Meet Our Volunteers
At the core of our being is a community of dedicated volunteers. Each with their own reasons to be a part of the work of the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy. Some are interns or service learning students, some are retired, some are equestrians and others who value open access to nature, and some just love being a part of a community who’s purpose is to preserve Ojai as a special place. If you think you might like to join them, click here to learn about the many volunteer opportunities offered at the Conservancy. Here are a few of their stories.
Patsy and Harold Glenn joined the OVLC back in 1999 when they learned of plans by a large corporation to develop a significant portion of the nearby Ventura River into a golf course and associated upscale housing development. Concerned about the water allocation this would require from the river, Ojai’s only source of water, they became involved in the effort to acquire the land for permanent preservation. We just can’t get enough of Patsy and Harold, she loves to cook and he can build just about anything we need. Patsy helps us with events, and Harold enjoys helping out on the preserves.
Becky Beckett teaches environmental field studies at Nordhoff High School. Having an outdoor classroom right next door at the Ojai Meadows Preserve gives her an opportunity to bring her students to nature, and also instil a sense of volunteerism in them through service learning projects. Her students have done so many restoration projects on the Meadows. In the process, they begin to develop an awareness of their natural surroundings that in the course of “hanging out” or sitting at a computer, may never have had a chance to blossom. Becky is so thrilled when her students begin to notice that baby owl up in the trees that she herself may have walked right on by.
Barbara Sunderland came to be OVLC’s weekly office support person just a year ago. She moved to the area after retiring from a long career as an OB/GYN. Willing to do anything administrative to help, she readily admitted that computers were not really her thing. As need would have it, data entry and organization of electronic member records were exactly what we needed on a weekly basis. So, Barbara has learned a new skill, and OVLC is happy to have someone always keeping our member records up to date in fine form. A win/win for all!
