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In any "community service project", there are people along the way that help, support, reality-check, edit,
cheer...and just plain give of themselves to make things happen. I have met SO many incredible people and I want
to publicly acknowledge their role in the approval of the "Brake For Ducks" signs.
The name of this website, "Duck Heroes", is to acknowledge everyone who
had a hand (...or wing!) in making this project happen. Here are my "Duck Heroes"...in order of appearance:
The Ducks (...themselves!) of The Woodlands, TX
It's hard to explain, but everytime I stop for ducks crossing the road, I feel...honored! To me, encountering
ducks in our roadways is like coming face to face with the innocence and vulnerability
of nature; in that
moment, I am reminded of the huge
responsibility we all have in safeguarding our environment. It's also a
reality
check of my own actions; what am I
doing to preserve the environment?...and...could I be doing more? In
our fast
paced, high tech world, I am
grateful to the ducks for reminding me to slow down and appreciate the beauty of
our natural surroundings here in The Woodlands, TX.
Stephanie D. -- Friend
It
was Stephanie who told me of her experience when she stopped for a duck
in the road and the car behind
her impatiently laid on their horn,
then whipped around her and sped away...almost hitting the duck. This
incident, in
addition to my own duck-traffic
"close encounter", made me realize that residents of The Woodlands
really needed help
dealing with the ducks. There were
no duck signs anywhere and no locally established
"Duck-Traffic" guidelines,
either. I knew something had to be done...but what?
Rev. Benjamin Maucere, Interim Minister 2007-2008
Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Church
The Woodlands, TX
Although I wanted to do something to improve the safety of the ducks and
traffic in The Woodlands,
I was in a state of "non-action"
because I didn't know where to start and to be quite honest, was simply
afraid
to "get involved". At a church
meeting, Rev. Maucere challenged everyone in the room to stand
up and declare
something that we each were "willing
to commit to, in order to make a difference". As I watched
everyone else
stand and make their commitment, I
realized...this was the moment for me to finally DO something to make a difference
for the ducks! It was this challenge and also, seeing everyone else's willingness to give
of themselves, that
gave me the courage to finally act
on this issue.
Gina Hall -- "Brake For Ducks"
Fenwick Island, DE
When
I finally committed myself to DO something, I went to the internet to
research ducks, traffic, etc.
Luckily for me...and our ducks!...I
found Gina Hall's site explaining how she started a "Brake For Ducks"
campaign in her
community in 1994. She made
posters, bumper stickers and placed collection cans in businesses to
raise money to pay
for the duck signs. Her success
inspired me in my own effort in The Woodlands; if she could do it, we
could do it, too! Gina...you are a true "DUCK-HERO"! The link to her site is: www.mgrafix.com -- click on "Brake For Ducks" link.
Ray Culotta -- Husband & Board Member, Alden Bridge Village Association (ABVA)
Ray
suggested that I present my proposal to the ABVA first and get their
support before going to the County
Commissioner for approval. He helped a great deal with my presentation graphics, designing
the sign and perhaps, most importantly...he built the "Buck$-for-Duck$" fund raising game.
Forrest Culotta -- Son & Future Grammy Award Winner
Forrest
went with me on my first public venture asking local businesses to
post "Brake For Ducks" fliers
in their windows. It was our attempt
to raise community awareness for ducks at Cypress Lake in early
Spring, when
they were more likely to be active
and in the road (Alden Bridge Dr.).
Businesses at the Alden Bridge Kroger Center:
Blockbuster
Baskin-Robbins
Nails of America
Rico's Mexican Restaurant
L'Avantage Spa
MW Cleaners
Papa John's Pizza
Walgreens
Goodyear Tires
Chick-Fil-A
We approached several businesses to post our fliers. Some businesses had official company policies
against posting any such fliers and we had to accept that. But...the businesses above did post our fliers
and we were grateful for their enthusiastic support!
Entire Congregation -- Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Church, The Woodlands, TX
The
Sunday before I made my presentation to the ABVA, I made an
announcement to our congregation that
I was about to embark on this
"community service project" involving the ducks. Everyone's support
and encouragment eased
a lot of the jitters I was starting
to feel about my impending presentation to the "officials".
The Alden Bridge Village Association Board (ABVA):
Claude Hunter, The Woodlands Association Director
Philip Barker, President
Steve Leakey, Vice President
Ross Vickers, Treasurer
Darla Bell, Secretary
Area Representatives:
Michael Cannetti, Ray Culotta, Sean Guillory, Chris Irish,
Debra Karl, Jessica Stanfield, Lisa
Morris, Lauri Ricks, Kendrick Skipper, Colette Stowe, Summer Sanford,
Theresa Wagaman,
Dale Wood, Adele Yung and Joe McCann
The ABVA Board was very positive and supported my proposal! Even though I went way
over my
allotted time to speak, they were
patient and listened to what I had to say. I feel lucky to have such a
great
group of people on the Alden Bridge
Board! With their endorsement, my proposal was submitted to Pct. 2 County
Commissioner,
Craig Doyal, for final approval.
