“Donations to Sanctuary Forest

are our way of challenging the

‘eternal truth’ — everything
changes. We want there to be a
few wild places left, where butter-
flies, birds, and other creatures,
plants and those ancient trees of
magnificence and mystery may
go about their cycles of birth, life
and death undisturbed. In fact,
we prefer as little human intrusion
as possible. We want a few
portions of Earth’s soul to survive
and we don’t need to visit them,
only to know they are there.”

—Caryle and Richard Donscheski

Sanctuary Forest NON-PROFIT

U.S. Postage
P.O. Box 166 PAID
Whitethorn, CA 95589 Permit #6
Eureka, CA

© 2002 Valery McKee

AUTUMN
2004
Sanctuary Forest
 Working Together for the River
Sanctuary Forest, Inc.
is a land trust whose mission is to conserve the
Mattole River watershed and surrounding areas for
wildlife habitat and aesthetic, spiritual, and intrinsic
values in cooperation with our diverse community.
I grew up on my great-grandfather’s home- Evaluation of her pictures and the site
stead near the Mattole River when people with our restoration geologists and heavy
struggled to make a living by logging. My equipment operators led to the installation
Board of Directors
father used to visit with loggers outside of a sediment-stabilizing dam on a similar
Michael Torbert, President the Whitethorn store. One time they site. In 2003, working with volunteers, we
Organic Farmer Dear Friend of the Forest, brought ice cream for us kids, a rare treat, monitored all excavated sites, and addi-
Janice Parakilas, Vice President
Optometry Business Manager We rely on you. Whether you live 2000 miles away or and I still remember their kindness. In tional grant funding paid for the native
Herb Schwartz, Secretary winter the river was often muddy with trees planted by children and summer
in view of the Mattole River, we are one community
Mediation Lawyer run-off from fresh skid roads. When I left hike docents to increase shade over the
Frank Letton, Treasurer woven together by our love and respect for the wild. Whitethorn, I was 21 and we didn’t yet streams.
Engineer When your donation joins with hundreds of others, it perceive the devastating impact of log-
Tom Brundage is an investment that increases the hope and success When I stand now on re-exposed gravel
ging. I returned in 1990 to find a new
Geologist
of Sanctuary Forest programs to protect, educate, in the most dramatic of the restored
community emerging, people dedicated
Renee Crowley streambeds, look up at the contour of the
Retired Park Unit Manager and restore. Your money becomes the seedlings we to bringing health back to the forest, river
land, and remember that I would have
Jimmy Friel plant together by the Mattole today that will become and native fisheries.
been under 15 feet of soil before our work
Plumbing Contractor the ancient forests tomorrow.
Deborah Louria
During the past year, I worked on a was completed, I am in awe. Redwood
Social Justice Activist These days we are not focusing on redwood groves, but restoration project funded by the seedlings planted by the children peek out
Annette Madsen on the entire river ecosystem—River to Ridge. The land California Department of Fish & Game of the mulch and native huckleberry,
Redwoods Monastery Member to reduce sediment in the upper Mattole blackberries, horsetails, salal and sedge
Beth Maizes
we purchase or protect through conservation easements
River by removing eroding sections of grasses have begun to return. This summer
Hawthorn Health & Nutrition and restoration projects is essential to the health of the logging roads. In 2002, after listening to we were thrilled to see a 3-inch steelhead
Institute Director river—which in turn means the health of the fish, the
Stuart Moskowitz
local concerns and with community help, in a deep pool near the newly con-
University Instructor
wildlife and the people. Our new focus mirrors national site monitoring and tree planting were structed sediment dam!
trends to preserve landscapes, not just isolated pieces of added to the project. Throughout the
Emeritus Sediment removal from Mattole River
land. This view gives us a new perspective on the health next winter, one concerned and dedicated
William Bell tributaries continues. Local volunteers
Retired Board President of the watershed and informs all our programs as we neighbor photographed the most unstable
have the opportunity to learn more about
Diane Foster work toward the goal of a healthy river ecosystem. of the previously excavated sites.
monitoring restoration sites, tree planting,
Spirit Breath Practitioner We’ve protected 10,000 acres of land and we’re working sediment-stabilizing dams and woody
Robert McKee
Whitethorn Construction Owner
on protecting more, but we’re also learning about water debris for fish habitat. Whether you con-
Helen McKenna conservation techniques, low-impact forestry and good tribute as a volunteer in the forest or help
Educator road building. Your donations knit together a community through your donations, your gift will
David McMurray of people intent on well-being and working together in shelter the fish, help restore the river’s
Retired University Administrator sparkling flow, and nourish the expression
Rondal Snodgrass
relationship with these wild and still forested lands.
of working together to protect our common
Land Consultant
Thank you for your continued support, natural resources.
Eric Goldsmith
Executive Director
Tasha McKee served on the Board of Directors
voice: 707-986-1087
fax: 707-986-1607 from 1997 to 2002. In 2003 she became our
email: sanctuary@asis.com Eric Goldsmith Stewardship Program Coordinator. Tasha is a
Executive Director mother and vintner, and loves to serve the land.

