Earth Day is right around the corner, and new Enumclaw resident Teresa Parker is looking to get local children involved in taking care of their surrounding parks and trails.
“We’re going to be doing six in-person events, and then the seventh is a virtual event over Zoom,” she said in a recent interview. “The purpose is to try and help with my father’s legacy of trying to save the world.”
The two local events will be at Nolte State Park on April 20 and Dwight Garrett Park on April 21, both from 1 to 3 p.m., but the other events will be held at Point Ruston (April 8), Confluence Park (April 15), the Gnome Trail in Maple Valley (April 19), and the Salt Water Stake Park (April 22), all at the same time.
(Please note that all state parks will require a Discover Pass to attend.)
The Zoom event is planned for April 23 from 10 to 10:30 a.m., and will include a wrap-up of all the in-person events and host a raffle — more on that in a bit. To receive an invite, email message Parker over Facebook (you can find her business page by searching Top Notch Property Team).
Each event will start out with reading the children’s book, “The Earth Book,” by Todd Parr, and will be followed by a short art activity and a park clean-up; the Dwight Garrett Park event will include walking down to the Foothills Trail by the Parker-Helac building on Battersby Avenue to pick up trash.
Everyone attending will receive a ticket for a free raffle, the winner of which will have a brick with their name on it placed at the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery.
“I grew up in Issaquah, and my mom used to volunteer at the Salmon Hatchery. I used to live in the apartments right next door,” Parker said. “I just thought it would be a cool cause to support.”
Attending some of the events will be her father, Gary Frank Leatham, who is known as “The Father of Shiitake Farming in the USA,” since he published a doctoral thesis on the long-used Japanese mushroom and how it grows well on poor-quality hardwood, reducing waste in favor of producing a high-quality food. He’s since gone on to study biodegradable plastics.
