Donation Supports Friends' Education and
Restoration Programs for All Ages
Playa del Rey, CA (January 13, 2014) – Southern California Edison (SCE) awarded a $35,000 grant to the Friends of Ballona Wetlands, the venerable wetlands education and preservation group, which will help the Friends continue its stewardship and protection of the environmentally sensitive Ballona Wetlands.
The mission of the non-profit Friends of Ballona Wetlands is to champion the restoration and protection of the 600-acre Ballona Wetlands State Ecological Reserve, involving and educating the public as advocates and stewards. Each year, the Friends host over 7,000 visitors, in partnership with local Audubon chapters who reach out to an additional 2,000 upper elementary school children, for interpretive wetlands tours and hands-on dunes restoration. The Wetlands provide crucial habitat for hundreds of species of birds and other wildlife, as well as open space recreational opportunity for the public.
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SCE’s new grant will fund a variety of community science educational activities, providing bus transportation, field tools, intern oversight and T-shirts for school children visiting the Wetlands and participating in habitat restoration. Each month, the Friends lead groups of volunteers in restoring native dune habitat at the western border of the Wetlands. The Friends perform this work under special permits granted by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California Coastal Commission, and in collaboration with organizations such as The Bay Foundation, Heal the Bay, and Loyola Marymount University’s Center for Urban Resilience.
This is the sixth year in a row that SCE has awarded the Friends a grant. “Last year, SCE's generous gift was used to extend our community outreach and education programs reaching out to several new underserved schools,” said Lisa Fimiani, executive director of the Friends. “This coming year we will further expand our K-12 outdoor educational programs to schools, continuing to focus on underserved communities within the SCE service territories of Hawthorne, Compton, Inglewood and other cities."
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"Southern California Edison is committed to improving the environment for communities we serve by supporting organizations like Friends, which engage the public in preserving our natural resources and educate our youth,” said Marissa Castro-Salvati, Region Manager for Edison. "We've been impressed for some time with the depth and breadth of the Friends' education efforts, which encompass all ages, from kindergarten to senior citizens—a total of 80,000 volunteers since 1994."
"Friends of Ballona Wetlands is once again grateful for Edison’s support. Their funding was especially helpful this year for renting buses to transport school children to the wetlands, so they could participate in our education program. The green T-shirts, with Friends’ and SCE logos on them and a great saying: ‘Take a break, Take a friend, Explore Ballona’, were a big hit with the kids. "Edison understands the impact businesses have on the community and how giving back helps improve the quality of life of its customers."
Enjoy your Ballona Wetlands, and bring the Kids!
www.ballonafriends.org
