Friends of Lake Accotink Park FLAP ISSUE 06 July 2020 Inside this issue: Board Notes NOTES FROM THE BOARD - Mary Keeser, President FLAP FLAP Information THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS, SPONSORS AND DONORS Our Impact We cannot accomplish our Mission without you: “Protect, restore, preserve and educate all concerning the natural, historical and cultural resources Critter of the Quarter of Lake Accotink Park" Upcoming Meetings It has been my honor to serve as Friends Of Lake Accotink Park-FLAP President these past two years. and Events Working with our dedicated Board Members (Tony Vellucci, Jim Hickey, Meghan Walker and Dave Gibson), all whom have given so much of their time and talents to ensure the success of Lake Accotink Park FLAP. Although the FCPA and its stakeholders are an extensive organization; I’d like to single out Staff Notes Chris Goldbecker, FCPA Managed Parks, Section Manager. Chris was always there to coordinate and navigate the system to find the answer or solution, often providing professional guidance and Supervisor Notes mentorship along the way. During my tenure, we experienced the assignments of four separate Acting LAP Managers, some only being in the position a few months. We are fortunate to have ARTICLES welcomed Dan Grulke, as our permanent Lake Accotink Park Manager. Dan’s transition was seamless, and together as partners, we continue our steadfast commitment to ensuring we Fairfax County Park accomplish our mission: "Protect, restore, preserve and educate all concerning the natural, historical Authority and cultural resources of Lake Accotink Park”. Young FLAPers Our accomplishments: Outreach to Volunteers/ Sponsorship/ Donors/ By Laws/Articles of Incorporation. (Friends Of Lake Accotink Park) State Registration/IRS - EIN/Bank Account/ Non Profit Communications 501c3/P.O. Box/Domaine/ Emails/Website/PayPal account / FCPA MOU/Permanent meeting and storage space/Monthly meeting with FCPA /Parktakes Outreach/FCPF / File structure and archives / SPONSORS Storage Shed/ Branding/Newsletter/ Projects- Activities /MKEPG – Educational Pollinator Garden/ Additional Dog Waste Stations/ Monthly Clean-Ups/FLAP Newsletter/Young FLAPers /Relationship & Sound Off Communications with stakeholders / Sponsorships/Donors and so much more. It has been my privilege to work with our amazing Volunteers and Members though all the seasons, together rolling up our sleeves and working side by side to accomplish our missions. Thank you again for allowing me to join you in taking care of our Lake Accotink Park and to educate others to do the same. YOU CAN HELP: FLAP Board member nominees now being accepted. Critical to our success are our Committee Directors, members and volunteers. We need your talents and skills (a few hours a month). To volunteer send your contact information to [email protected]. FRIENDS OF LAKE ACCOTINK BOARD FAREWELL TO LONG-TIME FLAP BOARD MEMBER, MEGHAN WALKER Meghan Walker has served the community and Friends of Lake Accotink Park for well over a decade as a steadfast, committed environmental volunteer. Meghan has held many positions within the Friends of Lake Accotink Park (FLAP) including President, Treasurer, and Communications Director; leading, planning, and participating in numerous impactful projects to the community, watershed, and grounds of Lake Accotink Park. The time and effort necessary in any volunteer organization for a President, Treasurer, or Communications Director to plan, organize, coordinate, monitor and track, direct, schedule, re-schedule, integrate, provide feedback and capture lessons learned for any one of these tasks can be significant. Considering she and a myriad of FLAP volunteers accomplished so many general advocacy, cultural, and environmental support tasks is commendable, noteworthy, and truly deserving of recognition. And during this time she also served as the Treasurer of the Danbury Forrest Community Association – no small feat in and of itself – where she helped to secure DFCA approval of an easement for the Park Authority to construct a switchback trail that spanned both DFCA and FCPA property to rectify an unsafe trail access to Lake Accotink Park. She spoke on behalf of the community association at the ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by both Chairman Sharon Bulova and Supervisor John Cook. She has volunteered and judged cardboard boats and dog costumes and many other activities for Park Authority events. She has provided significant input to the master plan process; and she has been a substitute host / master of ceremonies during the Park Authority’s Summer Entertainment Series Braddock Nights at Lake Accotink Park. Megan will be missed as a FLAP Board member, but rest assured she will continue to serve her community and participate in FLAP projects and activities. Thank you Meghan from the FLAP Board Note: We will honor Meghan for her service during an upcoming August event (details coming later) 2 OUR IMPACT FLAP Volunteers continue our Positive Impact to Lake Accotink Park. Big thank you to all of our 65+ volunteers of all ages. On Sunday, June 14, together we collected over 200 pounds of trash along the trails at the marina. With the help of Scout Troop 1131, we finished mulching the Margaret Kinder Educational Pollinator Garden and placing a rock edging around the garden. Great work everyone! For those who donated funds, thank you! We are fundraising for additional dog waste stations and the sign for our Pollinator Garden as well as many educational programs! 