jobs available in the agency. It is our hope that a ‘conservation spark’ is created in these 15-18 year olds by demonstrating future possibilities for them. The NPS has a very professionally diverse work-force: Administration-business and management: budget, property and human resources. Resource Management – the sciences-natural and cultural: biologists and archaeologists. Facilities Management positions include various trades, engineering and architecture. Park Rangers in Interpretation and Law enforcement come from a variety of educational backgrounds and receive specialized training for the skills they need on the job. It is our hope that this year the YCC team members will leave with a clear view of future career possibilities, as well as a sense of satisfaction of a job well done at season’s end! Perhaps we’ll see these young people in the grey and green sometime in the future!

Over the past three years an interdisciplinary team of park staff have been developing a robust social media program by sharing park events and photos on our social media platforms. Virgin Islands National Park has 8,419 followers on Facebook and another 4,189 followers on Instagram. If you’ve not yet checked out and “liked” us, please go to: www.facebook.com/virginislandsNPS and www.instagram.com/virginislandsNPS. On Fridays throughout the summer the post will be dedicated to the YCC program where you can go back and check to see what the team accomplished during each week. Social media offers a fun way to stay involved in, and informed about the Park. I check the Facebook account every day, just to see what new items have been posted! Enjoy, and see you in the park!

Friends License Plates Available NowShow your support for the park while giving your license plates the ultimate upgrade! Featuring iconic Trunk Bay, Friends plates are available now in a variety of options-numbered plates, custom plates, motorcycle plates, and blank souvenir plates. Get yours today! To order, please visit www.friendsvinp.org/license-plates or call 340-779-4940.

Take a Hike!Virgin Islands National Park is pleased to offer ranger-led hikes along the Reef Bay and L’Esperance Trails. The hikes tend to sell out quickly, so be sure to make your reservations online well in advance by visiting the Friends website www.friendsvinp.org. For more information call 340-693-7275.

2017 Jeffrey Matheny Scholarship RecipientsWe are proud to announce that scholarship recipient Lila Uzzell recently graduated from University of North Carolina-Asheville with a degree in biology/environmental studies. Danielle Olive continues studying marine biology at University of the Virgin Islands. We wish Lila and Danielle all the best in their future endeavours. Friends Scholarships are available to Virgin Islanders pursuing degrees in the environmental sciences, conservation, marine biology, or related fields. For more information or to apply, please contact Karen Jarvis at [email protected]

Jayne Schaeffer

Notes

Notes

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what can you do?

www.friendsvinp.org 3

reuse and repurpose items whenever possible

A turtle and her eggs. A volunteer works to protect a sea turtle nest.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 4

nity and local schools of St. John to educate students of their potential involvement in the safeguarding of these endangered animals. The bulk of her internship consists of daily walks along the beaches of St. John, checking for turtle nesting activ-ity. Interns develop a relationship with St. John residents, many of which are a part of the St. John Sea Turtle Volunteer Program and gladly assist with the daily beach checks.

Beach Monitoring StatsA total of 15 sea turtle activities were observed during the 2016 nesting season (July 28–November 1): 11 nests and four dry runs. Of these nests, at least six were inundated by storm surges during the month of October. Three nest depredations were observed; however, depredations appear to have occurred after hatching, due to the presence of clearly hatched egg shells pres-ent in the cavity. Therefore, these depredations did not likely have severe impacts on the overall success of these nests. Future management needs for protection were identified to make the program even more successful for the 2017 season.

Nest Protection Due to the high rate of depredation encountered during the 2015 nesting season, intensive efforts were initiated to reduce the effects of predators on sea turtle nests. These efforts includ-ed the eradication of mongoose near nesting beaches and the development of methods for screening nests.

Maho Foraging Study Interns began a pilot study that they intend to be utilized for further research. After observing a severe decline of the

Which Turtles call St. John Home?Sea turtles have been swimming the world’s oceans for over 100 million years. Today, there are seven recognized species of sea turtles; all of which are threatened, endangered, or criti-cally endangered by national (Endangered Species Act) and international (International Union for the Conservation of Nature) classifications. Four of the seven species can be seen in the waters around the U.S. Virgin Islands: hawksbills, greens, leatherbacks, and loggerheads. The leatherback and hawksbill sea turtles are known to nest on the beaches of St. John, and the greens are commonly spotted foraging offshore.

