Cleaning Up our National Park

On January 12, a record breaking 22 days into the government shut down, staff and volunteers gathered at the Point Bonita YMCA to do a park clean up in the surrounding National Park Service managed areas. 

A brief pause in the rain brought sunshine and beautiful views to our group, reminding many of us the value of getting outdoors, breathing fresh air, and connecting with people from our community. 

Our group included volunteers as young as 10 years old, individuals who are studying in the Bay Area from Germany and Sweden, as well as Point Bonita staff who reside within the Marin Headlands. We were able to clean up areas like the Bicentennial Camp Ground, which has been impacted by the government shut down, and admire the views of the crashing waves along Rodeo Beach. 

All involved felt encouraged by the ability to impact our community during a challenging time, and were delighted to share some chats with other park visitors who were quick to thank us for our time and work. 

The work that was done one Saturday was impactful, but it was even more exciting to know that the work of educating our youth and creating opportunities for people to get outside in nature that is done by Point Bonita, and the YMCA of San Francisco, is creating a future generation that will continue to care for our public lands- regardless of government shut downs or forecasts of rain!