Underserved people will explore nature via grants to Tuolumne River Trust, Patterson
Nearly $1 million in state grants will provide nature education by the Tuolumne River Trust and the city of Patterson.
The trust got $367,128 for a focused version in west Modesto of its Trekking the Tuolumne Safely program. Families in the Robertson Road neighborhood will explore the river that runs nearby and travel to sites in other counties over three years.
The other $625,141 will go to the Patterson Teen Outdoor Experience, funding nature study in several counties over two years.
The money is from the Outdoor Equity Grants Program at the California Department of Parks and Recreation. It aims to get “underserved” residents out to rivers, forests, beaches and other spots. A total of $57 million was awarded to 125 recipients in late May.
The trust has long taught locals about the Tuolumne out of its branch office in Modesto. Among them is Norma Padilla-Davalos, who lives in the airport neighborhood.
“I love that my children enjoy the park, the river, the trees, and that they are learning so much about nature,” she said in a trust news release.
Trips to mountains and beach
The trust will work with the Robertson Road families with help from the Stanislaus County Office of Education. About 2,500 residents will have 19 days of activities nearby.
The grant also will take about 900 people to visit Jacob Myers Park in Riverbank, Calaveras Big Trees State Park, Foothill Horizons Outdoor School near Sonora, Great Valley Grasslands State Park near Los Banos, Lake McSwain in Snelling and Moss Landing State Beach in Monterey.
Robertson Road is just a quarter-mile from the Tuolumne, but access is difficult. That will change thanks to a $2.1 million state grant to the trust and the city in 2020.
The project will provide trails and floodplain restoration at the Carpenter Road end of Tuolumne River Regional Park. The floodplain will nourish salmon and other wildlife and help safeguard the neighborhood from flooding like the 1997 disaster.
Patterson teens will travel
The Patterson grant will involve about 1,800 teens in nature study. It also will have community-service projects and an emphasis on getting young women into outdoors careers.
Some trips will be nearby, to the city water treatment plant, Frank Raines Regional Park, the Best Friends Pet Resort, the San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge and Stanislaus State University.
Students also will travel to Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park, Pinnacles National Park near Hollister, Fresno Chaffee Zoo, the Castro Valley portion of the East Bay Regional Park District and an unnamed oceanside visit in the Bay Area.
This story was originally published June 7, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