“In 100 years, I see a healthy,
mature forest here, a land
exuding vitality, with strong
salmon runs up Thompson
Creek and a local population
engaged and educated.”
—Tim Metz
The Promise of Conservation
Sanctuary Forest’s role as a land trust is to serve as trustee for
conservation easements on properties in or near the Mattole
watershed. Each of these voluntary, private legal agreements
between landowners and Sanctuary Forest has been crafted to
suit the unique stewardship vision of the landowner, and limits
use of the land to protect its conservation values.
As I walked the land with an easement donor
recently, I realized that perhaps the most satisfying
aspect of my work at Sanctuary Forest has been
the chance to get to know our conservation-
minded landowners and the lands they cherish.
I want to share one of their stories with you.
Tim Metz is a U.C. Berkeley-trained professional
forester who placed a working forest conservation
easement on his property in 1999. Drawn both by the
land itself and the innovative restoration and eco-
forestry that was happening here, he moved to the
area in 1993 to work with the Institute of Sustainable
Forestry. He came to know the landscape well and to
love it deeply. When 700 acres of forestland
straddling Thompson Creek became avail-
able, Tim moved swiftly to purchase and con-
serve them. He has constructed a straw-bale
house on the conserved property and supports
work by the Mattole Salmon Group to enhance fish
habitat in the river.
Tim decided to develop an easement on his property
for two reasons: to prevent subdivision or over-
development, and to help guide responsible,
sustainable commercial forestry. “The subdivision
aspect was really important to me—I never wanted
to see it carved up into a bunch of homesteads.
And by enshrining a few key forestry provisions in
the easement, I’ll know that those practices will
be followed by future owners.”
Learn more about how a conservation easement
could protect your land in the Mattole in perpetuity.
Sanctuary Forest’s Conservation Easement Program
funds the ongoing monitoring and protection of
every easement entrusted to us.
Noah Levy is our Lands Program Coordinator and a new
father who lives with his family along the neighboring Eel River.
Docents Hike the Sanctuary
Forest Classroom
There is always something to see or do here—
mountains, forest, rivers, the sea—and a lifetime of
flora and fauna to study. As a nature lover, living in
southern Humboldt County for the past fifteen
years has been very rewarding. I was very excited to
help facilitate the Sanctuary Forest Docent Kevin Dyer is a professionally
Training course and share my knowledge.
trained horticulturist and an
What a great class our business underwriters made avid birder. He works in the
possible! Twenty-two students graduated from hardware store at Whitethorn
our 7-month program and served as docents for Construction.
this year’s Summer Hike Program. They ranged
in age from 16 to 70, and came from all walks
of life—teachers, high school and college
students, retirees and naturalists, to name a
few. Some traveled nearly 200 miles round-
trip twice a month to spend time together in
the woods and classroom learning to identify native
plants and the bones and scat of animals who live
in the Sanctuary Forest. After a few classes and
hikes, we recognized the common bond between us
all—our love of the forest. It was very rewarding for
me to teach so many enthusiastic and kind people.
You can take part in the 2005 Docent Training
Program and make new friends in the woods, or
join the business underwriting team. Topo map view of our popular
Big Red hiking trail.
123° 56'W, 39° 59'N
How will we interact with our community
resources—the river, fish, trees, plants and ani-
mals? How will we model our values? Thanks
to a grant from the California Coastal
What will the
Conservancy, Sanctuary Forest and our part-
Sanctuary Forest
ners in the Upper Mattole River & Forest
Cooperative, with your help, will soon begin look like twenty
crafting a wildlife management plan for the years from now?
Sanctuary Forest lands. As a donor from near or
far, you helped to create and continue to sustain
this old-growth and salmon reserve. This winter
we will mail you a planning questionnaire. Share
your voice and help shape our future.
© C. Lentz