About the St. John Sea Turtle Monitoring and Protection ProgramThe Sea Turtle Monitoring and Protection Program has com-pleted the 2016 nesting season with flying colors. This moni-toring season encompasses the peak months of hawksbill sea turtle nesting in the Virgin Islands. Routine monitoring patrols began on July 28th and ran through November 1st. The proj-ect’s aim was to facilitate an island wide survey of St. John’s nesting beaches and to develop protocols to be used in future monitoring and conservation efforts.

Sea Turtle InternsFVINP was able to hire interns for the Sea Turtle Monitor ing and Protection Program. Lead intern Adren Anderson comes from a wildlife/marine biology related background and has extensive experience in sea turtle conservation. She has created and implemented several projects to improve awareness of sea turtle conservation, as well as led activities in the commu-

PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT: VINP’S SEA TURTLE MONITORING PROGRAM

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native seagrass Thalassia testudinum (green turtles’ primary food source), and a dramatic increase of the invasive species Halophila stipulacea, the question was asked: Are the green turtles eating the invasive Halophila, even in the presence of native Thalassia? What will happen to the turtles when all the native seagrass is gone? The interns cataloged foraging behaviors of individual sea turtles found in Maho Bay, a popular green turtle foraging ground. During their in-water surveys, interns obtained GPS tracks of habitat utilization, video recordings of foraging behavior, and additional information such as time spent performing certain behaviors and the species of grass being foraged. In addition, each turtle was photographed to cre-ate an ID database, giving each turtle a specific profile describ-ing their distinguishing characteristics and markings. They hope this information will one day lead to the development of more comprehensive research of the relationship between seagrass dis-tribution and green turtle foraging behavior.

Marine Debris Due to the high volume of trash discarded and washed up on our beaches, an initiative was taken to promote awareness of the threats associated with marine debris through the use of informative signs. Marine debris poses hazards to wildlife through ingestion and entanglement. Debris often resembles food sources and can cause choking, blockage, starvation, or toxicity. It is estimated that between one third and one half of all sea turtles ingest plastic products throughout their lifetime. Due to these pollution-related hazards, signs were created to be mounted in public areas to create awareness.

Night Watch Since most sea turtle nesting activity occurs at night, the Night Watch project was created to observe and record nesting activities on the beaches of St. John. Interns and volunteers sat out on beaches after sunset, patiently waiting for a female to crawl up the shore and lay her nest.

Education Outreach Projects Interns, with the help of the National Park’s Interpretive Ranger Laurel Brannick, spread awareness of sea turtle conservation by providing informative sea turtle talks at the local schools on St. John. Following the presentations, some students participated in a nesting relay race, mimicking the nesting process of a hawksbill sea turtle. Around 85 children were reached through this conservation outreach effort.

Grant WritingThe interns tried their hand at grant writing, and are aiming to increase funds for more comprehensive sea turtle studies

4 august 2017

VINP’S SEA TURTLE MONITORING PROGRAMCONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

and surveys, and possibly the help of outside agencies to help train for and participate in future projects. They submitted applications and proposals to organizations such as the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and NOAA, and hope to receive acceptances by this winter. If accepted, next year’s interns will be able to participate in activities such as in-water surveys, satellite tagging, individual flipper tagging, etc. which will improve the program’s ability to monitor and protect marine turtles found in St. John’s waters.

What Can You Do?Currently, the worldwide success of all sea turtles is dismal. Only one in 1,000 hatchlings are expected to survive to adulthood. These numbers are largely due to human-caused threats, such as misguiding lights at night from hotels, nearby street lights, and traffic; hooks and entanglement from fishing; poaching for eggs, shells and meat; and the endless amounts of pollutants and trash being carelessly dropped into the ocean every day.

How Can We as Individuals Make a Difference in the Lives of All Marine Life?We can start by being aware of our actions. St. John is a beautiful island, with gorgeous beaches and bays. We need to remember that we share these coasts with thousands of species of marine wildlife, and that sometimes something as small as remembering to throw away our empty bottles and plastic bags can make a huge difference. Take care to throw away all trash found on the beach, not just yours. A few minutes could mean saving the life of one of these amazing marine turtles.

Get Involved — Sea Turtle Volunteer Program The Virgin Islands National Park (VINP) Sea Turtle Monitoring and Protection Team was highly successful this season. Thirty-eight volunteers performed routine early morning beach checks on 30 of St. John’s 43 beaches, where they identified the species of the nesting turtle by the tracks, located the nests or false nests, and protected the nests from predators. Volunteers contributed a combined 618 beach patrols and over 2,000 hours of sea turtle beach monitoring from July 28th – November 1st, 2016.

