(Mission Times Courier, San Diego, Ca) - September 19, 2009 was a fairly mild day considering the preceding and subsequent heat we endured.  Our collective karma must have been good.  September 19th was the I Love a Clean San Diego cleanup day at Lake Murray.  The day was a tribute to the International Coastal Cleanup's 25th Anniversary.  I Love a Clean San Diego is held in conjunction with Coastal Cleanup Day and in fact it is an inland adjunct.

Wow - what a turnout! There were 238 participants and 328 lbs of trash and recyclables were picked up in 194 bags. The foam bait cups, fishing line, cigarette butts, plastic bags and lures don't weigh much but there were an abundance of each. Lots of children participated and everyone seemed happy.  Eight to ten miles were covered. There was traipsing down to the shore and up to Jackson Drive, to the Lake Park condos and behind the houses on Lake Shore Dr.  Also the ball fields, Kiddy Park on Murray Park Drive and everything near the tennis courts to Park Ridge Blvd.

Four rowboats and two canoes went out on the lake to collect trash in the water and in the reeds.  Lake staff ferried groups to the ball field side where our co-captains, Charlie and Arleene Beckhusen set up a table for anyone who wanted to pick up on the west side of the lake.  Roscoe Anderson and Lucas Kjaero drove around the lake continuously to bring water and bags to the volunteers. Other Friends of Lake Murray who helped were: Larry Stoman who weighed bags as they came in after the pickup; Carol Daugherty, Kristin Kjaero, Lourdes Currier, Bill Woods and Dickie Sturz manned the registration tables and counted the data sheets.  Lourdes's sister, Delores and Delores' daughter Natalie helped at the snack table. Ruben Nava Jr. handed out trash bags to pick up and commemorative totes to take home. All of these people worked very hard to make the event run smoothly.

"Starbucks Lake Murray" donated coffee, condiments, cups and napkins.  "Souplantation Mission Gorge" donated gallons of lemonade and cups. These businesses are wonderful and we appreciate their participation in our event.  They are good neighbors. The Friends of Lake Murray donated donuts. We also had water, power bars, and tote bags donated by the Coastal Cleanup and I Love a Clean San Diego organization. "Bob Baker Subaru of El Cajon" donated car kits.
Neighborhood businesses that displayed posters that advertised the cleanup at Lake Murray are: Windmill Farms, Keils Market, Starbucks Lake Murray and Lake Murray Café.

Schools that put up posters are: St. Martins of Tours Academy, Green Elementary, Our Lady of Peace School and Our Lady of Grace School. In addition: La Mesa City Hall, Cowles Mountain Coffee stand and Mission Trails Visitor Regional Park Visitor Center.  Thanks to all for getting the word out.

Some of the volunteers who picked up trash included Girls and Boy Scouts, San Diego State Engineer Girls, students from schools including Our Lady of Peace, Helix High students and St. Martins of Tours Academy who have been with our cleanup since the beginning of the Friends participation in the cleanup; That has been five years. Little children with mom and even grandparents showed their green side. It was an opportunity to teach the little ones not to litter.  I wonder if that works on their rooms. Picking up trash at the lake is more fun; Especially when one is with friends.

San Diego County Coastal Cleanup and I Love a Clean San Diego overall statistics include; 10,143 volunteers and 133, 453 pounds of debris at 80 sites.  Statewide, 75,000 volunteers picked up over a million pounds of trash. 50 states and over 100 countries participate in the annual Coastal Cleanup.  What a terrific effort to fight marine junk that doesn't belong in the water that covers most of our planet. Thank you everyone and we will see you next year.

October 26th is Rabbi Ben Rosen's 93rd birthday. As many of you remember that three years ago Ben died at Lake Murray. He was brought back to life with immediate Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) administered by runners Mary Panzer and Laura Burger.  Ed Blank directed ambulance drivers in to where Ben was down.  Dana Dugan calmed Ben and talked him into going to the hospital.  Ben will be ninety-three years old and in ten more years, he will have a bar mitzvah. Ben had four angels taking care of him. We, who know his story, are happy to see him walking and smiling at the lake every day. Happy birthday Ben.

For the past two columns, I have written something about snakes.  I have an addendum and I promise that this will be the last column that I write about them. Then again, maybe I won't promise.  When I spoke to the herpetologist at the Natural History Museum, Dr. Hollingsworth he told me why we may be seeing snakes in our yards.  He said that if we have bird feeders, we have rats.  If we have rats, we will have snakes visiting us.  That is the last of my snake comments for today.

The California Legislature Assembly presented a certificate of recognition to Lake Murray in honor of outstanding achievement.  The East County Californian Readers Poll 2009 for best fishing voted the lake as the best of East County.  Our great lake staff is responsible for this accolade and the staff members are entitled to this honor and more.  Reservoir Keeper Gayle Havens, Assistant Reservoir Keeper Ruben Nava, Leo Smith, Karen Ibach, Katie Dupras, and Tremaine Dickey deserve our congratulations and thanks for continuing to do a good job. Congrats and thanks.

During last years holiday season, Dana Dugan initiated a food drive at Lake Murray.  Every day, canned food was dropped off at each end of the lake. Dana picked up the food between 6-8am. It was so successful that she has decided to continue the drive.  She is looking at the first week in December to start off her program for the San Diego Food Bank. There will be notices at the lake and I will confirm times and places of the drop offs in my next column.

A guard will be placed near the food to protect it from Dickie Sturz who came to the site with a can opener. He threatened to have breakfast. His opener was wrenched from his meaty little hands.
Our next Friends of Lake Murray meeting is November 19, 2009. We will welcome Reverend Marshall Masser.  Marshall is a triathlete. Triathletes participate in events that include swimming, biking and running.  He also hikes and will tell us about his hiking the John Muir Trail. He and friends started the trek in Yosemite Park.  It took him and friends eighteen days to complete. Being an avid exerciser, Marshall is already slim but he lost twelve pounds on journey.  The Muir Trail is a portion of the Pacific Crest Trail that reaches from Mexico to Canada. 

Our meeting is at St. Dunstan's Episcopal Church at 5:00pm. The church is on the corner of Wandermere Dr. and Park Ridge Blvd. in San Carlos. For more information about our programs, call Barbara Cleves at (619) 463-9706.

We will not have a December meeting due to many holiday activities.