Editorial

Sammamish residents have an opportunity to restore and protect wildlife habitat and the birds, animals and critters who live and depend on these areas.

Wildlife, right down to butterflies, bees, and other pollinators, are critical to the eco-system.

The Sammamish Community Wildlife Habitat team is a group of volunteers dedicated to protecting wildlife in our city. This is especially important when Sammamish is undergoing large swaths of development, bringing more cars and pollution to our city. We humans notice the increased traffic and tree removal. Less obvious is the effect on sensitive areas and wildlife.

Recognizing our local efforts, the local National Wildlife Federation (NWF) won a grant through King County to host a Habitat Steward Training in Sammamish.

What is a Habitat Steward?

Habitat Stewards are individuals with a keen interest in the environment, and a willingness to volunteer their time and expertise to help create or restore wildlife habitat. Habitat Stewards volunteer their time in the creation or restoration of habitat in their communities, and provide 30 hours of service to their community within a year of completing their training. The training is not limited to Sammamish residents, so if you know of others in neighboring communities who would be interested in participating, please encourage them to do so.

What topics does the training include?

The Habitat Steward training covers a variety of topics, including: habitat restoration, Pacific Northwest Ecology, natural yard care, invasive plants, native plants, pollinators, and much more.

Classes will be held once a week for four weeks starting Monday, 2/25 from 6pm-9pm, at the following locations: Camp Terry (2/25),

Sammamish YMCA (3/4),

Sammamish Library (3/11),

Sammamish YMCA (3/18).

Field trip sessions will be held on two Saturdays:

(March 2 and 16).

Refreshments  and light snacks are at each training session and you are welcome to bring a brown bag dinner. Local food businesses occasionally provide donations and we will inform participants ahead of time in this case.

Registration

Sammamish Comment encourages citizens to participate in these seminars.

Signup is via Brown Paper Tickets: https://sammamish.brownpapertickets.com/

If you would prefer to pay using a check, please email WAEducation@nwf.org to register! Sign up soon, spaces are limited! **$30 (32.04 with BPT service fee) Scholarships are available! No one will be turned down to lack of funds. Email WAEducation@nwf.org for more information.

Speaker schedule:

Monday, Feb. 25: at Camp Terry

6:15-7:15pm: Cierra Hunziker – NWF and Becoming a Habitat Steward

7:30-8:30pm: Monica Van Der Vieren, with King County – Gardening for Wildlife

Monday, Mar. 4: at the Sammamish YMCA

6:15-7:15pm: Veda Dpaepe, with Bats Northwest – Pacific Northwest Bats

7:30-8:30pm: Anne-Gi, with King Conservation District – Landscaping with Native Plants

Monday, Mar. 11: at the Sammamish Library

6:15-7:15pm: Sasha Shaw, with King County Noxious Weed Control Program – Noxious Weeds

7:30-8:30pm: Julie O’Donald – Bees and Pollinators

Monday, Mar. 18: at the Sammamish YMCA

6:15-7:15pm: Danika Globakar – What Humans are Doing to Help (local water-use projects)

7:30-8:30pm: Cierra Hunziker – Reaching Your 30 Hours, Celebration, T-Shirts, etc.