3 Thank you to Jim Bertolini and Dave Gibson for the photos above! CRITTER OF THE QUARTER WOOD DUCK By Dave Gibson, FLAP Treasurer At Lake Accotink Park we are blessed with a variety of water fowl, from our great blue heron and the snowy egret to our cormorants and geese and ducks. Mallards are better-known and more frequently seen, but wood ducks add personality and beauty to the scene. Wood ducks (Aix sponsa) range all over North America and Cuba. The male wood duck has distinctive coloration of iridescent greens, purples, and blues with an offsetting white chin patch and face stripes. His bill is mainly golden brown or reddish. Female plumage is a modest gray with a broad white eye ring. Webbed feet make them excellent swimmers. Both sexes are generally 17 to 20 inches long with wing spans from 26 to 29 inches. The male is heavier (6.2 to 9.2 pounds vs. 4.0 to 7.7 pounds for the female). The female has the louder voice, calling “Woooo-eeek!” The male answers with a softer “Jee?” or “Terwee?” The ability of wood ducks to nest in hollow trees or other cavities enables them to breed successfully in riparian habitats or wooded swamps where ground cover is sparse. This nesting ability also makes them eager occupants of human-made nesting boxes hung above ground (or water). They typically produce 9 to 12 whitish or tan eggs after lining the nest with down. Shortly after hatching, the young become anxious to leave the nest and will eventually jump to the ground to join their mother in an impressive flotilla. Although they are mainly vegetarian, feeding on aquatic plants, seeds, nuts and fruits, wood ducks also eat insects, snails, tadpoles, and salamanders. Their predators include foxes, skunks, wild cats, and wolves; however, the most voracious and successful predators are snapping turtles, which can suddenly grab a duckling by a foot and drown it. (Photo credits: Tom Kinder and National Wildlife Federation) 4 FLAP UPCOMING MEETINGS – EVENTS Flapaccotink.org (calendar tab) https://flapaccotink.org/?post_type=tribe_events JULY AUG SEPT OCT 7/12/20 8/09/20 9/13/20 10/11/20 Monthly Cleanup Marina Monthly Cleanup Marina Monthly Cleanup Marina Monthly Cleanup Marina 9 am- 11 am 9 am- 11 am 9 am- 11 am 9 am- 11 am 7/30/20 8/29/20 9/17/20 Quarterly Membership Margaret Kinder Quarterly Membership Meeting Meeting Educational Garden 5610 Inverchapel Rd, Location: Large Pavilion Dedication Springfield. Starts at 7:30pm Starts at 7:00pm 9am ON HOLD 2020 FLAP GENERAL MEMBERSHIP and ALLIANCE(s) MEETING SCHEDULE LOCATION: Community of Christ 5610 Interchapel Road, Springfield VA 22151 TIME: 7:00pm to 8:30pm DATES: On Thursday– July 30 (see different location below) TITLE: FLAP Quarterly Membership Meeting LOCATION: Large Pavilion adjacent to Pollinator Garden DATE: 30 July 2020 TIME: 6:30 - 8:30 (meeting will start at 7pm) FOOD/WATER: Anita's Mexican Restaurant is providing (individually wrapped) appetizers. We'll provide the water, napkins, plates. We will clean up. September 17, December 17 LOCATION: 5610 Inverchapel Rd, Springfield. Starts at 7:30pm 5 LAKE ACCOTINK PARK STAFF NOTES Dan Grulke, Manager of Lake Accotink Park We thank the community for its continued support and usage of Lake Accotink Park during these tough and new times. You May Have Missed This – The Lake Accotink Core Area has undergone a transformation. Through the hard work of the F.C.P.A. team, we now have new siding and roofs for our buildings, our curbs have been repainted, and the parking spaces have been relined. All Lake Accotink Park staff, including Ed Miller, Anna Hellwege-Bales, Julie Martin, Ken Fulling, Dylan Van Balen, and Marshall Yaffe, have stepped up to help get the park back open and ready for future phases of re-opening. In the Cue – Work on the concrete walls around the marina office, the large shelter, and the turn-a-round will begin shortly. They are scheduled to be painted. In the Works – As many of you have noticed, the storm water retention work on private property on Accotink Park Road has begun. The property owner, the contractor, and Stormwater Management have worked together to correct this issue. Just So You Know – Park staff is dedicated to being present and visible during operating hours. The Park Manager and/or the Manager-on-Duty will be in the marina office during business hours.