Want to get more involved in sea turtle conservation? Join VINP’s Sea Turtle Volunteer Program!

• Go to www.volunteer.gov and sign up.

• Contact Adren Anderson at [email protected] or Thomas Kelley at [email protected]

• Call 340-693-8950 x225

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what can you do?

My name is Michelle Rodriguez and I’m from Texas. I am currently attend-ing Houston Baptist University in the pursuit of a bachelor degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. I went to my first national park, Big Bend National Park, in 2012, and since then I have made a commitment to visit every national park in the next four years.

When I learned of an internship with Friends of Virgin Islands National Park I couldn’t have been more excited. It was not only a chance to cross a park off of my list but also to work with an organization that I share many key ideologies with. Their efforts to preserve, protect, and educate people about VINP’s cultural and natural resources is inspiring. I have enjoyed raising awareness for the importance of coral protection, learning the ins and outs of the park, and most importantly learning the huge role that the Friends plays in keeping our park pristine.

In my free time I enjoy hiking, scuba diving, and attempting to run up St. John’s endless steep hills. I cannot thank Friends of Virgin Islands National Park enough for giving me the opportunity to work for an organization that values the past through memorializa-tion, respects the present through conservation, and inspires the future through education.

www.friendsvinp.org 5

use only refillable/reusable beverage bottles, food containers and utensils

FRIENDS SUMMER TRAIL CREW: INSPIRING THE NEXT GENERATION OF NATURE LOVERS

A FEW WORDS FROM THE FRIENDS SUMMER INTERN

Michelle Rodriguez

The 2017 Friends Summer Trail Crew.

SAVE THE DATE! GALA 2018: The 13th annual Friends Gala event will be held on February 3, 2018. Don’t miss this elegant evening known as the best party on St. John! There will be live music, dancing, fabulous food, fine wines and champagne at Pam and Steve Deckoff’s stunning home, Presidio del Mar. Please contact us for more information or if you would like to volunteer at this amazing event. [email protected]

This summer Friends of VINP worked with a group of eight Virgin Islands high school students on a six-week summer trail crew and environmental education program. The program had two main components. First was the maintenance, repair, and restora-tion of hiking trails and historic ruins within VINP. Second was a series of educational/recreational experiences that encourage the crew to connect with their natural environment while having fun and earning money. Highlights of this year’s program included an Archaeology by Sea boat trip, a ranger-led hike of Hassel Island, a zip line adventure hosted by Tree Limin’ Extreme, a mangrove kayak of Hurricane Hole hosted by Reef 2 Peak Excursions, and a 3-day camping trip at Cinnamon Bay Campground. Crew mem-bers gained hands-on technical skills while developing valuable self-confidence and leadership skills. As a result, the Ram’s Head, Haulover Bay, Maria Hope, Caneel Bay, Cinnamon Bay, Francis Bay, L’Esperance, Peace Hill, and many more trails are all in great shape! This year’s crew leaders, Friends Volunteer Coordinator Mark Gestwicki and St. Thomas native Olivia Foster were enthu-siastic about creating meaningful work and educational experiences designed to inspire these young people to learn, explore, and share with others the bountiful natural and cultural resources found within VINP.

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6 august 2017

The 2017 Earth Day Environmental Fair and Litter Stomp Parade took place on Tuesday, April 18th, at the National Park Ball Field in Cruz Bay, St. John. There was a wide array of presenters this year including (but not limited to): UVI Sea Turtle Club, UVI Marine Advisory Service, Caribbean Solar, Gifft Hill School’s EARTH Program students, Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS), Get Trashed St John, Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority (VIWMA), Virgin Islands National Park Interpretive Division, CORE Lionfish Response, Cinnamon Bay Resort and Campground and a mock dig led by VINP archaeology interns.

Over 550 people who attended the fair received custom designed reusable grocery bags featuring beautiful images of the park’s iconic beaches along with seed packs. Educating individuals in our community about their role in helping to reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills, along with the importance of moving towards renewable, sustainable energy sources was the focus of this year’s fair.

The Litter Stomp Parade, organized by Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority was a big hit with kids of all ages. The energy was high as kids paraded through Cruz Bay, led by a DJ truck, chanting messages and carrying posters promoting environmental conservation and awareness.

