Spotlight on Stewardship
In the Spotlight: Larry Reymann, class of '05
In his own words...
Tired of Tires
"I wanted to give a little update on a community service event on May Creek this last Saturday (3/4/06) with students from Eastside Catholic High School. I had discovered an old tire dump the previous weekend while working with volunteers from Seattle Pacific University clearing ivy from trees along the creek. I figured there were at least 50 tires, and told our group to be ready for a dirty, strenuous afternoon eliminating mosquito nurseries.
What an understatement that turned out to be! As we dug them out from the undergrowth (they had to have been dumped there decades ago) we kept discovering more, many still with their metal rims attached. We ended up with almost 500 tires, filled with dirt and water and covered with blackberry canes and debris. These kids didn't hesitate or whine, but hauled them all out of the woods and stacked them along Jones Road.
I had arranged for a truck from King County to haul them away, but after four loads there were still over 200 tires that were taken away later in the week. One student won a little competition we held by carrying seven tires at once to the road!
We talked a lot as we worked about salmon and ecology, native and invasive species, and how we are all responsible for the natural world we are blessed to inhabit. I want to thank Chris Baier, a science teacher from Eastside Catholic who joined us, and Troy Deady from King County who drove the truck, and let you know how proud I am of a small group of Eastside Catholic High School students who spent a sunny Saturday making May Creek a better place for salmon and the hairless apes who share their environment.”
One of Larry’s passions is actively working to restore sections of May Creek near his home in Renton. He is also a Cedar River Naturalist, a King County Parks & Trails Ambassador, and a Beach Naturalist. Way to go, Larry!
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