Foothills Sentry March 2021

Foothills Sentry Page 6 March 2021 'JYJOH -FBLT 4BWFT 8BUFS ,EARN MORE AT EOCWD COM &)8 ! ,%!+ 7%%+ -!2#( A new year gets under way Like much of East Asia and parts of Orange County, many canyon residents spent weeks preparing for the Lunar New Year holiday, which began on Feb. 12. Holiday traditions vary some- what, depending on where you live. For example, the Chinese name for the current year is the Year of the Ox, whereas in Viet- nam, it’s the Year of the Water Buffalo. Both animals symbolize steadiness and hard work. In the canyons, though, this is the Year of the Sandbag. The sandbag is revered for its strength, flexibility and ability to work as a team. A few former canyonites re- turned to their ancestral creek- side homes, partly to make sure that the creek stayed out of their homes. As the days of expected heavy rain and potential debris flows got closer, however, other residents opted to celebrate re- motely, at a hotel. Cleaning house is a traditional activity associated with the Lu- nar New Year. But this year, be- cause of the ominous weather forecasts, canyonites paid more attention to preparing the out- side of their homes than the in- side. This caused a noticeable deviation from standard holiday decorations. The traditional Lu- nar New Year colors are red and yellow (like orange and black for Halloween). But since this is Orange County, canyon residents decorated mostly with orange sandbags. To divert excess water and mud away from houses, bales of straw and hay were installed, staked to the ground with rebar. Straw and hay represent the agricultural past, of course, while steel rebar is both a nod to industrialization and a literal symbol of being tied to nature. Some residents opted for deco- rative plastic waist-high barriers in place of bales. These barriers are similar to the concrete K-rails for keeping cars in their lanes. The plastic barriers are shorter, though, and are filled with water to provide weight. And they are orange. Homeowners were thus able to color-coordinate sandbags and barriers in a unified landscap- ing design scheme. Other outdoor preparations in- cluded cleaning out culverts and catch basins, sometimes with the aid of heavy equipment. Working together was also an opportunity for practicing another traditional New Year custom: politeness and respect for others, especially if they happen to own a skip loader or backhoe. Preparation seemed to pay off. The new year brought fair weath- er and a welcome end to the Year of the Wildfire, Power Outage, and Midnight Mandatory Evacu- ations. Ruffled feathers After managing the Tucker Wildlife Sanctuary in Modjeska for more than 50 years, Califor- nia State University, Fullerton (CSUF) closed the facility in January, saying that it no longer matched the university’s core mission. Animals were relocated, buildings were boarded up, and a search for a new sponsoring orga- nization began. According to information for- merly on the Tucker website, the 12-acre preserve originally be- longed to Benjamin and Dorothy May Tucker, who enjoyed watch- ing birds, particularly humming- birds, from their porch. In 1929, they opened their porch to the public. After his wife died, Mr. Tucker donated the land to the California Audubon Society, and Audubon operated the sanctuary until 1969. The San Fernando Valley Chapter of the Audubon Society (SFVA) is now involved in the current search for a successor to CSUF. One organization that has ex- pressed interest is the Silverado- Modjeska Recreation and Park District (SMRPD). At its Feb. 16 board meeting, SMRPD directors announced that they were in talks with SFVA, and that they felt that an agreement could be in place soon. Meanwhile, some Modjeska residents also in contact with SFVA expressed their desire that a good solution, not necessarily a fast solution, be a priority. Local volunteers are also filling hum- mingbird feeders and setting out birdseed now, since CSUF is no longer doing so. Plant strategies Not all plants respond to fire the same way. Fire kills chaparral shrubs like many of the Ceano- thus species, yet their seeds can remain dormant in soil until trig- gered to germinate by heat or smoke from a wildfire. Seeds of other shrubs, like toy- on, typically burn up or are eaten by animals. But even if burned to the ground, these plants can re- sprout from underground roots or burls. Oaks can resprout from the base, trunk or branches. Plants like chamise do both: they resprout, but their seeds are also stimulated to germinate by fire. People also vary in their re- sponse to fire or flood. Some evacuate. Others try mightily to remain rooted. And still others simply accept whatever happens. For many years prior to 1975, a man named Guy Sparks ran the Shadybrook Market near Silvera- do’s Fire Station 14, living above the store. One day when Judy Myers was doing some house- cleaning for him, she noticed a large boulder protruding into a bedroom, where it had lodged some time ago, after rolling down the hill in back. She asked Sparks what he intended to do. He re- plied, “I don’t sleep there any- more.” Clockwise from top left, Troop 850 Eagle Scouts Tom Wagner, Hunter Strauss, Tom No and Kyle Chen Troop 850 honors new Eagle Scouts Boy Scouts of America Troop 850, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Villa Park, announces that four scouts, Thomas Wagner, Hunter Strauss, Tom No and Kyle Chen, have earned the rank of Eagle Scout. This brings the number of scouts who have earned Eagle in Troop 850 to 122. Only 6% of those who join the Boy Scouts at- tain Eagle rank, the highest pos- sible achievement in Boy Scouts. Thomas Wagner’s Eagle proj- ect was at Oak Canyon Nature Center. He removed a bench and built a fence in its place that will serve as a barrier between the Main Road Trail and the Heritage Trail. His college plans include studying a STEM subject, but he has not settled on a specific major. For his Eagle project, Hunter Strauss built an octagon-shaped ball pit at St. Paul’s Lutheran School. It was constructed out of wood, set in concrete and painted in the school’s colors. One of Strauss’ plans is to help as many homeless people as he can, getting them off the streets, giving them a new start and help- ing to restore their self-esteem. Tom No’s Eagle project in- cluded the replacement of four benches and two small tables at the Canyon High School ten- nis courts. The new outdoor fur- nishings will be used for official United States Tennis Association tournaments and for school use. No’s long-term goals include the pursuit of a double major in either economics or human orga- nizational development and be- coming a doctor. For his Eagle project, Kyle Chen built a bridge at Earthroots Field School. The bridge can sup- port a truck driving over a culvert to get access to the storage shed on the other side. Kyle is current- ly attending UCSD, majoring in structural engineering. Demolition of the original swimming pool at El Modena High School is underway. Construction of a new aquatics center, featuring a 30-me- ter pool and a locker room/restroom facility, will continue once the original facilities are removed. The new aquatics venue is scheduled to open in summer 2022. Coast Live Oak