In honor of Earth Day, participants of the Friends’ Adopt- A-Beach program were asked to clean their adopted areas as part of an island-wide beach cleanup. The Adopt-A-Beach/ Trail program encourages volunteer groups to adopt a site and become responsible for keeping it clean. If you are interested in adopting a beach or trail please contact Karen Jarvis at [email protected]

Gifft Hill School students proudly display their Earth Day poster during the Litter Stomp Parade.

EARTH DAY ON ST. JOHN NEW ARCHAEOLOGY ENDEAVORS

This year, the VINP archaeology program has been trying to bring to light the history of two 18th century sugar factories and enslaved villages, Frederiksdal and Wintberg. These plantations are located on the 11.8 acres of land recently acquired by the Friends of VINP. Researchers from different universities and the VINP Archaeology interns worked together over the course of four weeks to help better understand the nature of the structures of these sites. Danish interns conducted previous research on historic documents at the Danish Archives earlier this year as part of better understanding these 18th century plantations. They also took part in the field work carried out this past April and are currently working on the report together with the VINP Archaeology Department.

This endeavor began with Frederiksdal Plantation. We started clearing the vegetation inside and outside of the different struc-tures. After this, the factory, animal mill, cistern, stills, well tower, oven, kitchen, animal pen, and multiple enslaved houses were identified and documented. The artifacts discovered provided a lot of information about the different activities that were being carried out in these structures, and helped us date the structures. An example of this would be a piece of pottery we found inside the corner wall of one of the structures, it was used as aggregate in the mortar. The piece of pottery (Brown salt glazed stoneware 1820–1900) gives us the Terminus Post Quem for the structure; this means that the structure had to be built after the 1820’s. We also found a piece of Black Lead Glazed coarse earthenware in the mortar of a possible kitchen structure. This pottery was manufac-tured between 1700-1770.This find tells us that the structures in Frederiksdal were built in different years.

Interns from Denmark and Puerto Rico worked to collect GPS data at the newly acquired VINP property at Estate Fredericksdal..

CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

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what can you do?

This summer, the Friends and Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS) provided free educational summer programs for Virgin Islands students. During the month of July, approximately 160 local children between the ages of 7–17 attended various summer camp sessions held at VIERS, located at Lameshur Bay on St. John’s south side.

Eco-Camps for children age 7–12 were designed

to ensure that the campers enjoy themselves while learning about marine and terrestrial ecology through hands-on activities and lessons. Science Camps (4 days/3 nights) gave students ages 13–17 the opportunity to assist with research activities and learn about experiment design and marine biology, all while exploring beautiful Lameshur Bay. Returning this year was a Ranger-in-Training camp. This four-day/three-night experience focused on providing 13–17 year olds insight into the career opportunities available to them in the park service in fields such as environmental stewardship and resource management. Classroom and study sessions combined with hands-on activities alongside rangers in the park, created a comprehensive learning experience.

These amazing camps are made possible by generous support of: Paul Angell Family Foundation, Disney Cruise Line, Tropico Management, VI-EPSCoR, The Frederick Bliss Foundation, Ms. Carrie Lattiser, First Bank, RPP Advisors, LLC, Rotary Club of St. John, and International Capital & Management.

www.friendsvinp.org 7

switch to reusable shopping bags if you have not already done so

Two swimmers traveled all the way from Hawaii, earning them the “Magellan Award.” Canada, Germany, Spain, and 29 States in the US were represented in this year’s Power Swim. Registra tions this year were the strongest ever (343 registered), almost hit ting the cap of 350. Caribbean islands participants came from the British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John.

In addition to recognizing the top placing swimmers, awards were also given to swimmers who have participated for 10 years or more with special recognition made for the nine swimmers who swam the Beach-to-Beach all 14 years!

Swimmers, volunteers and spectators gathered at Hawksnest Beach after the swim for a picnic lunch and the awards cer-emony. Participants of the fundraising initiative “Race for a Reason”, who together raised $6,028 swimming for the park were recognized. Top fundraising individual Elisa Adams, along with top fundraising team Hook, Line & Sinker won a free after-party boat trip to the BVI’s, along with special VIP “swag bags”. Second and third place runners up also took home prizes and received a special thank you.

THANK YOU to our many volunteers, especially Jeff Miller who tirelessly works to ensure the accuracy of race results and course markings, our Race for a Reason fundraisers and the local businesses and organizations that sponsored and supported the 14th Annual Beach-to-Beach Power Swim!!!

2017 POWER SWIMCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

ARCHEOLOGY ENDEAVORSCONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

Students learn about endangered sea turtle species.