© C. Lentz
Big Red in 2004
Thank You
Thank you Francis O. Scarpulla
for partial funding of this newsletter,
and all those who support the work
of Sanctuary Forest by volunteering
or donating. Gratitude to the
steelhead returning to
Ancestor Creek.
Graphic Design Team:
John Angus
Susanna Snodgrass
Protecting Land We Love On-line in 2005!
Inspired by Wild Beauty
It’s Monday morning and the Sanctuary Forest www.sanctuaryforest.org
office is humming with activity—a new week of I moved to the Whitethorn valley with my wife,
We’re building a new internet
projects and meetings for staff whose dedication, Lela, in August 1995. San Francisco was our home portal to Sanctuary Forest.
energy and creativity make our dreams for the forest for years, but this place Coming in 2005, you’ll find
come true. called to us. For Lela it ongoing descriptions of our
was coming home to the conservation projects, the latest
As a Board member and chair of the Fundraising
place of her childhood, hike information, news about
Committee, I have to consider how we fund the
the familiar sounds, our education programs, maps,
work that fills the days of our staff. Generally, and ways you can help protect
smells, and nuances of
government agencies and private foundations that the Mattole watershed. You’ll
this valley. For me it was
help us buy land do not fund personnel or office be able to make donations on-
an act of faith, a return to
expenses, so we look for individual contributions to line, too! Open a window that
a path explored in youth.
keep our office open. The office hum comes from a leads to a virtual trail into the
As a teenager in Philadelphia I loved to pore over
team of professionals who juggle technical information Sanctuary Forest. We invite
maps, find the green spots that marked the wilder- you to shout out to us via the
and sensitive interactions. Protecting vital land
ness, load up my backpack and hitchhike off into web or enjoy a moment of
wouldn’t get far without your donations to pay staff
adventure. I was spiritually hungry and the wilder- reflection at sanctuaryforest.org
for writing grants, working with neighbors, meeting
ness gave me perspective hard to find in the swirl of
with state and federal agencies, and carrying out We’re looking for input on
urban adolescence.
successful restoration projects. our site from you. Watch for
My first years here I was immersed in building my seasonal program updates,
Your donations make our Lands, Summer Hike,
plumbing business. It was challenging to adapt what photos of watershed activity,
Scholarship and other programs possible. Working including images of the
I had done in the city to the culture and economy of
on conservation easements, even raising money, Mattole that you want to
this rural area. Eventually I worked it out, while
takes staff time. Join our team of donors to support share with us. Artistic and
falling more deeply in love with the wild beauty of
the work of Sanctuary Forest and ensure the health technical volunteers from near
this place.
of the Mattole River watershed. and far are always welcome!
In Fall 2001 I joined the Board of Directors and
Janice Parakilas is Vice President of the Board of Directors and Everett M. King is our volun-
office manager for an optometry practice in nearby Redway. enrolled in the Docent Training Program. It was a teer webmaster. A retired
For the past 11 years she has lived along the Mattole River. powerful combination. Hiking in the Sanctuary Environmental Specialist, he
Forest and studying the flora and fauna deepened and his wife Evelyn purchased
my connection to the land and my commitment to land near the Mattole in 1981
the often-times conceptual work of Board member- and now live here full-time.
ship. It is the physical experience of being on the
land that gives me the juice to do the fundraising
and hours of meetings required to realize our mis-
sion. Your direct support fuels our capacity to pre- Cover art by Valery McKee,
serve and protect this fragile, awe-inspiring forest. I grandmother & 45-year
Mattole Valley resident
am honored to be on the Board, and deeply grateful
for our talented, hardworking staff. The joy, intelli-
gence, wisdom and open-heartedness of the
© C. Lentz
Sanctuary Forest family is a gift in my life.
President Michael Torbert presents local student Sione Courson with her
Community Business Scholarship. This is the ninth year that Sanctuary Jimmy Friel chairs our Education & Outreach Committee. He
Forest has been awarding scholarships to local youth supported by is a Docent Training Program instructor, summer hike leader,
business underwriters, John Dimmick and friends of Rondal Snodgrass. dedicated Mattole River restoration monitor and advocate.