Water Tenders, Bear Creek Basin Conservationists

My daughter, Lexie, was youth Water Tender Board Member while in high school.  In 2023 she was promoted to Lead Environmental Scientist for a regional engineering company in Spokane.  Lexie's LinkedIn information.

By Terry Lavender

Founder, Water Tenders

"Water Tenders is a group of  people who care about the wetlands and streams in the Bear Creek area and King County..."  (Water Tender Gary Smith works closely with Terry on Bear Creek land acquisitions.)

I have been a Water Tenders member for all of its 25 years. Reflection is good and I feel pride and more than a little awe in what Water Tenders has accomplished. Some of the actions were the starting point for landscape-wide changes. The simple act of consistently collecting and reporting rain water led to the realization that one size does not fit all—Bear Creek gets almost double the rainfall of SeaTac and development standards must change. Careful observation and reporting led to improvements countywide in temporary erosion and sedimentation measures. We showed that people will work with their neighbors and enroll in tax incentives to protect natural habitat on their property and have been a positive voice for Bear Creek in the City of Redmond.  We have recorded baselines for species from amphibians to freshwater mussels and the biology of Paradise Valley Conservation Area with good, citizen-collected data.  We originated salmon docent programs that are now active all over King County and the list goes on.

I admit to angst about the future, however.  Groups like Water Tenders are rare.  People join forces to fight a development, support a piece of legislation or right some environmental wrong and end their involvement when the cause is won or lost.  Water Tenders has fought these battles but it has also been the slow and steady force that works to change the rules that allowed the problem, educate the neighbors, advocate for acquisition of important properties and then maintain and restore them and continually be the positive voice for a healthy Bear Creek.  Like the rain, we have been constant and it has mattered.   

There seems to be an evolution in the way people become involved. The number of environmental organizations has grown. Most have staff and require significant resources to maintain the organization. While effective, they are not as local and pin point in their actions as a group like Water Tenders. People will write checks and turn out for organized, one time work events. They will still join to stop something they don’t want in the neighborhood. While all this is important real work, steady pressure and a positive local presence are still needed to make the big changes over time.

“Meet the Salmon” is a good example. You could argue it is Water Tender’s most successful educational and community event and yet it has been canceled the past few years.  It has had two leaders each of whom organized and worked the event for a number of years.  This involves getting out notices and press, getting volunteer docents, putting up signs, gathering handouts and many other tasks.  The time involved is probably 20 plus hours each year but you have to treat it like a job that must get done.  For the last years of the event over 300 people attended and it was well loved.  But finding that person, willing to step up to the level of commitment as a leader is what is needed and has proven difficult.

You can’t help but be in awe of the positive impact Water Tenders has had in stewarding Bear Creek. But we need more humans willing to take even small leadership roles for this powerful voice to continue. It is important, meaningful and joyous work.  I have met my neighbors by following the rain from all our yards and neighborhoods to the creek and the salmon fighting their way up.  I joined with others and planted trees that now look like a forest.  I hope we will look back on 50 years work on behalf of the forests, creeks and critters with which we share this watershed and be proud of our place in the historical record of environmental movements.  Maybe you will pull this newsletter out of a file somewhere in 2038 and remember when you got involved.

So what do you need to do to make sure this happens? Become an active member of Water Tenders. Send in your dues, come to a work party or two and step up to leading one -- just one day of pulling weeds to help some trees get a good start.  Step up to leading Meet the Salmon for 2013.  Come to a meeting to offer to help on one of the projects discussed.  Attend WRIA 8, Sustainable

Redmond, or some other Bear Creek related discussion and say you are a Water Tender.  Maybe even take a turn at being our president.  But don't sit by and let this die -- commit to being a leader or worker for a few hours a year.  We have proven that it can change the outcome.

-- Water Tenders Spring/Summer 2013 Newsletter - Celebrating 25 years!

 

Water Tenders

Mailing Address:

P.O. Box 402

Woodinville, WA 98072

Water Tenders is a 501 (3) (C) non-profit organization. Contributions are fully tax deductible by law.

Terry Lavender, Founder, can be reached at tlavender2@frontier.com