VIERS SUMMER CAMPS: CONNECTING YOUTH WITH MARINE AND TERRESTRIAL RESOURCES

After finishing the documentation of the Frederiksdal sugar factory, two Enslaved villages and a possible overseer’s house, we moved to Wintberg Plantation. Due to time constraints, we were only able clear the vegetation around the Great House and this enabled us to document it. During the process of drawing the structure and tak-ing GPS points, a VINP archaeologist identified the possible first ‘Great House’ inside the building. It is an inner structure with an opening that could have been a doorway. It is possible that after the success of the plantation, additions were made to the Great House resulting in the structure that is seen today.

We also conducted shovel tests at Cinnamon Bay campground. During these excavations, we found and identified a possible Pre-Columbian hearth that date between 300–600 AD.

In addition, we recently opened a new exhibit space adjacent to the Archaeology lab thanks to a changeover in concessionaires at Cinnamon Bay. We developed an exhibit celebrating the centennial of the transfer of the Virgin Islands from Denmark to the United States. Historic research was conducted to create a timeline and all the corresponding flags were displayed.

SEMINAR SERIES 2018Friends Seminars focus on promoting enjoyment of the park and understanding of St. John’s rich cul-tural history. The 2018 Seminar Series will include many of our classic offerings and some new semi-nars as well. The schedule will be available in late November, so please be sure to check the Friends website, www.friendsvinp.org for details.

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DIRECTORY — FRIENDS OFFICE: 340.779.4940 FRIENDS STORE: 340.779.8700 FRIENDS EMAIL: [email protected] VI NATIONAL PARK FRONT DESK: 340.776.6201 ext: 238

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE BY JOE KESSLER

Virgin Islands National Park is a very special place that we care deeply about. As members of the Friends we support the organization’s mission to advance the protection and preservation of the park’s natural and cultural resources, and promote the responsible enjoyment of Virgin Islands National Park.

While your generous financial support humbles and sustains the organization and the contribution of your time as volunteers inspires us, there is more that you can personally do to help the park face the threats that confront it and pro-tect and preserve its resources.

Most importantly, we can all be good “park citizens” by practicing behaviors that celebrate and help preserve and protect the park’s resources, and setting an example for others to follow: at the beach we leave glass containers and pets at home and always leave the beach cleaner than we found it; when diving or snorkeling, we protect fragile coral polyps by not touching or standing on coral, and trying to always stay horizontal in the water; when exploring the park’s trails we keep to the paths and respect the park’s flora and fauna; when touring the ruins, we respect all artifacts; and, when boating we respect the marked swim areas and use moorings if at all possible.

If you are planning on building a home on St. John please do it as responsibly and sustainably as possible. Likewise, if you live on St. John there is a lot that you can do to reduce your impact on the environment and hence on the park. The Island Green Living Association (www.iglavi.org) is a good source of information in this regard.

Lastly, you can act as advocates for national parks by encouraging your elected officials to introduce and/or support legislation that helps national parks in general and Virgin Islands National Park in particular. Please let your elected national level officials know that national parks are important to you and urge them to appropriate sufficient funds to ensure that the parks are protected and preserved for generations to come. There are Friends members from every state in the union and you are a strong voice – please use it.

Please feel free to contact me with your ideas on how we can work together to protect and preserve this wonderful national park. And as always, I look forward to seeing you out in the park.

I look forward to seeing you out in the park!

august 2017

NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE

PAIDCRUZ BAY, VI

00831 PERMIT NO. 07

PO Box 811 St John, Virgin Islands 00831

Coming events! Coastweeks 2017:September 16th marks the beginning of VI Coastweeks. During this time, community members will remove trash and other debris from Virgin Islands beaches and coastal shores. Last year over 100 Virgin Islanders participated, and 18 million pounds of trash was collected worldwide! For details on how you can participate, please call Karen Jarvis at 779-4940.

Paddle the Park SUP Race: The 5th annual Paddle the Park standup paddleboard race will be held at Maho Bay on Sunday, Nov. 5th. Registration will begin on Monday, Sept. 4th, and will continue through Saturday, Nov. 4th. For more information, please visit www.friendsvinp.org/news-a-events/paddle-the-park or give us a call at 340-779-4940.

Annual Online Auction: Nov. 18 – Dec. 10, 2017: Don’t miss great deals on all things St. John: vacation stays, shopping, excursions, dining and more. Build your next vacation! To donate an item contact Tonia Lovejoy at [email protected]

www.friendsvinp.org

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

Joe Kessler


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