Ruth Pewitt -- Friends of Texas Wildlife
To raise
more community awareness about "duck-traffic" safety, I applied for a
booth at our local annual
"Earth Day Festival", but there
weren't any spots left. The organizers suggested that I contact Friends of Texas
Wildlife and ask if they had room for me in their double booth. Ruth Pewitt invited me to participate with the group
and I found their goal of "promoting co-existence with wildlife" to be exactly what I was trying to achieve with the
ducks and traffic; I became a member of FTW. In
addition to their "co-existence" mission,
they are the people that
rehabilitate injured animals and return them to the wild once they have
recovered. An incredible
group of dedicated individuals, they
are true HEROES! To learn more about them: www.friendsoftexaswildlife.org (NOTE: Their website should be required reading for every resident of The Woodlands; ever find a
baby bird that fell out of its nest? They have all the answers on what to do!)
Charlie Riley -- Office of County Commissioner, Craig Doyal, Montgomery County,
Pct. 2.
Charlie called to tell me that my proposal for the duck sign had been approved (Yay!)...but that they were
having trouble finding a decent duck sign in stock. I told him we would provide a custom made
sign and
he said if we did that...the County
would be happy to put it up! I couldn't believe it only took a few
weeks to get
the approval; I had thought it
would take much, much longer! Hey, Charlie! You really made my day!
Craig Doyal -- County Commisioner, Montgomery County, Pct. 2.
The
same day that Charlie Riley called to tell me the sign had been
approved, County Commissioner, Craig
Doyal, was to be the guest speaker
at the April ABVA meeting. I attended the meeting, met Craig Doyal and
thanked him
personally for approving my
proposal. It was a lucky coincidence for me that I was able to meet him
and thank him on
the same day I received official approval for the sign!
The Villager Newspaper - The Woodlands, TX
The Villager
printed my "Letter to the Editor" on May 15, 2008, reminding the
community that our local ducks
are more active in Spring and to
watch out for them on roads near our lakes and ponds. I also introduced
the
concept of an official
"Duck-Traffic" protocol to make traffic safer when someone stops to
allow ducks to cross the road.
Melissa Goetz -- Office of County Commissioner, Craig Doyal, Montgomery County, Pct. 2.
Melissa was my "connection" to Craig Doyal, Charlie Riley and Brady Copeland. In the very
busy office of the County
Commissioner, she made sure my messages "got through" and coordinated
ALL of the activity that
was necessary to get the signs put
up!
Polaris E & E Services, Inc -- The Woodlands, TX
Polaris, my employer, had no problem with allowing me to "duck" out from work on the day the signs were
to be put up. They are a great group to work with! (NOTE: If
you have 2D or 3D seismic data
that needs to be formatted for
Landmark, GeoFrame or SMT...we are IT! We are the industry experts in
this area;
no one else comes close!)
Brady Copeland -- Road Sign Maintenance, Montgomery County, Pct. 2
Brady
was the one who actually put up the "Brake For Ducks" signs at Cypress
Lake. I thought it was
going to take several
hours...digging holes, pouring cement, etc., but he used a neat base
setup for the signs and was done
with both of them in about 25 mins!
(Pssst! Hey, Brady!...You're too efficient! I thought I was going
to spend the whole afternoon putting up signs, but you finished so quickly, I actually had to go back to work!)
Carol, Dave and Gabriel -- Action Wear Plus-Spring, TX
As
a fundraising project, we designed commemorative, "Limited Edition"
T-shirts with the "Brake For
Ducks" sign on the front and the
"Duck-Traffic" Protocol on the back. The folks at Action Wear Plus gave
me lots of
technical "T-shirt advice" and did a
great job printing them!
Final Thoughts on Cypress Lake Project
And now...the first "Brake For Ducks" signs are up at Cypress Lake and that's great!...but, there are other
ponds in The Woodlands that also need duck signs, and they are next on our "to do" list.
I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with everyone mentioned here...what a wonderful adventure
in community service! The famous poet, William Blake, once said,
"Gratitude is heaven, itself."
and to me, that means; if you have something to be grateful for, you must have received some sort of blessing...and
every blessing is a little bit of heaven!
With much gratitude to everyone who helped in the Cypress Lake Project,
Jill Tagudin (:>
May 2008
UPDATE!...AND NOW...MORE DUCK HEROES!
Joel Armstrong -- Spokane, WA
Joel
Armstrong was mentioned earlier on our website, but if you missed it,
he's the bank loan officer who
personally rescued 10 ducklings by
catching each one of them individually as they jumped from an awning 10
feet above a city
sidewalk. Joel and his co-workers
put the ducklings in a cardboard box and then led the mother duck
through 2 blocks
of city traffic to the Spokane River
where they all jumped in and swam about in celebration. Three cheers
for Joel!...a
true Duck Hero Extraordinaire!
To read about Joel (and see the slideshow!), follow this link:
To hear an interview with him on NPR, follow this link:
Brittany Sorrels -- Evansville, IN
This
past May (2008), Brittany, a 6th grader, successfully appealed to her
local Board of Public
Safety to put up duck crossing signs
on a busy road in Evansville, IN. Brittany is a great example of how
children can
play an active role in their
community and also set a great example not only for other kids, but for
adults as well!
To read about Brittany, follow this link:
Cochran's Crossing Village Association Board (CCVA):
Nancy Becker, President
James Perryman, Vice President
James Goldmeyer, Treasurer
Secretary, Bill Mara
Area Representatives: Cynthia Kessinger, Jerry Orebaugh, Lori Riley, Delores Germano, Brian Duelm,
Bebe Smith, Steve Perry, Dave Jesiolowski, Clarence
Wallace, Rodney Beard, Julie Duelm, Marti Fox Meerscheidt, Chris Chamberlain, William Stiffler, Douglas Grijalva
On
June 24, 2008, I presented a proposal to the Cochran's Crossing Village
Association Board to put up duck
signs at Forest Lake at the
intersection of Shadowbend Pl. and Sylvan Forest Dr. They were very
receptive
to my ideas and endorsed my
proposal. Representative Doug Grijalva volunteered to submit the
proposal to County
Commisioner Ed Chance and on the day
we put up the signs, Doug came out to Forest Lake to witness this
"historic" event in
Cochran's Crossing Village.
Ed Chance -- Commissioner of Montgomery County, Pct. 3
Despite being busy with all sorts of other major projects, Commissioner Ed Chance found the time to
approve my proposal. Thank you, Commissioner Chance!
Art Salinas -- Manager, Montgomery County Pct. 3
Art called me to let me know the proposal had been approved and set up a date to install the signs.
He even came out to Forest Lake on the morning we put up the signs!
Ray Stevenson -- Road Sign Maintenance, Montgomery County Pct. 3
Ray
put up both signs and even came up with a clever solution to the
positioning of one of them. The
westbound approach to Forest Lake on
Shadowbend Pl. presented a bit of a challenge in sign placement as
there were already
several signs, etc. (a pedestrian
crossing sign, Stop sign, fire hydrant and street light) all located in
the vicinity
of the duck crossing. Ray placed
the duck sign in the perfect spot where it would be visible by westbound drivers...when
they are stopped at the Stop sign. Thanks for solving the problem, Ray! I get the feeling you've done this
before...
Linda Hughes -- The Woodlands Parks & Rec. Dept.
Linda invited us to participate in the "Touch-A-Truck" festival at the Rob
Fleming Park (August 23, 2008)
where we introduced our new game
"Buck$-For-Duck$". It was a big hit and over 100 children played the
game which helped raise
community awareness and also, some
money to help pay for the duck signs, too!
Lorrie Parise -- The Woodlands Development Co.
Lorrie
set us up to participate in several festivals here in the Woodlands.
So far, we've had fun
at The Annual Wildflower Festival
(Oct. 2008), The Alden Bridge Holiday Festival (Dec. 2008) and also,
Arbor Day (Jan. 2009).
With Lorrie's help, we've been able
to raise awareness (and some duck-sign funds) with our game, "Bucks for
Ducks" . We have SO much fun at
these festivals!!!
The Children (..and Adults!) of The Woodlands Who Played "$Bucks-for-Duck$"
Thanks to ALL of you for playing the game which helped pay for the Duck signs. Remember, when you see the signs by your local pond, YOU helped put it there! YOU are "Duck Heroes"! (...Remember, don't feed the ducks "people food"!)
Joel Armstrong (..again!), Emily Armstrong, Crystal Tobeck and Sterling Bank
-- Spokane, WA
Last
year, Joel rescued a mother duck and her ducklings from an awning
outside his office at Sterling Bank.
His story was spread around the
world via e-mail. This year, the same duck came back (ducklings hatched
May 15, 2009)
and they were all rescued with the
help of Emily Armstrong, Crystal Tobeck and Sterling Bank (the bank even
had
a webcam on the duck!). I sent Joel
one our "Brake For Ducks" signs and Emily carried it as they led the
ducks to the
nearby Spokane River. Crystal was
there all day with Joel helping with crowd control and guiding the ducks
to the river,
too. Here are two links:
Link to the local newspaper story:
Link to the Sterling Bank "Mama Duck" Facebook page:
Link to the ABC World News coverage (May 18, 2009):
Link to additional ABC footage of the rescue and march to the river (you can see Emily holding
up our sign!):
Crystal Tobeck (...again!) and Jada McLaughlin -- Spokane, WA
What?..another
duck a month later on the same ledge at Sterling Bank! Joel Armstrong
was
in a meeting when these ducks
jumped, but luckily Crystal and Jada were there and knew the drill. The
Mama Duck and babies
all made it to the river!
Link to an ABC World News video:
Link to local news story:
Mt. Holly Duck Sanctuary - Amelia, Ohio
Bill Volkart has a duck sanctuary where he cares for injured, abandoned or abused domestic ducks.
Their motto, "Where ducks can be ducks" says it all! Visit their website at this link:
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